Fred Rosser Discusses Experience Of Having CM Punk As WWE NXT Pro

Fred Rosser might currently be NJPW's reigning STRONG Openweight Champion, but back in 2010, he was debuting on Season 1 of "WWE NXT," using the ring name Darren Young. Like all the "rookies," Rosser was assigned a "pro" who would serve as his mentor throughout the competition. That pro would turn out to be former WWE World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk.

Recently on the "Insiders Edge Podcast," Rosser opened up about his initial encounters with Punk. "I think at the time, maybe he was maybe under a lot of stress himself and being on the road more, [and] having to be on NXT," Rosser said.

Besides appearing on the game show version of "NXT," Punk was also a main staple of "SmackDown" at the time, battling Rey Mysterio, and leading the Straight Edge Society faction. "It was probably getting to him so he wasn't into it," Rosser said. "He probably said one, a handful of words to me during that entire season. So it was intimidating because I didn't want to ruffle any feathers, and I was new."

Rosser did recall a "really cool" moment with his former pro in 2013, shortly after he came out publicly as gay, the first active WWE star ever to do so.

"He came up to me in catering, and he was all iced up and he told me to stand up in catering," Rosser said. "I stood up and he gave me a hug, and he told me after I had came out on television, that if I had any issues with anyone in the locker room to let him know, that he had my back. So I was like, 'Wow.' It was that minute that I realized that my story was a big deal, and that at the time he did have my back."