"That didn’t sit well with me" - Christian Cage on why he was unhappy with WWE

Christian Cage has opened up about what WWE did that "didn't sit well with" him in the past. He said he wasn't happy about being on WWE's "non-contact list" due to his past injuries.

Christian had to retire from WWE in 2014 due to concussion-related issues. He returned to the ring in 2021 after he was cleared to wrestle. A year earlier, he was involved in an "unsanctioned match" with Randy Orton on RAW. This match occurred after Orton and Edge fought each other in a singles bout at WWE Backlash 2020.

While speaking to Sports Illustrated, Christian alluded to that match with Orton. The veteran said he wasn't happy when WWE thought he was "fragile" and put him on the "non-contact list."

"That didn’t sit well with me. Am I really that fragile that I need to be on the non-contact list? So I decided to go on my own and see some specialists here in Tampa at the University of South Florida.”

Christian also stated in the interview that just a "handful" of people knew he had been cleared to return to the ring at the 2021 Royal Rumble event.

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Christian Cage on his road to getting cleared for in-ring action

.@Christian4Peeps & @KennyOmegamanX meet face to face!Watch #AEWDynamite NOW on @TNTDrama. pic.twitter.com/nJOFkShrsA

— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) March 11, 2021

Once Christian Cage's doctor revealed that he could return to the ring, the veteran said he worked hard to get in ring-shape for an eventual return.

“I hadn’t been working out as intensely, so that’s when I tightened everything up. I hired a nutrition specialist in Tampa, Nutrition Solutions, which helped me completely change the way I eat and feel about my body. For me, I needed to be ready physically before I said I was ready to wrestle, not ask for a job and then get ready. So I put a little gym in my garage, and I started grinding.”

Christian Cage's AEW debut with "My Last Breath" by Evanescence #AEWRevolution #AEWDynamite pic.twitter.com/FlmQOpQt43

— DRADA LEE (@2Sweet4Lyfe) March 11, 2021

Despite his Royal Rumble appearance, Christian Cage went on to sign with AEW instead.

Christian was revealed as AEW's "Hall of Fame" worthy acquisition at the Revolution pay-per-view. He even teased a feud with Kenny Omega on last week's AEW Dynamite.