“I don’t like seeing it” – Former WWE Universal Champion reflects on career-changing injury

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The injury forced Balor to relinquish the Universal Championship on the very next episode of Monday Night RAW, ending his reign after just one day. The setback sidelined him for several months and temporarily halted his meteoric rise after his arrival on WWE’s main roster.

When asked about the heartbreaking moment by Chris Van Vliet on his INSIGHT podcast, Finn Balor admitted he has never gone back and watched the match in which he became the champ. He said he still avoids clips of the bout whenever they appear on social media.

“No [when asked about watching the Universal Title match]. And you know what? I get like tagged in tweets like daily of like that spot, and like I’ll like scroll away before I hit the wall. Like I don’t like seeing it,” said Balor.

When asked whether the footage brings back painful memories, the former Judgment Day member said he prefers to focus on the future rather than dwell on something he cannot change.

“It’s just like, why dwell on the past? You should be looking forward. You can’t change the past. Like it happened, so what?”

Jinder Mahal opens up about accidentally injuring Finn Balor and nearly losing his WWE job

Former WWE Champion Jinder Mahal revealed that one accidental in-ring mistake nearly cost him his job just weeks before the biggest push of his career.

Speaking during an interview with TMZ’s Inside the Ring, Mahal recalled the moment when he accidentally gave Finn Balor a concussion during a singles match on RAW. At the time, The Prince had only recently returned from the shoulder injury that forced him to vacate the inaugural Universal Championship.

Mahal explained that the spot was one he and Balor had performed successfully numerous times at live events. However, on this occasion, the timing was slightly off.

“One week before getting drafted to SmackDown, before I became WWE Champion, it was myself and Finn Balor in a singles match on RAW. I accidentally gave him a concussion. He was coming off the ropes, I gave him a forearm, and we would do this spot every night on the live events. As a hope spot, he would come off the ropes, I would give him a forearm. But just mistiming… I gave Finn Balor that concussion. Felt terrible,” Mahal said.

The former WWE Champion admitted he feared the worst backstage after the match. According to Mahal, Vince McMahon was furious and even suggested firing him over the incident.

Fortunately for Mahal, that scenario never became reality. Just days later, he was drafted to SmackDown, entered the WWE Championship picture, and defeated Randy Orton at Backlash 2017 to capture his first world title in one of the most surprising championship victories in company history.

It will be interesting to see what Triple H and his creative team have planned for the 44-year-old star next.

If you use quotes from this article, please credit Insight with Chris Van Vliet and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.