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While former WWE star James Ellsworth might not have the looks of a usual top WWE superstar, he sure caught the eye of Vince McMahon. To the surprise of Ellsworth, the WWE chairman soon offered him a job after one of his early showings in the ring.
Speaking on the It's My House Podcast, Ellsworth recalled the time Vince McMahon hired him.
"Once I did the Strowman match, and it's funny you bring up the internet wrestling community and the memes and all the support which I appreciated. That's not what did it," said Ellsworth. "It's that day when I wrestled Strowman, after I was done in the match Vince McMahon was looking for me. And when he found me he shook my hand, he said, Great job out there I'm going to hire you. And I thought he was kidding. I was like oh thank you, he said I'll be in touch. He thought for a while. What am I going to do with this guy, he thought I cut a good promo, I sold well he thought I looked different. Six weeks later he hired me."
On an episode of WWE RAW in July 2016, Ellsworth was booked in a squash match against Braun Strowman. Although the Monster Among Men didn't have any problems making quick work of Ellsworth, the latter gained a fan following online, and WWE fans weren't the only ones impressed.
Ellsworth had a good run in WWE after he was hired. He was an integral part of the WWE Championship feud between AJ Styles and Dean Ambrose and even defeated AJ Styles twice. However, he failed to ever capture the WWE Championship.
Following his WWE Championship pursuit, Ellsworth managed Carmella and won the first-ever Women's Money in the Bank ladder match.
James Ellsworth is thankful for his time in WWE
Ellsworth departed from WWE in 2018 and has been working primarily on the Independent Wrestling Circuit ever since. In the same interview, Ellsworth said the following about his time in WWE, expressing his gratitude to Vince McMahon.
"It worked out for all of us. I mean he hired me, my T-shirt was the number one seller for a month, and I feel where whatever they put me in worked." Ellsworth continued, "Like I always tell everybody I had such a great time and I appreciated the opportunity that he gave me."
What are your thoughts on James Ellsworth's time in WWE? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
