American rapper Lil Yachty is the latest celebrity to step into the world of pro wrestling, initially making his desire known to be a part of WWE during a podcast episode. In March 2026, Lil Yachty first appeared in WWE, acting as Trick Williams’ manager, before having his debut match at “Sunday Night’s Main Event” on September 6th against Baron Corbin.
In a recent episode of “Insight with Chris Van Vliet,” Lil Yachty commented on the physical demand that pro wrestling requires, and admits that he’s not a very athletic person. He then noted how he botched a crossbody during training, expressing that you never forget your first bump.
“I always tell people, ‘the hardest thing is bumps,’ because you have to train your body to fall!” he explained, expressing that it’s unnatural. “It took months and I finally got it!”
Lil Yachty expressed that training was grueling, and for months he just had to condition his body and focus heavily on getting into shape because he was out of shape and doing drugs when he started his journey. “I probably stopped drinking lean about five months ago, six months ago,” he admitted. “The second I heard, like, the possibility of maybe? I said ‘oh, I’m taking it seriously,’ and I stopped drinking lean.”
Following this admission, Lil Yachty opened up about his past with drugs, admitting that he’d been on and off of lean for about ten years. He praised Williams for inspiring him, claiming he influenced him to be a better person and to take his health more serious. “It was a long five-six months of transformation,” he said.
‘I was sober because of CM Punk for a long time until I became an adult’
Even with his years of drug usage, Lil Yachty’s favorite wrestler growing up was CM Punk, who has always touted a “straight edge” lifestyle.
“In high school, I used to draw the Xs on my hand,” Yachty claimed, adding that he planned to get them tattooed on his hands but never got that far, but has several pictures of him as a teenager with Punk’s signature Xs. “I was sober because of CM Punk for a long time until I became an adult.”
Lil Yachty claimed that he lived the “straight edge” lifestyle growing up. Another legend of the same era that he claims he also loved was Jeff Hardy, who unfortunately struggled with substance abuse demons but was one of Punk’s biggest rivals in WWE. “In the 2000s, I loved Shad and JTG. Punk was my favorite though.”
Yachty then recalled briefly meeting Punk at WrestleMania as well as Cody Rhodes. “That’s so funny man, because in the world, I’m a celebrity too, you know? But like, when I’m there, I genuinely feel like a kid,” he added.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet,” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
