Tuning in to Raw is great for a number of reasons. If you had to rank them, the tag-team shenanigans of Cesaro and Sheamus are probably somewhere at the top. Initially, the two competed individually, and earned their individual reputations thanks to the legacy they built. But you can’t deny that together they’re carving a path that’s just as great. Some quick facts about the two wrestlers:
- Cesaro work for ROH before making it into the WWE
- Cesaro also competed in a number of independent promotions including PWG and CZW
- Sheamus is a WWE darling, with three WWE Championships to his name and one World Heavyweight title
Recently, the two toppled the longest reigning tag-team in WWE history, The New Day. The Swiss Superman and The Celtic Warrior ended the 483-day run held by The New Day, proving who the new favorites are. Fans now have something fresh and exciting to look forward to as they ask themselves the questions: will Cesaro and Sheamus be able to co-exist and stay at the top? Will they meet a new contender and lose the Tag Team title?
While we wait for those questions to be answered, here’s a list of facts about the two wrestlers that you probably didn’t know about until now:
1. Sheamus used to be a bodyguard for U2. It’s not unusual to hear that wrestlers had a few odd jobs here and there before they found their way to the WWE. But Sheamus, being the big intimidating guy that we all know, took advantage of his size and worked as a pub bouncer in Dublin. U2 made a stop at the pub and Sheamus was hired as the person who kept all the drunks away from Bono.
2. Cesaro doesn’t like his entrance theme. He’s gone on the record to say that he wishes it was a different theme. One of Cesaro’s gimmicks was to wear headphones as a part of his costume, which led people to believe that he was trying to block out the sounds of his own song. There’s still a chance that the song could be changed, since Cesaro is still at the start of his WWE run, and has many more years ahead of him with the company.
3. Sheamus competed in independent promotions. Cesaro is known for having worked his way through quite a few independent promotions including the Japanese Pro Wrestling Noah. It turns out Sheamus also made the rounds in his local promotions including Irish Whip Wrestling, All Star Wrestling and British Championship Wrestling.
4. Cesaro’s independent wrestling career. Not only was his run in the independent circles long, it was one of the strongest out there. His matches with ROH, CZW and PWG made him a legend outside of the WWE, so it only made sense that the company would recognize his talent and take him under their wing. Some other independent wrestling legends that made it to the WWE include Daniel Bryan, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn.
5. Sheamus used to be an IT Technician. Speaking of odd jobs once again, Sheamus used to have a desk job. It’s hard to imagine the wrestler taking on such a different career today, but it happened. He worked as an IT technician for multiple Irish companies including Symantec. This shows that he was cautious about his career options in case wrestling didn’t pay off in the long run.
6. Cesaro once wrestled under an ice cream mask. During his run in Chikara, Cesaro portrayed a character called Very Mysterious Ice-Cream, which was a part of the Los Ice Creams segment. It’s a little weird, but Chikara is known for trying to stand out from all the other promotions by blurring the lines between fantasy comic book worlds and real life.
8. Chris Hero was Cesaro’s best Tag Team partner. While we’re excited about the possibilities behind the Sheamus/Cesaro duo, they’ll never live up to the partnership that Cesaro had with Chris Hero. The two went by The Kings of Wrestling, and together they delivered an impressive set of matches that never failed to entertain their audiences. The two friends and partners were signed onto the WWE together, so there’s hope that they’ll share a ring once again in the future.
9. Sheamus played rugby and football. Like many other wrestlers, Sheamus has a very athletic background in a variety of sports. And he probably still practices most of them, since he’s built for it. But besides being a recreational sport for Sheamus, it was also a talent. The wrestler was so good at playing rugby that he won a National Diploma for his skills.
10. Cesaro was John Cena’s workout partner. The two wrestlers sparked a friendship a few years ago, and it’s still going strong. Cesaro used his skills to help Cena train and keep up his physique, and Cena seems to be very supportive of Cesaro’s skills. Cena continues to tell whoever listens that he believes in Cesaro, and hopefully his support will one day drive his friend to the top of the card.
12. Cesaro was Daniel Bryan’s before they made it big. It’s unusual to hear about Daniel Bryan being close friends with another wrestler (except for Kane), but it turns out Cesaro is one of those people in Bryan’s life. Cesaro has seen Bryan move his way through the independent circles, all the way until his entry into the WWE, and the respect Bryan feels for his friend is obvious. As a General Manager, he’s gone on the record to talk about Cesaro’s numerous talents, and his support has probably made all the difference in Cesaro’s career.
13. Sheamus is close friends with Drew Galloway. Back at the start of their WWE run, Sheamus, Wade Barrett and Galloway were all signed together as a group of international class of prospects. Most people don’t know about Galloway, or his past with Sheamus, but he’s always been there supporting him since day one.
14. Cesaro appeared in The Wrestler. The Wrestler is a film by Darren Aronofsky that looks at the world of wrestling, particularly the lives of wrestlers close to retirement. The film was filmed in a number of independent promotions, including ROH. Naturally, Cesaro was chosen to make a cameo appearance as a wrestler sharing a changing room with Mickey Rourke’s character.
16. Cesaro is dating Sara Del Rey. Fellow wrestler Sara Del Rey is a perfect match for Cesaro. She’s also competed in ROH and Chikara, and she made the all female promotion SHIMMER happen. She eventually signed a contract with the WWE and became a trainer at the WWE Performance Center. The two are extremely private about their relationship, but speculation about the two dating goes as far back as 2008 and they’ve also been spotted together in the background of a few Total Divas episodes.
