One professional wrestling star who was recently released from his WWE contract once pitched to win a big title match. When Ridge Holland was moved from the “Friday Night SmackDown” brand to “NXT,” he viewed it as an opportunity to develop his character. Holland turned on Chase University to solidify his heel turn.
Holland found himself challenging Trick Williams for the NXT Championship at “Deadline 2024.” In an interview with Cultaholic, Holland said his idea to win the title for a brief run was turned down.
“I wrestled Trick [Williams] for the NXT Title at Deadline,” Holland said. “I thought, personally, I had the most heat out of any heel. I thought I was doing really good work, and they seemed happy with it. I thought the thing we should have done is let me have a short run with the belt, give it to a big heel. And then eventually, my pitch was to put Oba [Femi] over really strong, and then obviously that would make Oba.”
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Ridge Holland’s Hostile WWE Exit
Back in October, Holland was informed that WWE would not be renewing his contract. Holland received the notice in the midst of recovering from an injury he suffered during a match with Moose on a TNA Wrestling show. Holland was outspoken about his financial difficulties, and he criticized WWE.
News then broke that WWE officials gave Holland an early release of his contract, reportedly in retaliation for his comments on social media. The company will be paying for Holland’s neck fusion surgery.
A GoFundMe page was initially set up for Holland, who eventually had the donation campaign taken down due to someone else creating it without his knowledge. Holland said he planned to donate money to charity once he’s able to solve his financial woes.
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