Wade Barrett Has 'Unfinished Business' With Wayne Rooney Ahead Of WWE SmackDown In DC

Tonight, "WWE SmackDown" returns to Washington, DC, and Wade Barrett has a score to settle with former soccer star Wayne Rooney. During his run as King Barrett, the former Intercontinental Champion began a social media war with Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney. Eventually, the two came face to face on "WWE Raw" in 2015. As Rooney sat in the front row, Barrett taunted him, describing himself as "championship material," unlike Rooney and his team at that point in time. This didn't sit well with Rooney, so when Barrett approached the barricade, Rooney stunned him with a slap.

As Barrett prepares to commentate "SmackDown" in the nation's capital, Rooney made his way over there last year, accepting a manager position for the Major League Soccer team D.C. United. In a recent interview with Metro UK, Barrett entertained the possibility of rekindling their previous feud. "If he fancies turning up, come along Wayne and maybe we can get to some unfinished business between the two of us!" he teased.

Barrett recalled their rivalry sparked after a close game between Rooney's team and Barrett's favorite team of Preston North End led to a win for Manchester United in the FA Cup. "It's such a silly little thing, you don't go into a career to do things like that. That's never the aim when you become a wrestler with WWE, but that's one of those silly little things that people will always remember,' Barrett said. 'People love talking to me about that time I got slapped by Wayne Rooney!'