WWE star Damian Priest credits Finn Balor with helping him realise true potential

The Archer of Infamy knows this was a breakout night (Picture: WWE)

Damian Priest has revealed the impact Finn Balor had on him realising his potential in WWE.

The current United States Champion shone during a match against the Irish star, who is poised to face Roman Reigns for the Universal Title on SmackDown tonight, back at NXT TakeOver: In Your House in June 2020 and it is seen by many as his breakout moment.

He exclusively told Metro.co.uk: ‘We went and we did our thing and it felt good. I knew, in it, I was like, “Hell yeah, this is good! This is it, this is what I’ve been wanting”.

‘And then walking into the back, and Hunter (Triple H) and Shawn [Michaels] waiting for me, and he was like, “That’s the Damian Priest I’ve been waiting for!”

‘And then Shawn was like, “you better be that same Damian Priest going forward, there’s no going back now. You can’t go backwards!” I was like, “OK, got it.”

‘For whatever reason, everything clicked that day anyway. Me understanding who I am, not just as a performer, but who I wanna be, how do I want people to view me?

‘It all just clicked in that match – I don’t know why, it just happened. And then he told me, “I could see that was the moment you needed for that switch to change and now, off to the races. Now you’re good, now you’re gonna be a player”. Fortunately, it worked out that way.’

The Archer of Infamy was already a huge fan of the Prince before they got in the ring together, having kept up on his work around the world long before either man first appeared in NXT.

”I knew the match itself was important – it’s Finn Balor! Of course we’re all called superstars, but to me, he’s a real superstar,’ he beamed.

‘I was a fan of his before we worked together, you know what I mean? Before I met him – I used to watch his stuff in Japan, I was a fan of his. So for me, I knew how big this was.’

Last month, Priest beat Sheamus for the United States Title (Picture: WWE)

There was an added weight to the bout after Priest found out Balor was the one who requested the match after his planned clash with WALTER fell through due to pandemic travel restrictions.

‘He chose to work with me,’ the champ said with obvious pride. ‘It was clearly looking like it was going to lead to something with WALTER and him. Then the world changed, that couldn’t happen, and it was like, “Well, what would you like to do?”

‘And apparently he says, “I wanna work with Priest! Let’s see what he can do, let’s see what he got”. When I found that out I was like, that’s cool, but I’ve gotta really bring it, huh?’

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Priest admitted he felt the pressure going into the match, but he harnessed it knowing it was his opportunity to shine under the bright lights and make a name for himself.

‘If I fail – it’s one thing if we’re booked to wrestle each other, it is what it is,’ he said. ‘But if he asked for this and I don’t bring my best, and this match just doesn’t flow or whatever, to me that sucks, that’s embarrassing.

‘I would have felt that more for him, I’d just wasted his time. There was a little bit of extra pressure with that but at the same time, this is what I’ve been wanting. This is what I’ve been waiting for, this type of moment!’

*Watch Damian Priest on WWE Raw every Monday night at 1am on BT Sport. Meanwhile, Finn Balor challenges Roman Reigns on SmackDown tonight (September 3) at 1am also on BT Sport 1.

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