Braun Strowman Discusses Doubting Himself After His WWE Release, Feeling Like A Stray Dog After Release

Braun Strowman was on After the Bell this week and discussed his release from WWE in June of 2021 and how he doubted himself after and went to a dark place before turning things around and making himself better, leading to his recent return to WWE. Highlights from his comments are below.

On doubting himself after his WWE release: “I’m proud of myself, for a little fat kid from Sherrills Ford, NC who was told he was never going to amount to nothing in life to proving people wrong to then kind of having that rug yanked out from underneath your feet and slipping back into that doubt of not knowing if you’re good enough. There was a little bit of time where I was beating up myself mentally. Why did this happen? What did I do wrong? What didn’t I do right? And all I did was note, I did everything in my power that I could and sometimes that isn’t good enough in this business. So what did I do? I went out and did everything I could to get better. I refused to take no as an answer. I stepped into places that I was uncomfortable being, ya know, and putting myself out there, being vulnerable to get better.”

On being released even after he was WWE Universal Champion: “Probably one of the biggest pills I’ve ever had to swallow in life, a reality check. It was disheartening to say the least. Stepping up at the beginning of the pandemic when other people couldn’t come to work, or people didn’t come to work, not knowing what’s going on in the world, and strapping this company to my back and going out there week in and week out and doing everything in my power to get quality product out so I can take the fans and the people around the world’s minds off of the crazy stuff that was going on, and I’m proud of those times through the pandemic, not only of myself, but all the boys and the girls, everybody in the back, you guys, everybody that was part of that.”

On feeling like a stray dog after his release: “Knowing that I kind of stepped up and did that and had the feeling of, well I was just the stray dog and all of a sudden I was just kicked off the porch, it was a little hard pill to swallow. It was the same thing I spoke on earlier, what didn’t I do? What did I do wrong? What could I have done better? All those doubts that you start playing into yourself. It’s a cold call out of nowhere. I was making breakfast at 9AM and got the phone call.”

“It definitely sent me to a bad place for a little bit, but I know that everything that happens in life happens for a reason, and everything is a test. I’m a firm believer that God never puts more on your back than you can handle without breaking.”

If using any of the above quotes, please credit After the Bell with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.