Top AEW star believes Vince McMahon was 'wrong' to criticize his wrestling persona in WWE

Former WWE Superstar Cesaro, aka Claudio Castagnoli, recently spoke about Vince McMahon criticizing his charisma.

AEW is often compared to WWE, especially based on how they utilize stars who jump over from the latter promotion. However, Vince McMahon himself once took shots at a star that's now signed to AEW, and the athlete in question has finally addressed them.

The Jacksonville-based promotion acquired numerous former WWE Superstars during the pandemic as McMahon released a plethora of its signed roster. The former Chairman hasn't publicly commented on any of their releases, and on one rare occasion, he criticized a star who would eventually make his way into the rival promotion.

In his recent appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Claudio Castagnoli addressed Vince McMahon's criticisms of his charisma.

"I thought he was wrong. Yeah, I feel that charisma comes in very different forms. Not everybody has that over-the-top Ultimate Warrior shaking the ropes, running around crazy, yelling, and screaming charisma. But I felt like I had a connection with the fans, with the WWE Universe, whatever you want to call it, in the United States and all over the world." [From 18:45 onward]

Castagnoli continued, claiming that there are nuanced differences when it comes to what crowds get behind.

"While other people were known for long promos that get translated into many other languages and [don’t] necessarily come across, mine was about the in-ring work and people can connect with that. I did connect with the fans and they were behind me. I don’t know if that was not what he was looking for, but the end effect brought me here and you get to see that!" [From 19:28 onward]

Despite McMahon's criticisms, Claudio has enjoyed a massive push in AEW and is currently reigning as the ROH World Champion.

Missed out on AEW Rampage? Catch up on the show's results here.

Booker T believes that Claudio Castagnoli would never have gone to AEW if WWE was a better environment for him

Claudio Castagnoli was one of the biggest fan favorite stars in WWE, despite never being booked as a Main Eventer. The former United States Champion never held a World Championship during his 11 years with the company, something that many fans had a gripe with.

During an episode of the Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T lamented Claudio's departure from WWE and praised the former Swiss Superman.

"I think he would've stayed in WWE if the situation was right for him. The situation wasn't right and he moved on, and hopefully he's happy. I said it before, if I could've had that guy on my team, I'm going to have him on my team. I would love to see a guy like him come back," said Booker T. [From 58:55 onward]

Castagnoli is seemingly enjoying his time as a prominent member of the Blackpool Combat Club. However, could he be the first AEW star to jump back to WWE or will he remain as the face of ROH?