A new match has been added to the lineup for WrestleMania 38.
New Day’s Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods will team together as they take on Sheamus & Ridge Holland at WrestleMania 38 night one this Saturday. Butch (Pete Dunne) will be in Sheamus and Holland’s corner.
After suffering a torn plantaris in January, Woods returned to SmackDown last Friday and defeated Holland in a singles match. He used a small package to pin Holland.
Now going by the name Butch, Dunne made his SmackDown debut three weeks ago and aligned with Sheamus and Holland. He helped Sheamus & Holland win a tag team match against Kingston & Big E.
Big E suffered a broken neck during that tag match when a spot went wrong and he landed on his head while taking an overhead belly-to-belly suplex on the floor from Holland. Big E fractured his C1 vertebrae and C6 vertebrae but won’t need surgery for the injury.
AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas is hosting WrestleMania 38 this Saturday and Sunday. Here’s the updated lineup for both nights:
Night one (Saturday, April 2) —
SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair defends against Ronda Rousey
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Bianca Belair
The KO Show with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin
Rey & Dominik Mysterio vs. The Miz & Logan Paul
Drew McIntyre vs. Happy Corbin
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos defend against Shinsuke Nakamura & Rick Boogs
Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods vs. Sheamus & Ridge Holland
Night two (Sunday, April 3) —
Winner-take-all championship unification match: WWE Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Anything goes match: Sami Zayn vs. Johnny Knoxville
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Queen Zelina & Carmella defend against Sasha Banks & Naomi, Rhea Ripley & Liv Morgan, and Natalya & Shayna Baszler in a fatal four-way match
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro defend against The Street Profits and Alpha Academy in a triple threat match
Xavier Woods is back on WWE TV, appearing on tonight’s SmackDown.
Kofi Kingston was originally set to face Ridge Holland in a singles match. However, Kingston came out and said it wasn’t he who was going to wrestle Holland. He instead introduced Woods, who proceeded to pin Holland in a quick match.
Woods had been off television since January with torn plantaris, a muscle that is located under the calf muscle. He returned to in-ring action on March 13, wrestling at a house show in Jackson, Mississippi where he and Kingston lost to Sheamus & Holland and The Usos in a three-way match for the SmackDown Tag Team titles.
Sheamus, Holland, and Butch have been at odds with The New Day in recent weeks. On the March 11 edition of SmackDown, Big E broke his neck after a botched overhead belly to belly suplex by Holland during a match between Kingston and Shemaus. E has since said his injury will not require surgery.
Two matches previewing title bouts for WrestleMania have been announced for tonight’s SmackDown.
A fatal four-way match between Sasha Banks, Rhea Ripley, Zelina Vega, and Shayna Baszler will take place on SmackDown tonight. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jimmy Uso is also set for the episode.
Vega & Carmella defending their Women’s Tag Team titles against Banks & Naomi, Ripley & Liv Morgan, and Baszler & Natalya in a four-way match will be part of the card for WrestleMania 38 night two on Sunday, April 3.
Nakamura & Rick Boogs are challenging The Usos for the SmackDown Tag Team titles at WrestleMania 38 night one on Saturday, April 2. That was confirmed when Boogs defeated Jey Uso in a singles match on SmackDown two weeks ago.
The Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York is hosting tonight’s SmackDown. With WrestleMania 38 now just over a week away, the build to Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar’s winner-take-all title unification match will also continue tonight.
WWE.com wrote:
Last week, WWE Champion Brock Lesnar laid waste to the blue brand on his quest for payback for the attack he suffered at the hands of Universal Champion Roman Reigns and The Usos at a live event at Madison Square Garden. After crashing a forklift into the retreating Bloodline’s ride, The Beast ripped a door from their SUV as they sped away.
What will happen after the chaotic assault en route to The Biggest WrestleMania Match of All Time? Find out this Friday at 8/7 C on FOX.
Pete Dunne, under a new name, made his main roster debut on SmackDown tonight.
In a backstage promo, Sheamus introduced Dunne under the name Butch. Sheamus said that while he was known as another name elsewhere, he and Ridge Holland knew him under his nickname.
Butch later accompanied Sheamus and Holland to a match where they faced Big E and Kofi Kingston in a tag team match. The finish had Butch climb on the apron to distract Kofi, leading Sheamus to throw Kofi off the top rope and pin him for the win following the brouge kick. After the match, Butch attacked Kingston until he was held back by Sheamus and Holland. But Butch resumed the attack until he was finally finished.
