Carmelo Hayes Is Shedding The Cruiserweight Stigma In NXT

WWE’s main event scene has long been comprised of gigantic professional wrestlers whose size gave them a leg up on the competition. But over the years, some of the more undersized competitors like “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Bret Hart, and Shawn Michaels have all ascended to the top of the company in spite of a smaller stature.

Those sorts of wrestlers served as the blueprint for someone like Carmelo Hayes, the current NXT Champion, to rise into the main event scene. His debut in NXT came with a shot at the Cruiserweight Championship, a logical conclusion for a rising star billed at his size and stature. But 21 days later, he was back in the ring with Adam Cole, someone else considered undersized, but also a former NXT champion in his own right.

Hayes has refused to get boxed into only competing against guys his size. He credits conversations with his coaches to having the proper mindset.

“One time one of my coaches here, he said when you watch Shawn Michaels versus the Undertaker, you’re not looking at big guy, little guy. If you really think back on it, you’re just looking at an icon, Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker,” Hayes tells Uproxx Sports ahead of Saturday’s No Mercy live event. “So, it’s the same energy. I don’t try and carry myself like a cruiserweight. On paper, yeah, I’m a cruiserweight. But in the ring, you’re not going to get that type of energy from me at all. I’m just as big as whoever my opponent is. And that’s kind of the mindset that I walk into every match with.”

Hayes has done just that, carrying himself with the authoritative presence of a bonafide star whenever he’s given an opportunity, whether that comes on the mic, in a backstage segment, or in the ring.

The man he idolizes comes from outside the world of professional wrestling, and knows a thing or two about being the sort of magnetic, larger than life presence that he replicates. Hayes won the NXT title over Bron Breakker at Stand and Deliver, which took place at the Crypto Center in Los Angeles. Despite being a New England guy, Hayes was draped in the unmistakable purple and gold of the Los Angeles Lakers as a way to pay homage to the late Kobe Bryant. Shortly after the match, he posted a side-by-side photo of Bryant’s first NBA title win.

“I think my biggest thing is music, pop culture, and sports because it’s relatable,” Hayes says. “I do these things for the people that are at home and kids or whoever that are looking for that inspiration the same way I’m inspired by others.”

Like Kobe after that first title, Hayes knows he’s barely scraping the surface of what he will go on to achieve.

He credits Michaels, Matt Bloom, Terry Taylor, and Booker T as those who have been instrumental in helping him along the way. Hayes calls himself a student of the game, and uses any opportunity he’s had around Raw or Smackdown superstars to learn and continue to grow. He makes a point to call out working with guys like Baron Corbin, who is back in NXT after experiencing the early days of the promotion before joining the main roster.

Hayes takes pride in being the bridge between the Black and Gold era of NXT and ushering in NXT 2.0 alongside the likes of Breakker, Tiffany Stratton, Roxanne Perez, and others, but admits he’s in what he calls his senior year of the brand. What began in the breakout tournament evolved into his North American Championship reigns, and now, holding onto the NXT title signifies his time in the promotion could wrap up sooner rather than later.

In the meantime, Hayes is cherishing every opportunity to continue developing before he’s thrown to the wolves on the main roster. He’s also learning on the fly how to continue living up to sky-high expectations, whether he’s set them for himself or they’ve naturally come because of his championship reign. That’s relevant in his upcoming sequel showdown with the fiery Ilja Dragunov at next Saturday’s No Mercy.

“I think we try to just give the fans something that they’re going to enjoy,” Hayes says. “Knowing what to expect, I think in that first match, it was a lot of feeling each other out. We’d never been in the ring before, not training or anything, and we had good chemistry at that point. This time there’s a lot more on the line. I think a lot of people were questioning that first win that I had. So I think I have a lot to prove, even as champion.”

Dragunov is a “different type of guy,” Hayes says, and admits he had to shift his style more to his opponent to get past him in their last tilt. This time, Hayes says he’s entering with more confidence that he can get the job done again.

“If you watch that last match, I wasn’t doing really too much high flying,” Hayes says. “I wasn’t doing the kind of stuff that people are known for me doing. So I had to fight. He met his match because I came and I brought the fight to him. I feel a lot more confident than I did the first time around because now I think I know what to expect with Ilja.”

Hayes and Dragunov will face off in the main event of NXT No Mercy on Saturday, September 30 at 8 p.m. ET.