Corey Graves On His Goals With Potential In-Ring Return

Corey Graves recently spoke with Rasslin' where he reflected on the change backstage during WrestleMania season. He admitted that there is a change in energy amongst the roster. The Raw commentator believes that everyone wants to do their best.

"There is a tangible feeling, and we almost try to talk ourselves out of it each year," he said. "Because it's such a busy schedule and there's so many shows, it feels like as soon as WrestleMania is done, here comes SummerSlam, and here's the next thing. It's just a constant cycle. But there's definitely a tangible energy, even backstage at TV days now.

"Everything counts a little bit more, everyone steps up their game a little bit, everyone trains a little bit harder. Because at the end of the day, WrestleMania is truly the biggest event in live entertainment. We are going to have two nights, potentially over 100,000 over the course of the two nights. Everyone just wants to be at their absolute best."

Corey Graves recently revealed that he is medically cleared to compete again. The former NXT star explained what the reason was for him trying to get back into the ring. He had been bothered about it, but he has grown to love his current role.

"It's basically just something that has bothered me since I was forced to retire, back, I think it was 2014. I never in a million years expected to be a commentator, particularly one of the lead voices for Monday Night Raw now," he said. "That is something that if you told me 10 years ago, I would never have believed you. But since then, I have really grown to love this role, and the company has been really cool about letting me sort of expand.

"I have a podcast with WWE now called After The Bell and really sort of explore what I am capable of outside of the ring. Which is something I never paid much attention to. I was so focused on the wrestling aspect, and now I am in a good spot. I am in a good comfortable position professionally, personally, I am on top of the world where that goes."

Having an official WWE match is something that Corey Graves believes is a missing piece of the puzzle for him. He was motivated by the returns of people like Edge and Christian in order to go and test himself.

"That was kind of the one missing piece of the puzzle was, 'man, I still never got that official WWE match, the PPV match.' I got to do the live event tours when I was still with NXT, so I got a taste of it there, and I fell off the cliff before I got to make the jump. It's just something that's kind of been eating at me for the last, particularly, year or so," he said. "Seeing Christian come back, and seeing Edge come back, and Daniel Bryan a few years prior. It always has made me wonder, 'what if? Am I able, would I be able to do that?' So I went and started the whole testing protocol last summer, almost right after WrestleMania last year. I went through and passed all the tests."

When it comes to actually getting back into the ring, Corey Graves wants to do it if it will benefit the business. Right now, he views it as another weapon in his arsenal to work with.

"It's just another weapon to have in my arsenal. In the event it helps enhance a story, or it helps get somebody over, or maybe that's her, maybe it makes Carmella even more hateable to have somebody kick my ass. Anything to just further the business," he claimed. "I don't have any sort of false pretenses that I am going to be a champion or I am going to have these great, epic matches. I just kind of want that taste, I just want to feel that one more time."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Rasslin' with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.