Carmelo Hayes discusses overcoming his size and advice from Shawn Michaels.
Carmelo Hayes was one of the faces of NXT before being drafted to WWE SmackDown in the 2024 WWE Draft. Hayes has been knocked by some fans for his lack of size, but he's spent years learning under Shawn Michaels, who managed to stand out in the land of the giants during his prime.
Speaking on The Ringer Wrestling Show, Hayes was asked if he's gotten advice from Shawn Michaels about standing out despite his size.
"He told me, straight up, 'You can never take a day off. A lot of these guys can take a day off and they'll be accepted, but you can never take a day off or phone it in.' It sucks in a way, but at the same time, I'm open to the challenge because the bar, for some reason, is raised higher because of my size. People are expecting way more. I can't make mistakes. Not on top of my size, but being perceived as someone who is being pushed to the forefront. I feel a lot of criticism from people off everything I do. I've had the microscope on me for a long time. I'm kind of used to it now, but the bar is very higher. One, when you're a Shawn Michaels guy. Two, when you're a first round draft pick. Three, being undersized. Four, being of color. There are a lot of things that come into play with that pressure. I'm open to that challenge and looking to prove people wrong. As far as Shawn Michaels goes, he gives me that advice all the time. 'You have to be better than the rest at everything. You can't lack. What you lack in size, you have to make up for in every other category,'" said Hayes.
Hayes is set to compete in the WWE King of the Ring tournament.
He will face Baron Corbin in a first-round bout on the May 10th episode of WWE SmackDown.
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