“I was really surprised” – 42-year-old veteran was originally supposed to be Edge’s final WWE opponent, says Sheamus

August 18, 2023, marked the end of Edge’s legendary story in WWE as he defeated Sheamus in his final match on SmackDown. The Celtic Warrior revealed that he wasn’t the originally scheduled opponent for The Rated-R Superstar.

Edge came out on SmackDown soon after SummerSlam 2023 and declared that he wanted to wrestle somebody he had never faced before – Sheamus. It led to an epic final match in WWE, where the Hall of Famer stood tall.

However, on the latest episode of INSIGHT, The Celtic Warrior spoke to Chris Van Vliet and revealed that Edge was supposed to face 42-year-old veteran Damian Priest in his final match, but plans changed.

“We talked about it. I remember we talked about doing an angle together, a storyline together for a while. We came up with a storyline, it was shot down for whatever reason, and then it just happened… Edge’s contract was coming up. No one knew if he was going to stay or go. No one really knew. I didn’t know.”

He continued:

“I thought he was going to stay because we were talking about doing something after that as well. But yeah, it was just a situation. I think originally Damian Priest was penciled in, but then it just turned to me. So I don’t know however it happened, but I was really surprised that did happen. Excited about it too, because me and Edge have never had a one-on-one match. Me and Rey [Mysterio] still haven’t had a one-on-one match.” (H/T PWMania)

Sheamus credited one star for revitalizing his love for wrestling

There was a certain point where Sheamus’ career changed for the better, and the period can be precisely pointed to the summer of 2016, when he and Cesaro got into an epic “Best of 7” series, with then-RAW General Manager Mick Foley promising the winner of the feud a title shot.

This was cleverly done, as the series’ inconclusive finish meant they both got a title shot—a Tag Team Title opportunity. This led to the creation of The Bar, which was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the Irish star’s career.

Speaking to Chris Van Vliet on the same episode of INSIGHT, Sheamus credited Cesaro/Claudio Castignoli for giving him one of the best runs of his entire career:

“We’d already wrestled each other twice, and people were just like I’ve seen this match twice already. But then by the end we told a great story over seven matches, and really had people involved. Then the yay boo stuff as well was fantastic and just our chemistry just grew and grew and grew. That was one of the funnest periods of my entire career working with him. It was great.”

It’s certainly true that it was a crucial factor in revitalizing Sheamus’ career. And this is saying something, considering he won the Money in the Bank briefcase and WWE Championship in 2015. Even those significant achievements pale compared to his incredible run with Cesaro.