"Yeah (we've spent a lot of time together), since we were kids. We grew up a couple minutes apart, in the Cleveland area, both had dreams of being WWE superstars and being the best. At some point along the way, one of us worked really hard, scratched and clawed for everything we could possibly get, and one of us went a little Hollywood, as you have said before. Man, that's where the two of us kind of don't mesh up anymore. We're not friends, we're not looking to hang out with each other. I can't stand that guy and right now, he's the Intercontinental champion.
"Winning the Intercontinental championship the very first time, for me, was this huge milestone because as I had grown up, I lived off watching some of those Intercontinental championship matches. Some of the greatest superstars of all time -- Mr. Perfect, Shawn Michaels, The Rock and Triple H -- tearing each other apart for that prestigious title.
"Have you followed my Twitter account? I would say you grab a grown up or have JBL explain it, to break it down for you. It's pretty smart good stuff, and I could understand why that following is there for me but at the end of the day, Michael, I do what I do and there's a reason people follow me. There's a reason people are rooting for me. It's because I'm the 'Show Off' and I back it up.
"That's a good question. My entire life I've had a chip on my shoulder wanting to be the best, whether it was in little league baseball, football, wrestling -- wrestling at Kent State University, Division I, standing out and breaking the all-time wins record just to hope that somehow I would have a chance to get my foot in the door at WWE, just hoping that one day I could be a WWE superstar. I found a way to always show off, steal the show, be the best. In the WWE, I haven't always lived up to that name, that's real. I've stolen shows, I've gone above and beyond, whether I had 30 seconds or 30 minutes, and somehow, at some point you have to deliver. You have to go to that next level or it does become all hype.
"I'm looking forward to (delivering at SummerSlam). God, me and The Miz, two totally different paths. One of us sees that Intercontinental championship as a prop and one of us sees that Intercontinental champion for what it is. It is a stepping stone to being the best. It is a stepping stone for being the next guy in the WWE. I have to, at SummerSlam, I have to deliver. When I get in the ring against Miz, I will steal the show at SummerSlam."
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