Carmelo Hayes Expected To Work With Seth Rollins & Finn Balor Down The Road, Not Now

"WWE NXT" Champion Carmelo Hayes turned heads with a stellar performance against Finn Balor on the June 26 episode of "WWE Raw," in a match that marked his WWE main roster debut. 

Prior to the match, Hayes was given a glowing appraisal by World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, who referred to Hayes as "a fighting champion" and one of the brightest young stars in WWE. Hayes and Rollins also had an interaction on a recent episode of "WWE NXT," where the latter made a cameo appearance to defend his title against Bron Breakker. 

Hayes' recent run-ins with Rollins and Balor are a sign of WWE management's utmost faith in his abilities. During his recent appearance on "WWE's The Bump," Hayes revealed that his recent interactions with the World Heavyweight Champion "came out of nowhere" and caught him by surprise. "To be able to associate myself with the World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins so soon has been an honor and a privilege," Hayes said. 

"To have somebody like that have my back [is gratifying] and that's why you saw me having his back on Monday, just because he spoke so highly of me. I had to reciprocate and have his back as well. It's been an honor more than anything to work with Seth," stated the "NXT" Champion.

When asked to reflect on his main roster debut against Balor, Hayes reiterated that he was never expecting to be pushed into the spotlight at this juncture of his career. "It's wild because I assumed it would be a lot further down the road that I was gonna mix it up with these guys," Hayes admitted. "It really was me getting thrown into the deep end, and to be in there with Finn Balor, an incredible performer with so many accolades ... you know people were [complaining] about the loss, but the end of the day, it's Finn Balor. I gave my best efforts. Give me a couple of years or months, and let's crack it again and we'll see if the outcome will be different."