WWE legend Rob Van Dam has shared his reaction after being invited to attend John Cena’s final match, calling the experience a huge honor.
Cena competed in his final match against Gunther at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event, and the historic night brought together several WWE legends and current stars at ringside. Familiar faces such as Michelle McCool, Mark Henry, Eve Torres, Sami Zayn, Trish Stratus, Kurt Angle and Rob Van Dam were all in attendance to witness Cena’s farewell.
Rob Van Dam made a surprise appearance on the broadcast and received a strong reaction from the crowd. During a recent interview with TMZ, the WWE Hall of Famer reflected on how special it felt to be back on WWE television.
“It felt awesome. I was honored, always am, when they invite me to be there and show me on camera. And it spreads a lot of joy in the world. [laughs] At least from my perspective. Everyone’s like, ‘Dude, I saw you on TV.’
And yeah, I couldn’t tell being there that the pop was as loud as it must have been. Because as soon as I started hearing the reaction, reading it on text messages or whatever, I was like, ‘Oh really? Cool.’ Because I felt like they were with me, but I couldn’t really hear as well, especially not comparatively to the other pops. But it was awesome. Yeah, really cool.”
WWE legend Rob Van Dam says seeing everyone again backstage felt like a reunion
Rob Van Dam said the night felt like a reunion, saying he enjoyed hugging people and reconnecting with them. “In a lot of ways, it’s like a reunion, you know? Being able to see everybody and hug them. A lot of people, I realize now that I’m able to feel more love for a lot of people that before, just being in that competitive state of mind, [I] kind of put up a wall when I was in the middle of my job. And now, that’s not there, that’s not a factor. So I can appreciate a lot of other people.”
He also noted how meaningful it was to hear from WWE crew members who told him they missed him. “But I’ve always got along with everybody. As soon as I got in the building, the crew guys were talking to me about how the crew misses me.”
“And the difference between me and a lot of boys in that manner, like he was saying, ‘That says a lot of that says a lot when you when the crew’s cool with you.’ And said, ‘Well, it says a lot about the crew.’ But [it] says a lot about everybody. It’s just a lot about relationships.” [H/T: 411mania]
