Back in 2014, it was unsurprising to see Jinder Mahal's name on the list of WWE superstars to be released by the company. Fast forward to today, however, and it's a completely different story for the Canadian.

The Maharaja shocked the world when he defeated Randy Orton to become the new WWE champion at the Backlash pay-per-view last month. This weekend, he will defend that title against The Viper at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view.

Ahead of this weekend, Mahal recently spoke with The Whig on a number of wrestling topics, including when the WWE decided to release him back in 2014.

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The WWE champion said that when WWE released him three years ago, it was probably the best thing that has ever happened to him as it allowed him to rejuvenate himself into the person he is today.

Mahal said: "Looking back at it, it was probably the best thing that ever happened to me because I got to go away and reinvent myself and rediscover myself, get my confidence back, get my focus back most importantly.

"You need those lows to enjoy the highs and the wrestling business is like that. Sometimes you're up, sometimes you're down, but you've just got to stay persistent and better days always come."

Current speculation suggests that Mahal will do what many would have thought was unthinkable when he was released from the company in 2014, and retain the WWE title when he faces Orton at Money in the Bank this Sunday.

He is then rumored to be the first superstar who feuds against John Cena when the 16-time world champion returns to SmackDown Live as a free agent on July 4. Whether or not he loses the championship to Cena remains to be seen, as there are benefits for both superstars to win this feud. 

The two will likely have a match by SummerSlam, and it is expected at this point, the WWE will have an idea on how well The Maharaja's title reign has gone. They'll then decide whether to keep the championship on him or award Cena his record-breaking 17th world title reign.

Are you happy with Jinder Mahal as WWE Champion? Have YOUR say in the comments section below and the third episode of GiveMeSport’s WWE podcast is here! Check it out via this link. https://soundcloud.com/user-818579649/gms-wwe-podcast-all-the-fallout-from-wwe-payback