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Zachary Wentz has reflected on his return to WWE television two years after being fired by the company.
The TNA Wrestling star, who will face former Rascalz and MSK teammate Wes Lee in a Street Fight on the October 1 episode of NXT, was released by WWE in 2022 after a selfie taken seven years earlier imitating Adolf Hitler was leaked online.
Wentz, now 30, apologised shortly after his departure, saying he was ‘ashamed’ over his conduct, noting ‘there is no excuse for such behaviour’ and that he took ‘full responsibility’ for his actions.
Two years on, the former X-Division Champion returned to WWE as part of the ongoing partnership with TNA, and he exclusively told Metro.co.uk there was a period where he never expected to get back in a wrestling ring.
‘I really thought that I was never going to wrestle again. And it was pretty dark, but at the same time, you can’t live in that misery,’ he said. ‘You right your wrongs, you pick yourself up, you go through that whole process.’
He turned to his Rascalz ‘brothers’ Trey Miguel and Wes, as well as his fiancee and NXT star Gigi Dolan, and worked hard at trying to earn a ‘second chance’.
Zachary Wentz was fired by WWE two years ago over a controversial leaked selfie (Picture: TNA Wrestling)
He returned over the summer alongside his Rascalz teammate Trey Miguel (Picture: WWE/Matt Pendleton)
He has been embroiled in a feud with their former ally Wes Lee (Picture: WWE)
‘People see your heart, and they know who you are as a human being,’ he said, recalling getting more and more bookings as time went on.
In his statement two years ago, Wentz claimed he stepped back from social media ‘to refresh and re-educate’ himself about the Holocaust, and spoke of the importance of bringing ‘awareness to the horrific tragedy’.
‘I can assure you that this is not who I am or what I represent as a
human being, and I feel it is never too late to educate and better yourself,’ he added at the time.
Wentz apologised for the selfie and took ‘full responsibility’ for his actions (Picture: WWE/Michael Owens)
Wentz has now revealed that wrestling an ‘escape’ after being fired, and NXT boss Shawn Michaels stayed in touch, while Jewish wrestler MJF came out publicly last year in his defence.
‘Me and Shawn have been in contact since everything, he’s been very good at checking on me,’ he said.
Currently appearing on both TNA and WWE television, Wentz is poised to face his former teammate Wes Lee on Tuesday night, and he has promised something special.
‘I feel like a lot of people have only really seen my high flying stuff and my tag team stuff,’ he explained. ‘But I can fight with the best of them. I actually enjoy weapon matches. I think the creativity for them is insane.’
He has been asking WWE legends Jeff …read more
Source:: Metro
