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One of the most memorable moments from Big E’s first year as a member of WWE’s main roster came when he accidentally hit AJ Lee in the chest during his ring entrance.
Speaking on the latest episode of The New Day’s Feel The Power podcast, the former Intercontinental Champion explained that he used to swing his arms “violently” as he made his way to the ring as a singles Superstar in NXT.
However, ahead of his first RAW singles match against Daniel Bryan on the night after WrestleMania 29, he was unaware that Lee (w/Dolph Ziggler) was walking right beside him.
“That was a dark moment in my career! That was my first singles match on the main roster, and when I was in NXT I wasn’t used to people standing right next to me, so I used to swing my arms violently to get ready, you know what I mean? That’s right, that’s how I get ready, that’s right. And I didn’t realise the proximity was off, but she took it like a champ.”
You can watch the inadvertent chop in the gif below.
AJ Lee’s take on the story
Speaking in a Q&A in 2017, AJ Lee said Big E is a “gentle giant” and he was “on the verge of tears” over the incident when they spoke in the backstage area after the match.
She added that, as they are good friends in real life, she jokingly tried to make Big E feel bad about the situation.
