After cashing in Money in the Bank at Wrestlemania 40, new World Heavyweight Champion Damian Priest is the first world champion in the WWE from Puerto Rico in 50 years. The Judgement Day member recently spoke at the post-Wrestlemania 40 press conference and proudly showed his Puerto Rican heritage.

"I think everybody by now knows how proud I am and how adamant I am about cultural representation. I didn't do this alone. I think I had not just an island behind me, I had a whole culture," he told reporters in Spanish after winning the World title. "And it's one of the most proud things I've accomplished is just being able to represent and getting people to represent their cultures no matter where they are from. Being a representative of WWE, I could not be prouder of my people."

Damian Priest, whose real name is Luis Martinez, is the first Puerto Rican to hold world championship gold in the WWE since Pedro Morales's historic reign during the 1970s. While he lost the Undisputed Tag Team titles during the 6-Pack Ladder Match on Night 1, he still had his Money in the Bank briefcase, and he cashed it in following Drew McIntyre's win against Seth Rollins during the opening match of Night 2.

The Money in the Bank briefcase allows him a title shot against any champion, anytime, anywhere. He has been criticized as he has held on to the briefcase and has not cashed in for a long time. However, it seems he was just biding his time for the right moment, which came after CM Punk attacked Drew McIntyre.

After his World Heavyweight Championship win, Damian Priest celebrated with the other members of Judgement Day, Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley, Dominik Mysterio, Finn Balor, and JD McDonough, with the image of the big Puerto Rican holding the belt up high next to his stablemates during the "Showcase of the Immortals" becoming one of the highlights of his career.

Damian Priests Talks About What Is Next For Him After the Wrestlemania 40 World Title Cash-In

The Judgement Day big man now joins elite company as he becomes one of the few Latino world champions in WWE, joining the likes of not just fellow Puerto Rican Pedro Morales but also lucha libre legends who won the "big one" in Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero.

He then addressed what would come next for him, telling reporters, "Where we're going, where we're headed, I have no idea. This new era of the company, I mean everybody can feel it. Everybody can sense it. We're on a rollercoaster."

Damian Priest Looks Back at Career After World Heavyweight Championship Win at Wrestlemania 40

Priest was feeling good at the Wrestlemania 40 press conference after the event, looking back at his journey to get where he is today, saying, "It's one of those things that's really hard to put into words. It's like, what's happening? Starting from two years ago when we formed the Judgment Day, there was kind of an idea of using talent that could possibly be main-eventers or have been main-eventers, but they're just floating. Then it took off to a different direction, and I'll be honest, there was a moment that I wasn't sure it was gonna work. I thought I was done."

"I wasn't even sure I was gonna still be here with the company, to be honest. Then I don't know. It was just the addition obviously with Finn Balor, Rhea, then Dom, and now JD, I feel like all of our differences made something special. All of us bring out the best out of each other. Then flowing into Puerto Rico, and that event, which I still to this day, it was one of the most important matches of my career. The win or loss was inconsequential. It was about representation and what we can do to show off, show off that the company in another country or in another atmosphere could be successful. Now, you see with the business we're doing in all these other countries, I mean, Australia was incredible," the big Puerto Rican added.

"Then we flow into Money in the Bank, which was in London, and that was cool. But even still, you never know what's gonna happen. It took me a minute to cash in, but you're talking about one of the greatest, if not the greatest, WrestleMania of all time, in a city where it was 20 minutes away from where I started my career, I did it in front of my father, my brothers, friends, one of the coolest moments of my life. Shoutout to the Philadelphia crowd because they made that really special."

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Written by: Rick Martin

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