Sheamus vs Sin Cara
When Sin Cara got some press recently for his backstage “fight” with Simon Gotch, it brought up memories of his fight with the much larger Sheamus two years prior.
Fight: Sheamus vs Sin Cara
Date: May 5, 2014
Location: Times Union Center in Albany, NY
Source: Wrestlinginc.com, WrestlingObserver.com
This version of Sin Cara was still Jorge Arias, also known as Hunico in Mexico. At the time, Sheamus was still thought of by management to be a top star. He and Drew McIntyre were both tight with HHH, and for awhile each of them was protected because of the belief they could be main players in the future. It never panned out for either one in WWE, although McIntyre had far more ability and did prove himself later in TNA when he was given a world title run. While WWE had missed the boat on McIntyre, it’s likely Sheamus will never reach the status many thought he might.
Cara had a problem with McIntyre, and believed he would only shake hands with the bigger stars in the back, and not the mid-carders. This goes against wrestling protocol, which is to shake hands with everyone regardless of their spot on the card. It’s something Booker T accused Batista of when the two had their fight a decade ago.
When Cara made his feelings known about McIntyre, either Sheamus heard them or later heard about them from someone else. For a few days, it bothered him a bit and came to a head at the Monday Night Raw tapings on May 5 in Albany, NY.
Backstage there’s always what’s called a trainer’s area, where trainers work with the wrestlers to stretch and iron out some of the nagging injuries all wrestlers have. Cara was being treated by the trainers, at the same time Sheamus walked by and needed treatment too. Apparently there were no other spare areas of Sheamus to be treated, so he made a comment about how he should get off the bed because he was more important than Cara was.
Cara got up and called Sheamus out on what he had said. Sheamus, who is considerably bigger than Cara, threw the first punch. We’re not sure if the punch connected, but either way, Cara immediately leg-swept him and got at least one good shot in on Sheamus. At that point they either stopped or it was broken up.
Sheamus later explained that he thought Cara was just joking when he called him out. If that was the case, however, then it made no sense for Sheamus to throw the first punch. Most likely he knew Cara was serious and was saving face when Cara surprisingly knocked him down and drilled him.
It is true that Sheamus was “more important” to WWE than Cara, but he should not have outwardly said so in a demeaning manner. As we’ve now seen, Cara is not afraid to mix it up with anyone. On that Raw show, Sheamus won a Battle Royal to be crowned the new US champion. We’re not sure if this altercation took place before or after that match. We never heard of any disciplinary action against either man. WWE didn’t push Cara, but that has been the case for awhile and this fight is not the reason for that. Sheamus has received occasional pushes over the years, usually when they’re short on talent and then they give up on him whenever he doesn’t get over the way they want him to.
