Carmelo Hayes brought plenty of trash talk for Baron Corbin ahead of their WWE United States Championship match on last Friday’s SmackDown at TD Garden in Boston.
In an interview with WBZ News Boston before the show, Hayes acknowledged Corbin’s resume but made it clear his opponent wasn’t welcome in the city. When the host compared Corbin to the New York Yankees, Melo took it even further.
“Just came back. He was gone for a little while. Well-decorated wrestler, well-respected wrestler. He’s a guy, you know, we’re not taking him lightly. But, you know, he’s coming to the city of Boston. He’s not welcome here. And he’s going to feel it tonight. The people are going to let him know what’s up. And then when he gets in the ring with Carmelo Hayes, he’s going to find out. He might be worse than the Yankees.”
The line was a direct play on the historic Red Sox-Yankees rivalry, about as cutting a comparison as you can make in front of a Boston crowd.
Corbin returned to WWE on July 10 by interrupting a match between Hayes and Trick Williams. Less than a month later, he defeated Trick at SummerSlam on August 2 to capture the United States Championship. He retained on August 7, winning the rematch after hitting Williams with the title belt behind the referee’s back.
Hayes attacked Corbin backstage and earned his title shot in Boston. His promise to win on home turf didn’t pan out, though. Corbin hit the End of Days on last Friday’s show and retained the championship.
After the match, Trick Williams and Lil Yachty attacked Corbin, making it clear the United States Championship feud is far from over.