Cezar Bononi credits a match with Malakai Black for prolonging his WWE career.
Cezar Bononi was once touted as being a major breakout NXT Superstar. In 2018, has was announced as the winner of the award for "Future NXT Star" as part of the NXT's Year-End Awards for the prior year, beating out the likes of Bianca Belair, Otis, The Street Profits, Lacey Evans, and more. Even though his NXT career did not pan out as he would have hoped, Cezar Bononi credits one match in particular with prolonging his career until his 2020 WWE release.
On the May 10, 2017 edition of WWE NXT, Cezar Bononi wrestled Aleister Black, now known as Malakai Black in AEW, in a match where black defeated him in under two minutes. According to Bononi on an episode of the Developmentally Speaking podcast, the match saved his career as he believes he was slated to get fired the day after it was taped.
"Yeah, the first match that I had on TV, for sure, with Aleister Black, Malakai. There were so many people saying to me that was not going to make it to TV ever then I had that opportunity. It was a really good opportunity. To be honest, I was going to be fired the next day but I did such a good job in that match that saved my my job."
Asked if he knew why he was going to get fired, Bononi says that it would have been a matter of sweeping cuts and nothing personal.
"Cuts. Just cuts. They had to cut and I understand the business, it's all good. They just had to cut to get new people and whoever is not getting good results, they cut. That's how business works. I never thought there was something personal or whatever. Actually, I was not delivering whatever was necessary as well. I totally understand on the business side of that. The good thing is that I got at least one chance to do something, and I did it good."
Bononi would have a brief stint in AEW following his WWE release and now he works as a personal trainer.
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