Dunne signed with the WWE in early 2017, working both on the NXT UK brand and NXT. He’s held the NXT United Kingdom Championship and is also a 1 time NXT Tag Team Champion with Riddle. He most recently was on the March 1 episode of NXT, losing to Carmelo Hayes in a match for the North American Championship. He re-signed with the WWE last summer.
On the road to WrestleMania 38, SmackDown comes to Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama tonight.
Universal Champion Roman Reigns attacked WWE Champion Brock Lesnar after Lesnar defeated Austin Theory in the main event of WWE’s Madison Square Garden house show last Saturday. Reigns gave Lesnar a vicious beatdown and posed over a bloody Lesnar. Tonight, Reigns addresses the brutal attack.
Big E & Kofi Kingston take on Sheamus & Ridge Holland tonight. Last week, Sheamus and Holland attacked New Day and destroyed Big E’s ATV.
It was originally announced that Zelina Vega would be facing Sasha Banks in a singles match on tonight’s show. After that was changed to Vega & Carmella vs. Banks & Naomi in a non-title tag team match, WWE removed the bout from tonight’s SmackDown preview.
Vega & Carmella are set to defend their WWE Women’s Tag Team titles against Banks & Naomi and Rhea Ripley & Liv Morgan in a triple threat match at WrestleMania.
Our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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They recapped Roman Reigns and The Usos attacking Brock Lesnar at the MSG house show.
Reigns beat down Lesnar with a chair and the stairs. He then gave Lesnar a Rock Bottom on the stairs and left him a bloody mess.
Brock Lesnar Segment
This was a good opening segment. Lesnar chasing Heyman in the back was an awesome scene.
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar made his way to the ring to start SmackDown.
Lesnar noted that Reigns changed the rules. Reigns drew first blood, and now Lesnar wants revenge. He doesn’t care about WrestleMania or the title. Lesnar threw the WWE title out of the ring.
Lesnar called out Reigns and said he wanted blood for blood. Paul Heyman walked out and told Lesnar to calm down. He teased introducing Reigns but instead claimed Reigns isn’t there tonight.
Lesnar wondered if Reigns isn’t there, then who’s protecting Heyman. Lensar jumped out of the ring and chased Heyman to the back.
In the back, Heyman ran for his life, screaming for security to stop Lesnar. Lesnar followed and destroyed security guards that tried to stop him. Lesnar chased Heyman through the backstage area, but Heyman escaped in a limo.
They recapped Sheamus and Ridge Holland beating down Big E and Kofi Kingston last week. They stole Big E’s ATV and destroyed it with sledgehammers.
In the back, Sheamus and Holland bragged about destroying the ATV. They claimed they don’t need sledgehammers tonight because they have Butch. Pete Dunne entered dressed like Sheamus and Holland.
Sheamus & Ridge Holland (w/Butch) defeated Big E & Kofi Kingston (9:23)
This was a good match but there was one very scary moment when Big E landed on his head. Medical staff checked on him and took him out on a stretcher.
Later, Big E announced on social media that his doctors believe he broke his neck and thanked the fans for their messages.
They renamed Pete Dunne Butch and claimed that he’s good friends with Sheamus and Holland.
Kingston and Big E jumped Sheamus and Holland before the bell. New Day had the early advantage as Big E stomped Sheamus in the corner. Sheamus fought back and rocked Big E with a clothesline. Big E briefly recovered, but Sheamus hit the ten beats of the bodhran.
Big E dragged Sheamus on the apron, and Kington took out Holland with a cross body to the floor. Big E missed the splash, and the heels took over.
Back from the break, Kingston and Sheamus tagged in simultaneously. Kingston ran wild, hitting a dropkick and the boom drop.
Kingston set up for the trouble in paradise, but Holland caused a distraction. Instead, Kingston hit the SOS on Sheamus, but Holland broke up the pin attempt. Big E went for the spear through the ropes, but Holland moved out of the way.
Holland then gave Big E a very scary-looking belly-to-belly suplex on the floor. Big E landed on the top of his head and appeared to be hurt. Cole noted medical personnel is checking on Big E.
The finish came when Kingston climbed to the top rope, but Sheamus hit the Brogue Kick for the win. After the match, Butch attacked Kingston until Sheamus and Holland stopped him.
They recapped Kevin Owens calling out Stone Cole Steve Austin on last Monday’s Raw to appear on the KO Show at WrestleMania. They also showed Austin accepting Owens’ challenge.
