Quotes from Wade Barrett

Wrestling was a part-time thing and I was starving doing it. When the opportunity came up to wrestle with WWE and come to the states, it was a no-brainer.

I certainly didn't come to entertain the crowd. I am here to get my hand raised and make it to the big events like WrestleMania, where I can make an even bigger payday. And that's what I am going to do.

Once upon a time if you go back to the early 2000s all the way to 2014 all I cared about in life was being a wrestler, going on the road, performing in front of crowds, getting big, climbing the ladder.

Even in terms of the technical stuff there's a very traditional British flavor that comes out. Our characters are influenced by our culture so there's definitely something unique about British wrestlers in the U.S.

The fact is, there's a ton of opportunities out there now for professional wrestlers which, when I was coming through, weren't really there. The only game in town realistically was WWE, and it was very, very difficult to see yourself working anywhere outside of that.

If you go back in time to the '60s, the '70s, probably the early '80s, British professional wrestling was the most respected region of professional wrestling on the planet, and somewhere along the way that got lost and wrestlers were forced to America or Japan or even Mexico to make a living.

I wrestled for 14 or 15 years. I've got a bunch of injuries, I'm tired, I'm getting old, I'm getting some grey hair now.

With my intellect, I'm somebody who can think fast, think on my feet and can think under pressure.

Most fans don't realize 75 percent of the matches we have are non-televised. I prefer a non-televised show because it is more ring-focused and fan interactive.

Even to get to NXT now - which is the bottom rung of the WWE ladder - you have to be really good just to get there. They generally don't take guys who can't wrestle.

When you're with WWE, you are operating within very fine boundaries that you cannot step outside of.

Back in 2004 I trained at an independent wrestling school and performed in front of crowds of around 200, then I got signed to a contract with the WWE to continue my development.

After making repeated attempts to change my career trajectory and having those efforts turned down, my passion for playing the role of a WWE Superstar went away.

I think Bad News Barrett was just having a laugh every single night.

When I was coming through as a professional wrestler, as a young man in 2003 and 2004, there really wasn't much of a wrestling scene in the U.K. to take advantage of or make a living in, so I was forced to have to go to the U.S. and kinda make a living from it out there.

I realized, statistically, the chances of me getting to the WWE and being very successful were very slim. I always hoped it would happen for me.

It's difficult not to like Justin Gabriel when you see him in the ring. He's one of those guys like an Evan Bourne or a Rey Mysterio, a high flyer.

There's certain elements involved in pro wrestling that aren't solely down to the performer. There's only so much I can do. I've kind of stopped beating myself up about things not working out the way I want them to every time.

By the time I got to 2015, I was sliding down the card. I was getting opportunities that I thought were kind of wasted. Like, I became the King of the Ring, which sounds like it should be impressive, but what it was followed up with was zero rises.

One of the problems with being a WWE Superstar is that I literally get zero time off unless I'm injured, and usually when I'm injured I'm sat on the couch unable to move because I've just had a surgery.

I think the way British wrestling lost its way in the mid '80s was that the athleticism and the sporting side to the drama kind of went away and it almost became a joke of a TV show.

When I became King Barrett, the influence I had in the character was taken away. I was told, 'This is your outfit, and here is your promo that you have to say word-for-word.' Any time I tried to tweak the storyline because I thought it wasn't working, or because it wasn't me, I was denied.

I couldn't care less what anyone thinks about me. When I look in the mirror and see what's looking back at me, I'm incredibly happy. Nobody's opinion is going to change that.

Sometimes being away from TV for four months or six months or whatever it's been can really help you. People miss you and are happy to see you back. On the other hand, people can forget about you.