The Des Moines Register has a great profile of native Iowan Seth Rollins that follows him through a day as WWE World Heavyweight Champion. The highlight is his interaction with a 5-year-old named Owen, who’d just had open-heart surgery.
During a quick TV interview at the arena, Rollins met Owen Hunt, 5, who was recovering from open heart surgery and wouldn’t be able to sit through that night’s show. Owen’s eyes grew wide as he touched the golden belt while the pair chatted.
“Man, my day would’ve been so boring if it wasn’t for you,” Rollins said as he went in for a good-bye hug.
“Being able to make his day and let him punch me in the gut so he can tell his friends or talk about it with his mom for a couple days, that is just awesome for me,” Rollins said. “That’s primarily why I got into this, to make kids feel the way I felt when I was that age.”
If you thought “oh no, did he smash the kid in the back with a chair and stomp his head into the ground” before reading that, don’t worry, it just means you’ve been paying attention. “Was the kid Jamie Noble?” is also acceptable.
Profiles like this and the ESPN E:60 NXT special are increasingly important to connecting future superstars with current WWE fans, many of whom are attached to the hip to the people they grew up watching when they were younger. If you never give people a reason to understand, empathize with or feel connected to your new stars beyond saying “here are the new stars, watch them win matches and listen to us say how important they are,” you’re never going to foster growth. Even stories like this for dastardly, hated heels like Rollins can put the sport and its performers in the right context, and let people who may otherwise feel ashamed watching pro wrestling feel better about their fandom. These are real people, you know? Even if they’re attacking each other with chains and flags. That humanity can (and should) come through somehow, good or bad.
And hey, who among us DOESN’T want to punch Seth Rollins in the stomach?
