Cesaro is ridiculously busy man. In town this week to promote the WWE Live Dune Bash in April, he’s been out and around the country meeting fans and speaking to various outlets on the WWE’s plans for the region. In the ring he’s an unstoppable force of nature, but on the phone he seems just like any other person I’ve talked to – just with an insatiable appreciation for coffee.

How are you enjoying Dubai?
I’m enjoying it a lot – I’m currently in a Rolls Royce going from Abu Dhabi to Dubai, so it’s pretty cool.

You’re here to promote the WWE Live Dune Bash, which is taking place on April 14 and 15th – sadly we won’t see you competing, but what can fans expect from the event?
I know there are a lot of WWE fans here because they’ve been watching WWE on television, but there’s nothing like watching WWE live. If you get excited about what you watch on TV, it’s a completely different world to see it live in front of you. There’s this incredible energy between the WWE stars and the fans, and just being here for two days I can see how much the fans here love it, so it’s going to be a great show for them.

WWE has such a huge fanbase around the world but here in the Middle East people don’t realize just how big of a fan following there is. What has the reaction been so far during your visit?
I think WWE has only just begun to realize how big the fan following in the Middle East actually is, and they’ve been coming to the Middle East quite regularly over the past two or three years. Now we’re coming to Dubai and I have a feeling that hopefully we’ll be coming back on a regular basis – at least that’s my wish. We’ve neglected the fan base for live events for too long, so now we’re picking things up and totally focusing on that, which is really exciting for us.

What made the WWE sit up and take notice of the Middle East?
I think it’s definitely thanks to the Internet and all kinds of social media – people are more connected and they can see that there’s a lot of activity in the Middle East, which caused WWE to open a Middle East office in Dubai to look at ways to bring more WWE talent to the region.

You had a torn left shoulder rotator cuff which had to be repaired through surgery – is that the worst injury you’ve gotten so far in your career?
The recovery is doing well, and it’s definitely the worst injury in my career. It’s my first big injury, so let’s keep it that way!

Well we’re hoping you never go through something like that again. Outside of wrestling, what sort of hobbies do you have to pass the time?
[laughs] Well apart from driving in a Rolls Royce? Looking around the streets and the cars that are driving around, I think I need to move to Dubai because there are a lot of nice cars and I like nice cars. I love listening to music as well, watching movies, cooking, and also eating well. I also love coffee – it’s a huge hobby of mine.

What kind of cars do you personally love the most?
Well I love fast cars – I’m a fast driver, but I’m also a fan of off-road vehicles. I’m very excited that I’m going dune bashing soon…

This is the thing – you’re in the perfect city right now; fast cars and the desert…
I think I’m in a Land Rover this afternoon in the sands, and I’m really looking forward to it!

I drive an amazing Nissan hatchback – if you ever want to see comedy, come and see a 6ft guy trying to get into it.
[laughs] Well, I’m 6’ 4”, so I can relate to that!

Awesome – you could be my co-driver?
Yes for sure! You could drive me around…

It’s a deal. Now obviously you need to be in top form for something as brutal as wrestling – what’s your workout routine like when you’re preparing for a match?
Usually I go to the gym 4-5 times a week, so my training regime is quite packed. Now that I’m injured it’s even more aggressive because I’m doing recovery work about 3-6 hours a day, so it can get really busy.

Time to confess – have you ever taken a gym selfie?
Yes. You can probably see a few on my Instagram actually. No shame. But I’m not one of those guys who’s always taking photos at the gym – I’m there to get the job done.

You also have been featured in the videogame WWE2k15 – are you a big gamer?
I’ve played all of the WWE games that I’ve been in, and they’re a lot of fun to play. There’s a YouTube clip of me playing Double Dragon which is more my kind of generation, back when the Super Nintendo was out. I travel a lot now so I can’t play as many videogames as I would like to, but I do play Clash of Clans on my iPad.

Clash of Clans isn’t a real game – I’m going to hang up now.
Sorry! I just think that if I’m home and I have time to play video games, I’ll just be on the console all the day. That’s actually why I stopped because I would play so much and then have to go to the gym really late at night, so I had to focus on the important stuff.

What is the biggest lesson that wrestling and the people working in the industry have taught you?
That’s a really good question! I think the most important lesson is that you never stop learning and never stop growing. The minute you think you know it all – that’s when you’ve got to call it quits, because there’s so much passion and growth in this industry.

Last question – what do you think are the qualities every man should possess to become a better version of himself?
I would say kindness, humor, and strength – in whatever form it comes in, physical or otherwise. Strength comes in all forms, and that’s definitely something you need to have to become a better man.

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