28-year-old WWE Superstar reacts for the first time after losing his much-anticipated debut match on Raw

The WWE Universe saw the debut match of NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes on the main roster as he delivered an incredible performance against Finn Balor.

28-year-old WWE Superstar reacts for the first time after losing his much-anticipated debut match on Raw

Carmelo Hayes and Finn Balor (via WWE)

NXT World Champion Carmelo Hayes is gearing up to become a sensational star on the main roster after dominating NXT. On the latest episode of Raw, Hayes fought the former Universal Champion Finn Balor but could not win his debut match. He broke his silence and commented on it after the show while also talking about his next match.

Carmelo Hayes has been one of the most promising stars on NXT’s current roster. He won the NXT North American Championship on two occasions while also winning the Cruiserweight Championship once. This was the final reign in the title’s history. He defeated Bron Breakker for the NXT World Championship at Stand and Deliver in April 2023.

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Carmelo Hayes was seen in the audience at the beginning of Raw, and he got a shoutout from Seth Rollins for helping him out. Finn Balor came out of nowhere and immediately attacked Rollins, but Hayes stopped Balor from using a chair to hit the champion. Hayes later fought Balor in a spectacular match, but the NXT Champion was unsuccessful in defeating the former Universal Champion.

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Byran Saxton tried to get a word from Carmelo Hayes after the match. The 28-year-old said that he does not regret losing to Finn. This was because he considers Finn Balor one of the world’s best wrestlers. Therefore, he was happy with his performance in his first match on the main roster, as this was a dream come true for Melo.

The 28-year-old champion also said that he will now focus on his next match against Baron Corbin. He said that he is not 100% after his match with Balor, but he can defeat Corbin even when he is 25% because he is still Carmelo Hayes.

Related: NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes recreates the iconic Kobe Bryant pose after defending his title at Battleground

Carmelo Hayes shares an iconic moment with Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins with CM Punk and Carmelo Hayes
Seth Rollins with CM Punk and Carmelo Hayes (via Twitter)

Ever since Seth Rollins returned to NXT after years, he has been interacting with the current NXT Champion, Carmelo Hayes. During Rollins’ match with Bron Breakker, Hayes made a save for the Champion. The Visionary returned the thanks on the next episode of Raw and praised the 28-year-old for his work and NXT run.

During the last episode of NXT, Carmelo Hayes and Seth Rollins shared an iconic staredown backstage. The picture of the staredown is getting a lot of attention online because of a particular reason. That reason being, almost a decade ago, Seth Rollins was in Hayes’ position and he was stared down by then WWE Champion CM Punk.

Seth Rollins was the first NXT Champion and his title run was acknowledged by then champion CM Punk. Similarly, Rollins, who is the World Heavyweight Champion now, acknowledged the reign of NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes.

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