Current WWE star thought Vince McMahon "hated" him for 8-9 years
Dolph Ziggler has revealed he thought Vince McMahon disliked him for almost a decade of his WWE career.
The SmackDown Superstar signed with WWE in 2004 and became a member of the company’s main roster in 2005. He debuted as Chavo Guerrero’s golf caddie before he was repackaged as Nicky, a male cheerleader who formed part of The Spirit Squad. Since 2008, the two-time WWE World Champion has been known as Dolph Ziggler.
Speaking to FOX Sports’ Ryan Satin on the Out of Character podcast, Ziggler acknowledged that he is not a “main-event guy” right now. He added that he genuinely believed for eight or nine years that Vince McMahon “hated [his] effin’ guts":
"But I know from that relationship [with Vince McMahon] – and you have to earn it,” he said. “It’s not just, I earned this a few years ago and now I’m fine. You gotta re-earn it every day, and I do. If I mess up, which I do all the time, I say, ‘I screwed this up. It’s on me. I will fix this for next time.’ But even though, those years, I’d say of the 15, eight or nine of ‘em felt like, ‘Man, Vince hates my effin’ guts! What the hell is happening here?!’"
Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode held the SmackDown Tag Team Championships for 127 days after winning the titles from The Street Profits in October 2020. Dominik and Rey Mysterio recently defeated Ziggler and Roode, known as The Dirty Dawgs, at WrestleMania Backlash to bring their reign to an end.
Vince McMahon challenged Dolph Ziggler to make him better
Dolph Ziggler has been involved in tag team storylines with Drew McIntyre and Robert Roode over the last three years. He has also featured in main-event storylines as a singles competitor throughout his 13-year run as the Dolph Ziggler character.
Although Ziggler thought Vince McMahon “hated” him, he understands now that the WWE Chairman was simply trying to get the best out of him:
“Then there’s those five or six [years] where you go, ‘I get it now. He’s pushing me. He’s challenging me,’” Ziggler added. “Because only I can do these things, and I’m very blessed to be doing them.”
Few WWE Superstars have won as many titles as Dolph Ziggler over the last 13 years. The 40-year-old is a two-time World Heavyweight Champion, six-time Intercontinental Champion, two-time United States Champion and four-time Tag Team Champion. He also won the Money in the Bank ladder match in 2012.