Trick Williams makes bold WrestleMania promise after revealing John Cena's role in WWE rise
Rising star Trick Williams outlined his goals to headline WrestleMania as he looks to continue his rapid ascension in WWE.
Called up to the main roster at the start of the year after honing his craft in the NXT developmental brand,
'The Anointed One' quickly became a huge hit with his natural charisma and entertainment value, winning the United States championship in his first ever WrestleMania appearance in Las Vegas when he knocked off Sami Zayn.
This coming weekend, the former football player ticks off another major date in the WWE calendar when he makes his debut at SummerSlam at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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Williams defends his title against the recently returned Baron Corbin, someone he sees as merely another obstacle in his path to become the top dog in the professional wrestling industry.
READ MORE: Oba Femi's incredible 85-day body transformation ahead of SummerSlam showdown with Brock Lesnar
"Trick Williams versus the big bald-headed bum Baron Corbin," Williams told SPORTbible in an exclusive interview ahead of the first WWE stadium event held in Minneapolis.
"He came in and he tried to, you know, put his fork in the ground and, you know, make himself a force by jumping on Trick Williams, the United States champion, and thinking that he's going to come out of retirement and show everybody that he's still got it.
"But I don't think that Baron Corbin truly wants to wrestle. I don't think he really wants to be a WWE superstar. I think he wanted to make one more run, maybe make some more
financial, you know, investments, you know what I mean, add another, you know, pool patio to his house, you know, buy a new Maserati or whatever he can fit in.
"He's not hungry like Trick Williams. You know what I mean? "His whole career, he's had a great career. He's been against some of the best in the business. I get that.
"He's a big, bad, mean guy. That's cool. But Trick Williams wants to be the best in the business. I want to headline WrestleMania for years and years and years to come. Baron, he don't have
that itch like Trick Williams got that itch. He don't got that hunger like I got that hunger.
"How could he? You know what I mean? He just wants one more time in the spotlight, so he wants to jump on a real one like Trick Williams. Let's see what happens."
Williams' sharp tongue, combined with his freakish physique, has already led to comparisons to The Rock and Booker T.
With his all white attire and fur coat, the former TNA and NXT champion epitomises star power. His entrance, where fans erupt in a chorus of 'Whoop that Trick' is a full-blown concert, had people going crazy at WrestleMania in Vegas.
"55,000, whatever the number was," he said.
"All whooping that Trick. Beating up the gingerbread, man. Excuse me, I'm sorry, Sami Zayn.
"My first WrestleMania moment, man. It was unreal.
"You know, just being able to walk out, seeing a sea, an abyss of people. You know what I mean? All on the same accord to see one thing, and that's me beating down Sami Zayn. It was a beautiful day, a beautiful moment. that I'll never forget. And, man, it leaves you hungry. It leaves you, you know, waiting for the next one. So, I'm excited about that."
He continued: "You can't take it for granted. You know, none of this has ever been promised. You know what I mean?
In my case, it wasn't even a goal until much later in my life. So, the fact that I get to live out this fantasy every single week is insane to me. You know, I'm doing the loop. I mean, what a life we live, man.
"And being on that card and living the life of a true WWE superstar, it's amazing, man. This is some of the greatest days of my life thus far."
Trick Williams explains huge upside to starring in WWE Unreal on Netflix
Williams' rapid rise is covered in the latest season of 'WWE Unreal', Netflix's behind the scenes look at the goings on of the professional wrestling juggernaut.
While the show has attracted some criticism due to the access viewers get into an industry that has been kept so secret for so long, Williams believes it helped show a different side to his everyday persona and his relationship with wife Lash Legend, a fellow WWE superstar.
He stated: "I see why people feel like that. And especially when the business was built on something that was so, you know, protected. But, you know, in my case, my personal case of Trick Williams, you got to understand, Trick Williams is just an abbreviation of, my true name, my true persona, which is Mattrick.
"So Matrick, M-A, Trick, Trick Williams. So when you leave that red light on a little bit longer, you leave that camera on a little bit longer, you dive deep into who Trick Williams truly is. You know,
you're just exposing, you know, the true origin story of Trick Williams."
"And luckily, Mattrick and Trick are not polar opposites. It's the same person turned up just a little bit. So, yeah, for me, 'Unreal' was not a worry or a concern because you just got a little bit more
screen time of who Trick Williams is and how I act, you know, in real life. And you understand Trick Williams a little bit more.
"I'll be honest with you, lot of the time, I didn't know they was recording what they put on Unreal because, you know, sometimes they got the camera in your face. Sometimes there's
always just cameras around.
"I mean, you don't even know if the camera's for you. And maybe the camera is on you and it's been 30 minutes. You forget the camera's on and you're just talking and you're just having a little
small talk on the side.
"And that's the stuff that they pick up a lot of times. So, you know, it's not like everything's just kind of set up and, oh, you know, this is for Unreal. Like, no, this is a bunch of cameras, a bunch of everything going on.
"And they want those genuine, authentic moments. So, you know, everything's not just set up or anything like that. Man, I didn't know they was catching a lot of that stuff. I'm glad I was on my Ps and Qs."
One of those intimate moments captured on camera came at WrestleMania when John Cena went out of his way to give both Williams and fellow star Oba Femi a pep talk for their debuts on the biggest show.
It wasn't the first time that Williams has had wisdom imparted on him by the 17-time world champion.
"John Cena's been amazing," Williams admitted.
"Every step. I've talked to him multiple times now. He comes down and he talks to NXT guys when I was an NXT guy. You know, probably three or four times while I was there.
"And he never shied away from giving advice. He never just tried to, you know, lead through the side door. He always takes his time.
"And he's there and available to help the next generation."
Cena's assistance has been invaluable to Williams but so too has his pairing with Grammy nominated rapper Lil Yachty, who is now his manager and added an extra level of entertainment and swagger to his act.
Celebrity involvement in WWE has been increased in recent times, though it has not always gone down well with the company's incredibly passionate fanbase.
Yet Yachty, a lifelong fan of WWE who has regularly been seen in the front row at shows, bucks that trend and has helped Williams transition into a major player on the roster.
Asked about working with the 'Poland' rapper, Williams said: "He's good people. And as you can tell, he loves the business. If you don't like it, it's not a hobby.
"He loves the business. And, you know, he's living his dream, his childhood dream right now becoming a WWE superstar.
"So, anytime you're working with talented, passionate people like Lil Yachty, then it's going to be a win because you're going to figure out how to make it work. And that's what we've done, man.
"We've figured out how to make it work, and we're just getting started."
WWE Unreal Season 3 is available on Netflix now; SUMMERSLAM is Live on Netflix Saturday 1-2nd August at 11pm BST
Josh Lawless