They recapped Ricochet defeating Sami Zayn to win the Intercontinental title when Johnny Knoxville caused a distraction last week.
In the back, Kayla Braxton interviewed former Intercontinental Champion Zayn. He was furious that she called him the former champion.
Braxton showed footage from TMZ of Knoxville flying a banner in the sky with Zayn’s phone number. Zayn was furious that Braxton showed the footage. Zayn claimed that Ricochet got lucky last week. He pointed out that Knoxville isn’t there tonight, and he promised to win the title back.
Drew McIntyre & The Viking Raiders vs. Happy Corbin, Madcap Moss & Jinder Mahal
The match didn’t end up happening and turned into an angle instead.
McIntrye made his entrance before the break. Back from the break, McIntyre was waiting for his partners, The Viking Raiders to make their entrance. They cut backstage where Corbin, Moss, Mahal, and Shanky beat down the Raiders.
The heels ran out and attacked McIntyre. He tried fighting back, but the heels overwhelmed him. McIntrye finally broke free, but Corbin ran away. McIntyre beat down the heels and gave Shanky a Michinoku Driver. McIntyre grabbed his sword Angela and pointed at the WrestleMania sign to end the segment.
They recapped Ronda Rousey defeating Sonya Deville last week and putting Charlotte Flair in the ankle lock.
Ronda Rousey Segment
The was a fine segment.
The fans broke into a loud “Ronda” chant. Rousey addressed Flair calling her a one-trick pony last week because all she has is the armbar. She compared that to calling Mike Tyson a one-trick pony because all he does is knocks people out with punches.
Rousey noted she added the ankle lock to her repertoire, which she learned from her first mentor Kurt Angle. Rousey said that she made Flair tap out to the ankle lock last week.
SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair made her way to the ring. Flair pointed out that she was wearing heels and an expensive suit last week. She doesn’t care that Rousey uses the ankle lock now. Rousey challenged Flair to prove she won’t tap out, but Flair walked away.
The fans chanted “You tapped out” at Flair as she walked around the ringside. Rousey promised to tap out Flair at WrestleMania and leave with her arm.
They recapped the opening segment and announced that an angry Lesnar had left the building.
The match started during the break. Carmella and Queen Zelina watched from ringside.
The heels gained the early advantage as they isolated Naomi. Baszler slowed the pace down and worked over Naomi’s knee. Naomi recovered and kicked Baszler in the face to gain control. Banks got the hot tag and ran wild on the heels. She then hit a Meteora on Natalya and sent the heels to the floor.
Banks gave Natalya a tilt-a-whirl head scissors into the tag team champions at ringside. Naomi then took out Baszler with a cross body off the steps.
Natalya caught Banks with a discus clothesline for a close near fall. Zelina jumped on the apron, but Banks sent Natalya into Vega. Banks then pinned Natalya for the win.
They recapped The Usos attacking Shinsuke Nakamura and Rick Boogs last week and defeating The Viking Raiders.
The Usos Segment
They showed the footage of Roman Reigns and The Usos beating down Brock Lesnar at the MSG house show.
The Usos bragged about being the tag team champions almost for one year and Reigns holding the Universal title for nearly two years. Nakamura and Boogs interrupted and demanded a match for WrestleMania.
The Usos mocked Boogs and Nakamura. They agreed to give them a title shot at WrestleMania if Boogs could defeat Jey Uso. They pointed out that Boogs has a knee injury and doubted he could compete on one knee.
Rick Boogs (w/Shinsuke Nakamura) defeated Jey Uso (w/Jimmy Uso) (1:44)
This was a fine match that didn’t get a lot of time.
Boogs revealed that he faked his knee injury. Boogs gave Jey a delayed suplex and a press slam. Jimmy tried to interfere, but Nakamura cut him off. Jimmy took out Nakamura at ringside. Boogs fought back and hit the Boogs Cruise on Jey for the win.
After the match, Jimmy broke a guitar over Boogs head. Nakamura and Boogs take on The Usos for the tag team titles at WrestleMania 38.
Pat McAfee-Austin Theory Segment
McAfee was good in this segment. McAfee and Theory had a good brawl that the fans were into. Cole was good in his role as well.
Sami Zayn and Ricochet made their entrances for the next match. After doing the ring introductions, Austin Theory’s music interrupted, and he walked to ringside.
