Sheamus has opened up about the harsh reality he faced backstage after becoming WWE Champion in 2009.
Speaking on the Chris Van Vliet show, the Celtic Warrior revealed emotional details about his early career struggles.
When asked about his most emotional moment, Sheamus pointed to his match against Gunther at Clash at the Castle in Wales. The crowd’s reaction moved him deeply because it represented years of fighting for respect.
My career was kind of sullied a lot, there was a lot of jealousy around how quickly I became WWE Champion,” Sheamus said. (10:24 – 10:30)
His rapid rise created problems with other wrestlers who felt he didn’t deserve the opportunity.
The Celtic Warrior won his first WWE Championship just 166 days after his main roster debut, defeating John Cena at TLC 2009, making him one of the fastest wrestlers ever to capture the title.
However, this quick success came with a price. Fellow wrestlers created negative stories about him, suggesting his success wasn’t earned through hard work but through politics.
But I just wanted to learn, and when I came on the main roster, obviously I came one of the fastest WWE champions of all time. So people went behind me, created stories about me that weren’t true, undercut me, said I was kissing Hunter’s a*s, all that stuff with the workout buddy and all that. And I felt like for the first couple of years no matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, I was constantly undermined that the hard work I was doing was not on me. It was because I was a brown nose. I was a politician. So for the first part of my career, I just felt like I was always fighting. I was always trying to push uphill. I was fighting an uphill battle. And it just and then full circle years later in that moment it was like this is like this is one of the biggest moments of my life like people are actually finally appreciating what I’m doing,” Sheamus said, reflecting on his Clash at the Castle match against Gunther. (12:06 – 13:04)
Sheamus’ Early Career and Championship Success
The Celtic Warrior debuted on ECW and, within six months, earned his first main roster match in WWE. Following his breakout moment at TLC in December 2009, Sheamus continued to climb the ranks.
He combined his brawling style with technical skill, learning under mentors like Dr. Tom Prichard and studying legends such as Stan Hansen. His hard strikes and fierce Irish demeanor quickly won over fans.
Over the years, Sheamus won multiple world titles. He held the WWE Championship three times, the World Heavyweight Championship once, and the United States Championship three times. In addition to this, he captured tag team gold alongside Cesaro, forming The Bar, winning the Raw Tag Team Championship four times and the SmackDown Tag Team Championship once.
He was the 2010 King of the Ring winner, 2012 Royal Rumble winner, and 2015 Money in the Bank winner, and cashed in on Roman Reigns at Survivor Series 2015. From thrilling cage matches to intense rivalries, Sheamus has cemented his legacy as one of WWE’s most resilient champions.