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On the back of his historic win at NXT TakeOver XXX, Damian Priest was a guest on this week's episode of After The Bell podcast with Corey Graves. The newly crowned North American Champion discussed a host of topics, among which he also opened up on living in Al Capone's old apartment.
During the conversation, Damian Priest opened up on his background prior to being signed by WWE. Interestingly enough, Priest noted that he worked at a lot of clubs and has been into the nightlife since 19 years old. Damian Priest also revealed that he did so in order to pay for his training and his wrestling. (H/T: WrestlingNews.co)
“I worked at a lot of clubs. So, the nightlife is so real. I’ve been used to it since I was 19 years old. I’ve been working in bars and clubs and everything in between. I worked every single position you can imagine in that industry. I did that to pay for training and pay to wrestle. I did that until about 2014. In 2014, I had my last tryout with the company which they didn’t sign me at the time. They said there wasn’t anything for me at the time. I remember a lot of nights not eating because I couldn’t afford it and getting letters of eviction notices and had to deal with that and stay above water until I finally caught a break."- said, Damian Priest.
Damian Priest further opened up on his weight issues, stating that he lost about 100 pounds and started his transformation. The former ROH sensation then started running one of the most popular clubs in Atlantic City, which not only provided a steady paycheck for him but also provided him a free penthouse apartment that late American gangster Al Capone used to live in.
"A lot of it was my own fault. I coasted for many years in this business because being a bigger guy, you hear you are going to be fine. You are going to make it. It was totally what I didn’t need to hear. That’s why I got out of shape. I was my heaviest. I was close to 360 pounds. But then I lost over 100 pounds and started that transformation. I had a sweet job. When you talk about a party job, I was running one of the most popular clubs in Atlantic City, NJ. Not only was I finally getting a steady paycheck, but I had a free apartment on the Boardwalk. It was a penthouse apartment that Al Capone used to live in. They gave me a company vehicle. I mean, coming from trying to just pay rent and just trying to buy myself a meal to this, I had it, but because I was still doing this here and there and had to leave or come in late because of these indie shows, one of my bosses came up to me and said you do a great job here. We want to keep you on board. We want to give you more responsibility but we want you to stop that wrestling you do. I don’t know why, but without hesitation, I was like, oh yeah, you have my two weeks notice. That was the flip right there. When I said those words, I realized I really have to do this. I started eating clean and got a gym membership.”- Damian Priest added.
Damian Priest's recent win at NXT TakeOver XXX
Damian Priest recently won his first title in WWE when he captured the NXT North American Championship after competing in a brutal Ladder Match. In the aftermath of the win, Priest almost immediately jumped into a pool party with his title and was also congratulated by Triple H at the spot.
It now remains to be seen what NXT has in store for Damian Priest, with a long list of contenders for his title.
