Sheamus has seemingly found some newfound respect for New Day member Big E following their recent SmackDown feud. As far as The Celtic Warrior is concerned, the new Big E “should be world champion.”

Speaking with Sports Illustrated, Sheamus reflected on their rivalry on WWE’s blue brand. He explained how the world “saw a different side of Big E” during their feud, claiming that this new Big E is deserving of a world championship run.

Sheamus shared how he “[…] hit him as hard as I could, and he hit me back even harder. That’s a credit to him. He brought it, and I still have the marks on my back to prove it.”

This hard-hitting affair was by design. Sheamus stressed it was always his intention to demonstrate how tough Big E is with their feud.

“My intention, as soon as I learned I was working with Big E, was to show he is a tough bastard. I wanted to show a side of him that no one had ever seen. We all know he can joke and crack people up, but when it comes to a fight, he can also hold his own against anybody.”

Following the recent WWE Draft, Sheamus is now a Raw Superstar. Big E, however, remained on SmackDown. His New Day teammates, Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston, were also moved to Raw.