It’s one thing to get admiration from a legend in a private conversation.
It hits different, though, when that legend is Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson giving you your flowers in front of the millions — and millions — fans around the world to see.
That’s the position Bobby Lashley found himself in roughly 72 hours after becoming just the third African-American to be crowned WWE Champion. (The Rock was first and Kofi Kingston second).
Catching a Twitter exchange between MVP of The Hurt Business and The Rock, Lashley just had to let “The Great One” know how much he’s appreciated. Perhaps to his surprise, Lashley quickly realized that it’s a two-way street of respect.
Ahead of defending the WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre on Night 1 of WrestleMania 37 on Saturday night, Lashley is still humbled by The Rock's words over a month ago.
“In this business, there’s a lot of things that we strive for,” Lashley began explaining to DAZN News. “We strive for the appreciation from the fans, the appreciation for the work that we put in and the shows that we do, the grueling torture that we put on our bodies. And to go out there and do it day to day, we strive for that appreciation.
“But we also strive for the appreciation from our peers and our co-workers and some of the people like The Rock that paved the way for us,” he continued.
“So, to have somebody like him who still watches the product, still keeps up with us, to kind of extend that out and congratulate me on my success meant the world to me, man,” Lashley added with excitement in his voice. “Especially somebody at his level, at his caliber, it’s truly an honor. It’s truly something that I appreciate.”
Furthermore, Lashley has particularly honed in on The Rock's portion of the tweet that implored: "Grab that brass ring and go for it all. You know what to do, champ."
Lashley sure does. After taking 16 years in the making to be crowned WWE Champion, the way for Lashley to truly "represent" would be to use "The Grandest Stage of Them All" to not only stamp The All Mighty Era's WrestleMania moment, but to launch a reign of domination.
"I look at it this way — it’s very few people who have held the WWE Championship," Lashley stated. "And when you look at the names that held that championship, they’re the best of the best of the business.
"So, just getting that title was a huge accomplishment in itself, but in order to keep it and really build that legacy, that’s everything that I worked for," he added sternly. "(Dominating) is what I’m going for."