Johnny Gargano wants a Cedrick Von Haussen action figure.
Long before his remarkable run in NXT and his subsequent arrival on WWE RAW, Gargano was a young wrestler who was trying to make it big. Like many of his peers, he did some work as an extra for WWE, and Gargano’s experience was unique to say the least; in 2007, he was introduced to the world as Cedrick Von Haussen, the Champion of Liechtenstein, and he faced MVP on SmackDown.
During a recent interview with BT Sport, the former NXT Champion recalled the uncertainty that surrounded his very first WWE appearance back in 2007. He looked back on how it came together and how he felt about it at the time.
“So that was my first appearance in WWE. Cedrick Von Haussen, the Champion of Liechtenstein. So, I remember—2007—I was 19. I was 19 years old, which seems like a lifetime ago. I remember everything about the whole experience was completely last minute. I didn’t get the call that they needed me for that spot until 5 p.m. And this was when SmackDown went on the air around 8. I got the call super last-minute. I rush down to the Gund Arena—at the time—in Cleveland, Ohio. I go in, and I don’t even know where I’m going. I don’t know how to get in. I try to walk in the door with all the fans because no one told me anything. They just said, ‘We need you for SmackDown.’ ‘Okay, cool.'”
“So I finally get in the door. We talk about everything, talk to MVP, all that stuff happens. And now, ‘Okay, we’re going to take you to wardrobe.’ Wardrobe, that’s weird? Like I have my gear. I don’t know why I would need to go to wardrobe. They take me to wardrobe, and here I am. ‘Here’s the costume we want you to wear.’ My first thought in that moment was, ‘Oh. Oh, what are we doing now?’ And they said, ‘You are Cedrick Von Haussen, the Champion of Liechtenstein.’ In that moment though, still, it was my first appearance for WWE. Like I’m just a kid, at 19 years old, like ‘This is so cool. I’ll wear whatever you want me to wear. I’m wrestling at WWE. This is a dream come true. I never thought this day would come.'”
Gargano, who was recorded with a collection of action figures covering the wall in the background, proceeded to jokingly ask Mattel to turn his Cedrick Von Haussen character into an action figure.
“This is a call out to Mattel out there because I’m a big figure guy. Mattel—I think—just released a WCW AJ Styles figure. Mattel, you can release a Cedrick Von Haussen figure. That is my first time decreeing this on any platform. Mattel, the people want this Cedrick Von Haussen figure—I think. So just think about it. Think about the money that can come in from that.”
Make it happen, @Mattel! ? pic.twitter.com/xWqPM3gMwj
— WWE on BT Sport (@btsportwwe) September 30, 2022
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