Theory got in Pat McAfee’s face at the commentary table. He slapped McAfee and knocked off his headset again. McAfee lost his temper and jumped off the table onto Theory.
They brawled until officials ran out to break it up. Cole tried to stop McAfee, but he had to leave the building. The fans broke into a “Pat” chant.
Intercontinetal Champion Ricochet defeated Sami Zayn to retain (12:41)
Zayn and Ricochet had another great match, but the focus at the start was on Austin Theory and Pat McAfee. They even cut away from the match to recap the Theory-McAfee brawl.
Cole claimed Johnny Knoxville and Jackass influenced Ricochet’s high flying style. Cole stressed that Knoxville isn’t at the show tonight.
Back from the break, Cole noted security escorted McAfee out of the building. He added that he’s not sure about McAfee’s commentary career. Cole stressed that McAfee was unprofessinal and had a job to do.
Zayn and Ricochet started slow, going back and forth. Ricochet took over and hit a springboard clothesline. He went for the recoil, but Zayn blocked it. Ricochet climbed to the top rope, but Zayn shoved him off, and Ricochet crashed on the barricade.
Back from the break, they recapped Theory and McAfee brawling before the match. Cole repeated that security escorted McAfee out of the building. He isn’t sure that McAfee will be at SmackDown next week.
Zayn scored a close near fall and went for the blue thunder bomb. Ricochet countered, but Zayn maintained control. Zayn went for a suplex, but Ricochet reversed into a hurricanrana for a two-count.
Ricochet went for a headspring elbow, but Zayn reversed into a blue thunder bomb for a close near fall. They fought on the top rope. Ricochet knocked Zayn off, but he recovered.
Zayn climbed back up and gave Ricochet an exploder suplex. He set up for the helluva kick, but Ricochet countered with the recoil. He followed up with the 630 splash to retain the title.
Ronda Rousey And Charlotte Flair Brawl
This was a good, short and chaotic brawl that was a good ending to SmackDown.
They cut backstage; Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair were in the middle of an intense pull-apart brawl. They fought around a red car with referees and officials getting involved.
Flair gave Rousey a suplex on the car’s hood and continued to beat her down. Flair walked off with a furious Rousey on the ground in pain to end SmackDown.
Next Week: WWE Champion Brock Lesnar and Universal Champion Roman Reigns collide.
Two matches have been announced for SmackDown next Friday.
Queen Zelina will face Sasha Banks, while Big E and Kofi Kingston will face Sheamus and Ridge Holland following an angle that took place on tonight’s show.
Zelina will face Banks after Naomi defeated Carmella on tonight’s SmackDown. On last week’s SmackDown, Banks and Naomi declared their intention to win the WWE Women’s Tag Team titles at WrestleMania 38. The following Monday on Raw, champions Zelina and Carmella accepted their challenge.
Big E and Sheamus were scheduled to face off in a match on tonight’s show. Kingston went to The New Day’s ATV and honked the horn. The scheduled match turned into an angle, where Holland grabbed a chair and struck Kingston. Sheamus then attacked Big E. Both Sheamus and Holland got into the ATV and drove away. Later backstage, footage was shown of Sheamus and Holland destroying the ATV.
Next week’s SmackDown will be held at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama.
Ridge Holland is returning to action for the first time since breaking his nose at Day 1.
WWE has announced that Holland & Sheamus will face Cesaro & Ricochet in a tag team match on tonight’s episode of SmackDown. It’s a rematch from the Day 1 pre-show, where Sheamus defeated Cesaro & Ricochet on his own after Holland was injured early on.
Holland’s nose was broken at Day 1 when Ricochet accidentally hit him in the face while doing an assisted 450 splash.
On last week’s SmackDown, Holland made his first appearance on WWE television since getting injured. He accompanied Sheamus for his match against Ricochet. Sheamus got the win with a Brogue Kick.
Tonight’s SmackDown is taking place at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri. It’s the go-home show for tomorrow’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view.
Here’s the updated lineup for tonight:
Seth Rollins will deliver a message to Roman Reigns ahead of their Universal Championship match at the Royal Rumble
The New Day (Kofi Kingston & Big E) vs. Happy Corbin & Madcap Moss
Ridge Holland had to be removed from the pre-show match at WWE Day 1 tonight due to injury.
