"I was ready to strangle Vince McMahon" - Seth Rollins recalls his furious reaction after controversial WWE match
Seth Rollins said he was “ready to strangle” Vince McMahon after his match against The Fiend Bray Wyatt at WWE Hell in a Cell 2019.
Hell in a Cell matches usually have a No Disqualification stipulation, which means all weapons are allowed inside the steel structure. A rare exception came in 2019 when the referee ended the match as a no-contest after Seth Rollins used a sledgehammer on The Fiend.
Rollins appeared on the latest episode of Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions show on the WWE Network. Reflecting on fans’ adverse reaction to the match, the two-time Universal Champion said he immediately confronted Vince McMahon backstage.
“I put a positive spin on it now that I can look back on it a year and a half later, but at the time I came through that curtain and I was ready to strangle Vince McMahon. I’m not kidding you, I’m not kidding you. Tyson Kidd, TJ Wilson [WWE producer] was there to hold me back. Dude, I stared right into Vince’s eyes. You know where he sits in that chair over there [backstage]. I looked at him, he looked at me, we didn’t say a single word to each other, and he walked out,” Rollins said.
#TheFiend @WWEBrayWyatt has brought a SADISTIC side of @WWERollins. #HIAC https://t.co/VBznXvom8Q
The heavily criticized match is considered to be one of the worst WWE main events in recent years. Seth Rollins added that he also had a backstage conversation with Paul Heyman, RAW’s Executive Director at the time, about the questionable match finish.
Seth Rollins cleared the air with Vince McMahon the next day
THIS is what #TheFiend @WWEBrayWyatt thinks of your STOMP, @WWERollins. #HIAC https://t.co/fgyGK5vb3o
Seth Rollins was presented as a babyface at the time of his Hell in a Cell match against The Fiend. However, fans turned against the former Shield member and booed him throughout the main event.
After his confrontation with Vince McMahon at the pay-per-view, Rollins had another discussion with the WWE Chairman a day later.
“The next day, I went into Vince’s office. I was much calmer and I said, ‘Let’s talk about this. We need to figure out what we’re doing here because that can’t happen again. It was civil but it took me a night. I was ready to go, man. If somebody wasn’t there making sure I was okay, my temper… the adrenaline, you know,” Rollins said.
The finish to Seth Rollins vs. The Fiend was not the only issue that was hotly debated after the event. Many fans questioned why Rollins failed to defeat The Fiend despite landing the stomp on his opponent 11 times.
Please credit Broken Skull Sessions and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.