In an interview with Aaron Oster of The Baltimore Sun to promote this Monday’s WWE “Old School” RAW, WWE superstar Antonio Cesaro discussed independent talent such as himself, CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan and more joining the WWE and if there’s an extra bond between them, Chris Hero’s release from the company and his 2013 in WWE.

Highlights of the interview are below:

On independent talent joining WWE and if there’s an extra bond between those talents: “We’ve been on the road with each other for a long time. I’ve been with guys like CM Punk, Seth Rollins and Daniel Bryan for almost 10 years now, it’s definitely a bond because we all know where we came from, we know we performed in front of 20-30 people in some old, rusty building, and now we’re performing on the biggest stage, there’s definitely a pride in that. There’s definitely a bond in it as well.”

On his 2013 in WWE: “Well, I started the year as the WWE United States Champion and now I’m not the WWE United States Champion, but I’d say that I’m part of the most entertaining group in the WWE and the best tag team right now, The Real Americans.”

On Chris Hero/Kassius Ohno’s release from the WWE: “It certainly was disappointing. When we signed with the company, we both knew what we were getting into, we both made each other a promise that we would work as hard as possible, whether it’s as a team or singles competitors. I know he’ll wind up on his feet, and he probably already is, and he’ll continue wrestling all over the world.”

The interview is available at this link.