Holland suffered a broken nose while teaming with Sheamus against Cesaro & Ricochet on the pre-show for Day 1. Shortly after the match began, Ricochet hit an assisted standing 450 splash onto Holland. Ricochet’s foot accidentally landed on Holland’s face, and it immediately busted Holland open. Holland tagged out to Sheamus before going to the floor to receive assistance from the medical staff.
It was announced during the match that Holland had suffered a broken nose and was taken back to the locker room for further attention.
Sheamus still got the win despite facing Cesaro & Ricochet on his own for most of the match. After taking Ricochet out by hitting White Noise on the outside, Sheamus avoided a charge by Cesaro in the ring and then gave Cesaro a Brogue Kick to get the victory.
Holland was called up from NXT in October’s WWE Draft. He aligned with Sheamus after joining SmackDown, with the two of them feuding with Sheamus’ former tag team partner Cesaro.
WWE has revealed the pre-show match for this Saturday’s New Year’s Day pay-per-view.
Cesaro & Ricochet will team up against Sheamus & Ridge Holland on the pre-show for WWE Day 1 this Saturday night. The pre-show begins at 7 p.m. Eastern time, with the main card then starting an hour later.
Cesaro has been feuding with Sheamus and Holland since Holland was called up from NXT in October’s WWE Draft. In the “12 Days of Christmas” gauntlet match on SmackDown last week, a distraction by Holland led to Sheamus eliminating Cesaro. But Ricochet eliminated Sheamus after Sheamus was distracted by Cesaro taking out Holland at ringside.
Sheamus gave Ricochet a Brogue Kick after being eliminated from the gauntlet match. Ricochet was able to defeat Humberto and Jinder Mahal but lost to Sami Zayn at the end of the match.
Day 1 is being held at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Here’s the updated card for the show:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
WWE Champion Big E defends against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley in a fatal four-way match
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) defend against The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston)
Edge vs. The Miz
Drew McIntyre vs. Madcap Moss
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) defend against The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford)
Hip-hop group Migos will make a special appearance
Cesaro & Ricochet vs. Sheamus & Ridge Holland (pre-show)
Cesaro’s feud with Sheamus and Ridge Holland will continue on tonight’s episode of SmackDown.
WWE has announced that Cesaro vs. Holland will take place on SmackDown tonight. It’s a rematch from three weeks ago, when Cesaro rolled up Holland to get the win. That match was Holland’s main roster in-ring debut after being called up from NXT.
Sheamus and Holland have been aligned since Holland’s call-up, with Holland saying that Sheamus is his idol. Cesaro and Sheamus are former tag team partners.
Sheamus defeated Cesaro on SmackDown two weeks ago. Last week, Cesaro was shown watching on from backstage as Sheamus lost to Drew McIntyre.
Tonight’s SmackDown is being held at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. After not appearing on last week’s show, Universal Champion Roman Reigns will make his return tonight ahead of his title match against Brock Lesnar at WWE Day 1 on New Year’s Day.
Two more NXT names were drafted to the main roster during the second night of the 2021 WWE Draft.
During tonight’s Raw, it was announced that both Ridge Holland and Xia Li have both been drafted to SmackDown. Li has not been on NXT television in recent weeks, but has participated in several dark matches prior to Raw and SmackDown. Holland has been paired with Pete Dunne on NXT television. He lost to Kyle O’Reilly in a match that took place on September 29.
Several more names from NXT were drafted during the first round of the 2021 WWE Draft, which took place this past Friday on SmackDown. Hit Row (Isiah ‘Swerve’ Scott, Top Dolla, B-Fab, and Ashante ‘Thee’ Adonis) were drafted to SmackDown along with Aliyah. Austin Theory, who was associated with The Way, was drafted to Raw.
Theory appeared on tonight’s Raw, acting friendly towards Jeff Hardy and asked if he could take a photo with him. Hardy obliged, but it was a trap by Theory as he attacked Hardy with his phone, taking more selfies after he laid Hardy out.
A grudge match has been added to the lineup for tonight’s NXT.
WWE has announced that Kyle O’Reilly vs. Ridge Holland will take place on NXT tonight. Two weeks ago, Holland and Pete Dunne attacked O’Reilly in the locker room and took him out of the fatal four-way match for the vacant NXT Championship.
The debuting Von Wagner, who made the save for O’Reilly, replaced him in the four-way match later that night. Tommaso Ciampa defeated LA Knight, Dunne, and Wagner to win the NXT Championship.
