Samantha Irvin reflects on WrestleMania 40's ending.
At WrestleMania 40 last year, Cody Rhodes would overcome multiple obstacles in order to 'Finish The Story'. Upon defeating Roman Reigns in the main event, ring announced Samantha Irvin would deliver an emotional call to announce Rhodes as the new WWE champion.
While speaking on Busted Open in a recent interview, Samantha reflected on WrestleMania 40, saying she felt terrible for losing her cool in the moment.
"I actually started crying before the finish. I started crying when The Undertaker came out. First, I started punching all the people that were in the general vicinity, including War & Treaty, who were right behind me, who sang God Bless America. I started punching them. Everyone was going crazy. Then, I think 36 years of payoff. It all just came crashing down. Every sad thing, every crazy thing. All the stuff in wrestling that you can’t talk about. Everything that you hold onto if you’re a fan, it just all came out in that moment. Cody winning, just the way they told that (story). Everything. We didn’t even get to see Seth Rollins crawling up. He was by me and crawling. In that moment, I was not there for work I was literally there just as me. I was at WrestleMania 14 in Boston, in the nosebleeds, now I’m here, WrestleMania 40, all my idols are right there. I just lost my ish. I really lost it. I felt absolutely terrible. I felt so bad in that moment. I had a whole thing in my head, I said, ‘I have to leave now. Obviously, I’m done.’ Because I’m a terrible announcer. I prioritized being a fan in that moment and I realized then that I will always prioritize being a fan and I hope the fans understand that you have the best part. You have the best role in company. Just understand that, as a fan. I lost my ish. Cody was all crusty. It was crazy. The whole thing was insane and it was the best moment. I’m sure, God willing, if I’m an old lady dying on my death bed that will be the moment I hear, seriously. It’s such an important moment in my career, yes, but more so as a fan. I am more of a fan than a ring announcer or employee."
Elsewhere in the same interview, Irvin noted that she understood why fans were upset when she revealed she didn't enjoy ring announcing. You can read more about that here.
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