WWE Forcing Former World Champion To Slow Down, Take It Easy (WWE News)
WWE has told Damian Priest to slow down and take it easy.
WWE's Damian Priest has revealed that the company has forced him to slow down this year, with the market leader keen to make sure the Punisher is able to prolong his career for as long as possible.
The topic of Priest's schedule came up during an appearance on Prince St. Pizza, where the 43-year-old joined his uncle, Big Nick, and was asked about how often he's on the road these days.
On that matter, Priest said:
"Unfortunately, a little less for me lately. This past year, I've taken a step back, been banged up a little bit, so I've kinda given the bones and joints and ligaments, and everything in between, a little bit of a break. But it's still a weekly travel thing, we're on the road every week; I'm just not performing five days in a row like I used to."
The former World Heavyweight Champion added:
"It's unfortunate, and I don't like to bring it up too much, and I don't take breaks. Since I've been in WWE, I've literally taken zero days off; I've never asked for time off because I've been hurting. The company now, this year, decided, like, 'Oh, let's take it easy on him,' because I've been going hard for a while. [I] tore my shoulder a couple of times within the last year and a half, my knees are banged up, my back is oof. I need a lot of work done, but I choose to not, and because if I don't have to, I won't, and I'll just figure it out. Like, 'Let's do rehab and just keep me in the game, coach.' That kind of thing. So, we've been doing that for a while, but this year I think the company was, like, 'Okay, we're happy with you, but we need to make sure you're gonna last here.' So, they've been forcing me to take it easy, put it that way. Not the easiest thing to do when you want to just go out there and perform because you love what you do."
Damian reiterated how he still loves what he's doing, even if he's not as active in the ring as in previous years:
"I'm still on TV on a regular basis, just not in-ring as much as I used to be. But I love performing, man, I love getting physical, so it's hard for me. But aside from that, like, I've still got the job, right? I'm still with my people, I'm still with the company, I love what I do, so everything's still good."
For some context, Damian Priest has been working for 20 years by this point, having debuted back in 2005, working the independent scene and competing for the likes of Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro-Wrestling before signing with WWE in 2018.
Looking back at Priest's time with WWE, 2025 is easily the leanest of his tenure when it comes to the number of matches. As of this writing, the Archer of Infamy has had 24 matches in 2025, in comparison to 76 in 2024, 100 in 2023, 84 in 2022, 63 in 2021, 35 matches in the pandemic-hit 2020, and 87 matches in 2019. Of course, under the TKO banner, WWE nowadays operates far fewer house show dates, so that's also a factor to be considered.
Damian was last in action on SmackDown this past Friday, where he and Rhea Ripley picked up a win over Aleister Black and Zelina Vega.
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