Sean Waltman has revealed that he told WWE he would be available for the Royal Rumble but never heard back from the company.
If the man himself as any say in the matter, 2022 will be a big year in the life of two-time WWE Hall of Famer Sean Waltman, known to wrestling fans the world over as X-Pac.
At the peak of his powers, Waltman was known as one of the best in-ring performers out there and formed part of two of the most famous factions of all-time; D-X and the nWo. Although, as his career progressed, he became increasingly slowed down by a series of injuries and his own personal demons.
However, after knee surgery and getting his life back on track outside of the ring, Waltman is back. At The Wrld on GCW, he saved Joey Janela from a beatdown at the hands of Matt Cardona and Brian Myers. It has since been announced that Waltman will team with Janela on February 25th to take on the former WWE Superstars.
This increased speculation around a potential surprise appearance at the Royal Rumble. However, the event came and went, without the Attitude Era star.
Speaking to Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated, Waltman revealed that he had in fact told WWE that he would be available for the Rumble match. Despite this he never heard anything back.
“As far as the Royal Rumble, I gave them a heads up I’d be ready if they wanted me. I wasn’t actively campaigning for it. I wasn’t going to do that. But I let them know, and I guess they weren’t interested,”
Looking ahead to his return to the ring, Waltman explained that this is an opportunity for him to end his career on his own terms and have some “f**king great matches.”
“I did pretty well in this industry when I wasn’t clear-headed, so think of what I can do with a healthy mind and healthy body. don’t know how many matches I have left in me, so I’m going to go out there and have some great f**King matches. I want to go out on my terms. My last matches, I was going through the greatest hits. It was all nostalgia. This is going to be different.”
“I want to do it while I still can. I’ve worked on my body and got a lot of my health issues resolved. My right knee struggled for years, but it’s feeling great now. I’m motivated, I’m happy, and I’m hungry. This is holistic. It’s more than just having my body in good shape again. I’m clear-headed. This is a chance to play a few songs off the new album. There is a lot I want to prove to people that have believed in me for a long time.”
Sean Waltman last wrestled on April 4th 2019, while he previously spent time working as a coach in NXT. As part of the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2020, Waltman became the first person to be inducted in two consecutive years.