Je'Von Evans is 21 years old and headed to his first WrestleMania, but the calmest part of the build has been the locker room around him.
The Young OG appeared on the Battleground Podcast ahead of his Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match and credited a short list of WWE icons with shaping how he approaches the biggest stage of his career so far.
The first lesson came from Randy Orton, after the two shared a ring.
I learned this from Uncle Randy, that it's okay to be nervous. He was like, 'Bro, you should look nervous. You're going against a legend.' Ever since then, I was like, dang, it makes sense to be nervous in certain situations.
From Childhood Hero To Mentor
Evans grew up watching John Cena and now finds himself in regular conversation with him. The relationship has shifted from poster-on-the-wall fandom into something closer to a working mentorship, which is exactly what he needed in a year that's pushed him from a fast-tracked NXT call-up straight to the WrestleMania card.
Shawn Michaels added the simplest piece of advice on the list, and Evans said it's the one he leans on hardest.
Just be yourself.
Coming from a Hall of Famer who openly pushed to keep Evans in NXT longer, the line carries weight. Michaels watched Evans build his entire identity in the developmental brand and trusts him to bring that same identity to Raw without re-engineering it for a bigger crowd.
The Royal Rumble Reality Check
Evans tries to keep his fan side in check around the people he came up watching, but one entrance theme broke through during the Royal Rumble.
I heard Brock Lesnar's theme song. I was looking, I was like, 'Dang, I'm really here.' I was still in the ring to experience all this.
Evans steps into the Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match at WrestleMania 42 this weekend, with a homecoming Raw scheduled for May 18 at the Greensboro Coliseum waiting on the other side.