Ciampa & Bron Breakker faced Dunne & Holland in the main event of last week’s NXT. O’Reilly appeared during the match and stopped Holland from using his club as a weapon. After O’Reilly threw Holland back into the ring, Breakker hit a press slam into a powerslam and pinned Holland to get the win.
Tonight is week three of NXT 2.0. Here’s the updated card for the episode:
NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez defends against Franky Monet
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Io Shirai & Zoey Stark defend against Toxic Attraction (Gigi Dolin & Jacy Jayne)
NXT Cruiserweight Champion Roderick Strong defends against Grayson Waller
No DQ match: B-Fab vs. Elektra Lopez
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Ridge Holland
The debut of Lash Legend’s “Lashing Out” talk show
An NXT veteran picked up a win in last night’s main event.
Tommaso Ciampa defeated Ridge Holland on NXT last night, hitting Willow’s Bell to get the pin. Ciampa was then immediately attacked by Pete Dunne after the match. Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch held up Ciampa for Dunne to lay him out, but MSK made the save for Ciampa. Wes Lee and Nash Carter brawled with Lorcan and Burch and ran Dunne and Holland off.
MSK will defend their NXT Tag Team titles against Lorcan & Burch next Tuesday. The match was made after Lee & Carter went to NXT general manager William Regal and said they wanted to give Lorcan & Burch a title shot.
Lorcan & Burch had to vacate the NXT Tag Team titles this March after Burch suffered a separated shoulder.
Also on last night’s NXT, Johnny Gargano lost to LA Knight when Gargano was distracted by Dexter Lumis trying to give him a high-five, NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez faced off with Jessi Kamea in non-title action, Kyle O’Reilly took on Duke Hudson, Ikemen Jiro answered Roderick Strong’s open challenge, and Mandy Rose lost by countout to Sarray after taking a dropkick to the face.
New NXT United Kingdom Champion Ilja Dragunov also cut a promo on last night’s show, and there were sit-down interviews with NXT Champion Samoa Joe and Kay Lee Ray.
A pre-show match has been added to the card for NXT TakeOver 36.
WWE has announced that Ridge Holland vs. Trey Baxter will take place on the pre-show for NXT TakeOver 36 this Sunday. It will be Holland’s second televised match since returning from injury.
Last October, Holland suffered a left ankle dislocation and fracture and a right knee patellar dislocation and patellar tendon rupture. He made his return on NXT three weeks ago, aligning with Pete Dunne & Oney Lorcan and helping them defeat Tommaso Ciampa & Timothy Thatcher.
Holland defeated Ikemen Jiro on NXT two weeks ago. Holland vs. Thatcher is set for next Tuesday’s NXT episode.
Baxter (formerly known as Blake Christian) was one of the entrants in the 2021 NXT Breakout Tournament. He defeated Joe Gacy in the first round but lost to Odyssey Jones in the semifinals.
The TakeOver pre-show will begin at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday. The main card will then start at 8 p.m. Eastern. Here’s the full lineup for the show:
NXT Champion Karrion Kross defends against Samoa Joe
NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez defends against Dakota Kai
The Undisputed Finale: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defends against Ilja Dragunov
Million Dollar Champion LA Knight defends against Cameron Grimes (if Grimes loses, “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase has to become Knight’s butler)
Ridge Holland vs. Trey Baxter (pre-show)
Cole vs. O’Reilly is a two-out-of-three falls match. The first fall will be a traditional wrestling match, then the second fall will be a street fight. If a third fall is necessary, it will be a steel cage match.
Ridge Holland returned to NXT on tonight’s episode, appearing for the first time since suffering an injury nine months ago.
Holland appeared on tonight’s NXT and aligned with Pete Dunne & Oney Lorcan, helping them defeat Tommaso Ciampa & Timothy Thatcher in a tag team match. Holland, Dunne, and Lorcan then laid out Ciampa and Thatcher after the match.
Holland underwent surgery last October after being injured when catching Lorcan on a dive. Holland suffered a left ankle dislocation and fracture and a right knee patellar dislocation and patellar tendon rupture.
Just days before his injury, Holland had been involved in the main event angle of NXT TakeOver 31. Holland carried Adam Cole out to the ring and dumped him over the barricade after attacking him backstage. It was later said that Pat McAfee hired Holland to attack Cole.
Lorcan and Danny Burch turned heel when they joined forces with McAfee following Holland’s injury. Dunne is aligned with Lorcan and Burch in NXT. Burch suffered a separated shoulder this March and is currently out of action.
