Christian had something to prove to himself.
Christian was a part of the WWE from 1998 until 2005 during his first run with the company. Throughout those years he captured multiple tag team titles with a number of different partners and there were some mid-card titles captured during that run as well but Christian always felt that he could kick it into overdrive and get into the main event and be World Champion. The opportunity to go and chase that spot on the card presented itself in 2005 when Christian's contract expired and he went to TNA. Just one year into his run in TNA, he became NWA World Heavyweight Champion. Christian would return to WWE in 2009 and within three years of being back, he became ECW Champion and a two-time World Heavyweight Champion.
Christian had proven to himself that he could hang at the top of the card and be a main event guy and he spoke to that while guest appearing on the 'Prime Time With Sean Mooney' podcast and shared that he always knew he would return to WWE but he needed to leave to find himself as a person and to see if he could be a top guy, stay a top guy and have it mean something.
?So, my thought process going into TNA was, I felt like I kinda had hit, sort of a roadblock in WWE as far as, where I stood. I felt like I was just kind of, ?Alright this is where he?s at. This is where he?s gonna be?, and it just didn?t seem [like] much was gonna change no matter what I did, and I felt like I was getting really strong reactions and having great matches and nothing was changing, and if you wanna change things you have to change it yourself. You can?t expect somebody else to do it for you." Christian explained. "So, my contract was coming up and my mindset was, ?Take a chance on yourself. Bet on yourself like you did all those other times. Go away for a few?? When I left I had every intention of coming back when the time was right. I needed to get out of the grind, and I needed to prove to myself even if it was on a smaller platform, that I could work at the top of card and stay there, and they gave me an amazing opportunity at TNA -- I had a great time there. Dixie Carter was really, really good to me. I?ll never say a bad word about my time there, but they gave me the opportunity to prove to myself and grow as a performer and to gain the maturity that maybe I hadn?t quite had in the previous years. So, when I went back, I felt that I was more of a complete package.? He said.
Christian and his longtime partner and real-life best friend Edge host their own podcast entitled 'E&C's Pod Of Awesomeness' and they host their own show on the WWE Network.
If the quote in this article is used, please credit the 'Prime Time With Sean Mooney' podcast with an H/T to Fightful for the transcription.