Seth Rollins Discusses The Growth Of NXT, Facing Brock Lesnar, More

In an interview with USA Today, Seth Rollins spoke about his upcoming match with Brock Lesnar at WWE Battleground. Here are highlights:

On what’s been surprising about his role as WWE World Heavyweight Champion: “How welcoming everyone else has been. With that bullseye comes a level of competition, but I think it’s healthy. I think everybody else in the locker room is pretty happy to have a full-time champion on the roster again. A guy who’s defending the title in Peoria, Illinois, as well as WrestleMania. I think it’s cool for the boys to see a champion in the locker room every day and not just every few months like it was for the past year.”

On the hardest thing about wrestling Brock: “Well he’s the strongest human being I’ve ever been in the ring with, for one. He’s uniquely quick for his size as well. He’s got a few weaknesses here and there, but overall his game is pretty well rounded. He’s a good striker, a submission expert, he can wrestle you to the ground or throw you around. You have to find those weaknesses and capitalize on them, and you have to basically go into this match knowing you’re going to take a lot of physical punishment. The other guys I’ve been in the ring with during my title run, I’ve had very physical matches — a ladder match with Dean Ambrose, a fatal four way with Roman [Reigns], Dean [Ambrose] and Randy Orton — but Brock Lesnar’s physicality is on another level.”

On the growth of NXT: “When I got to developmental, NXT didn’t even exist. The concept wasn’t around, it was FCW [Florida Championship Wrestling] and we were in a warehouse in Tampa. We were doing shows in front of 30 people, and the talent level was bleak. Now you’ve got an incredibly talented roster of men and women. They’re going to run the Barclays Center in New York [at NXT Takeover in August]. You’ve gotta think about that. From Largo, Florida, in front of 30 people at Minnreg Hall to the Barclays in front of upwards of what could be 10,000. It’s cool to have been a part of that legacy as the first NXT Champion.”

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