Big backstage fight broke out at WrestleMania between WWE group The League of Nations, Alberto Del Rio confirms (Exclusive)
Alberto Del Rio has given his thoughts on a story that The New Day once told about a backstage WWE fight involving The League of Nations.
Del Rio teamed up with Rusev and Sheamus (w/Wade Barrett) to defeat Big E, Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods at WrestleMania 32 in 2016. The New Day said on their podcast in 2020 that they were left frustrated by an altercation that day. However, they did not disclose details about which superstars were involved.
In an interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling’s Riju Dasgupta, Del Rio confirmed that a legitimate fight took place. He also revealed that the heated situation was caused by one of his fellow League of Nations members:
“There was a big fight backstage,” Del Rio said. “On that one, I was involved but it was not me creating the altercation. The person creating the altercation was not against me. The other two and I, we had to put someone in his place before going out. This is one minute before we went out. We went out to the ring and one of us, I’m not gonna say who, had to tell this person, ‘Listen, you mother F, we’re done with you. You’re gonna go out and do this because you’re a this and you’re a that.’” [1:08-2:13]
Both teams participated in a post-match segment with Mick Foley, Shawn Michaels, and Steve Austin. The three WWE Hall of Famers took turns hitting their finishers on different members from each group.
Reflecting on the pre-match incident, Alberto Del Rio laughed and downplayed the seriousness of the altercation:
“So, yes, one minute before we went out in that huge packed stadium, a big altercation was happening backstage. It’s part of wrestling, unfortunately, these days, situations like that. You talked about it with the [CM] Punk situation. It happens all the time. It happens in the pro wrestling business, it happens in the doctors’ business, the lawyers’ business, everybody has situations with their co-workers. It’s just human nature.” [2:14-2:53]
Watch the video above to hear more from Alberto Del Rio about the drama before The League of Nations vs. The New Day. He also provided a message to his fans in India.
Alberto Del Rio explains what happened during the fight
The League of Nations could have been a great stable but WWE had no idea what they were doing. https://t.co/iAloRerQWW
According to Alberto Del Rio, a League of Nations member grabbed one of their stablemates by the neck shortly before the group’s music hit.
The four-time WWE world champion joked that he might reveal in a future interview which superstar caused the problem:
“It’s funny that someone finally talked about it because it would have been pretty bad,” Del Rio added. “One of the members of The League of Nations grabbed this other member by the neck and put them against a wall. That’s all I can say about it! Until next time! Next time I will tell you all the details… maybe.” [3:03-3:37]
Looking back, Alberto Del Rio thinks the off-camera altercation perfectly sums up the world of professional wrestling:
“That’s why I love pro wrestling so much. Nobody knew, seriously. That happened, this member grabbing the other one by the neck, and then his music hit and it was time to go outside. All of us went out like a team, a real team, like everything was good. Nobody knew about it. We were being seen by hundreds of thousands in the stadium, millions around the world, and nobody had a clue.” [3:56-4:33]
Alberto Del Rio’s own wrestling promotion, Nacion Lucha Libre, returned on Saturday for the first time in more than two years. The 45-year-old decided to bring the company back for a second season due to his never-ending passion for the wrestling business.
What are your memories of The League of Nations in WWE? Let us know in the comments section.
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