Seth Rollins has already established himself as the top heel on WWE since his turn in December. And like any good leader, Rollins has surrounded himself with followers. AOP and Buddy Murphy having aligned with the "Monday Night Messiah" as the new dominant faction on Raw.
The majority of fans have been thrilled with the inclusion of Murphy and AOP in the group, as they were classified as "underrated" and "ready to breakout" throughout 2019. Speaking to Chron, Rollins weighed in on his three new friends.
“I’ve had my eye on Buddy Murphy for a long time. He’s a guy who has kind of been under the radar, so to speak, as far as major storylines are concerned, but someone who’s very deserving," he said. "And now in our business it is all about creating fresh stars and new stars and our fans are always clamoring for the next big thing. And Buddy Murphy is someone who might have been in the right place at the right time this week, but someone I’ve had my eye on for quite some time. You know, I remember watching him win the cruiserweight title for the first time down in Australia and Melbourne a few years back and saying to myself that you know, there’s a star right there. He’s got all tools. He’s a guy who’s in great shape, looks the part, talks the part and he’s a hell of a hand — more than a hell of a hand in the ring. He’s someone that I think is ready to break out and just needs a little guidance and I feel like the AOP is that way as well. Those guys are both just monsters and they are also so young. At some point you’ve got to put on your mentor cap, the same way Triple H put his on to kind of help me to my formative years in WWE. Now, it’s my turn to return that favor and these three guys have all the potential in the world to be the next set of stars here and for a long time after I’m gone."
Fans may have noticed Rollins wearing a black glove during his matches. The glove helps compliment his new persona, but there is a bigger reason behind his decision to wear a glove when he wrestles.
“It’s a happy accident. I will say that I broke my finger about six weeks ago and I have to wear a splint when I wrestle, and so I have to wear a glove over the top of the splint to keep it from moving when I’m wrestling," he revealed. "Obviously, I could have taken six weeks off and not wrestled at all, but that’s not really what I do. So, the alternative was trying to tape it, but tape didn’t seem to keep it on very well. So, I just put a glove over top of it to keep it down. And, and I like, and it’s weird and so it is one of the things that people they say, ‘Why is he wearing one glove?’ The fact that you’re asking me this question means that it’s doing its job. I think we will stick with it and see what the glove becomes over time.”
Rollins showed no signs of the injury this past Monday on Raw when he and Buddy Murphy captured the Raw Tag Team Titles by defeating the Viking Raiders. Rollins is also set to compete this Sunday when he enters the Men's Royal Rumble. You can find the full list of men's Royal Rumble participants by clicking here.
