Tag: will kroos

Dean Malenko’s daughter part of new group of WWE NXT signees

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Marie Malenko, the daughter of Four Horsemen member Dean Malenko, has officially joined the WWE Performance Center.

WWE unveiled its latest round of Performance Center recruits today. It’s a four-person class consisting of Mason Rook, Nicole Martinez, Marie Malenko, and Marcus Brown. In the announcement tweet, WWE identified Malenko under the ring name “Lacey Simon.”

Malenko attended a WWE tryout earlier this year and, in her young career, has already gotten experience in Japan for Pro Wrestling NOAH. Her father Dean holds a behind-the-scenes job in AEW.

The announcement of Rook’s signing was just a formality, given that he’s already made his mark on NXT and is coming off a successful TV in-ring debut where he teamed with Kam Hendrix to defeat NXT Champion Tony D’Angelo & North American Champion Myles Borne. Rook then laid out his tag partner following the match after Hendrix stole the pin on Borne.

A heavyweight from the United Kingdom who also has competed for NOAH, Rook can count John Cena among his supporters. Cena has sent out multiple tweets reacting to Rook’s segments on NXT.

Nicole Martinez is indie wrestler Nikki Blackheart, who worked a dark match at last night’s NXT. She is said to have been heavily on WWE’s radar prior to her tryout and subsequent signing.

Brown is entering pro wrestling after having been a bodybuilder. He had a WWE tryout in 2025.

Will Kroos reveals new WWE NXT name

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Will Kroos has a new name.

At the end of this weekā€™s NXT, Tony Dā€™Angelo picked up the win over Tavion Heights after connecting with the dead to rights. But for the second week in a row, Kroos came out and went in on the attack, grabbing Dā€™Angelo and giving him a running death valley driver into the turnbuckle where Heights was recovering. Kroos stood tall as he turned to the camera nearby and revealed his new name.

ā€œMy name is Mason Rook. And Iā€™ve arrived in NXT,ā€ he declared as the show went off the air.

Rook had made his debut one week prior, joining in on a beatdown after Heights laid out Dā€™Angelo with a belly-to-belly suplex. Rook, who was unidentified at the time, went to the top turnbuckle and connected with a moonsault, adding further insult to injury.

Who is Mason Rook?

The now former Will Kroos is best known for his time in the UK scene, wrestling for PROGRESS and held their Atlas Championship at one point. He also made appearances for Pro Wrestling NOAH in the last year.

One of the newest members of the NXT roster already has a fan in a high place within WWE: John Cena, who on social media recently posted a video of last weekā€™s attack before writing: ā€œHEā€™S BIGā€¦. HEā€™S BADā€¦. HEā€™LL BODYSLAM YOUR DAD!!!,ā€ referring to his chant heard across the independent scene.

John Cena reacts to Will Kroos’ WWE NXT debut

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

On Tuesday, April 28, 2026, British wrestler Will Kroos made his shocking WWE NXT debut.

From Kroos making his shocking appearance to EVIL and Lizzy Rain making their WWE NXT debut, this Tuesday’s WWE NXT episode was filled with multiple debuts.

In a segment featuring NXT Champion Tony D’Angelo and EVIL, fans saw Kroos make his appearance and ambush D’Angelo. The 29-year-old stole the show with his moonsaultĀ on D’Angelo after the champion was suplexed by Tavion Heights.

Shortly after, Cena reacted to Kroos’ NXT debut on social media by referring to his chant in the indies. “HEā€™S BIGā€¦. HEā€™S BADā€¦. HEā€™LL BODYSLAM YOUR DAD!!!ā€

Who is WWE NXT’s latest addition, Will Kroos?

Kroos, 29, has been a part of the wrestling industry since 2017, actively competing across the British independent scene. Having performed for promotions such as Progress Wrestling and Revolution Pro Wrestling, Kroos is also a former Progress Atlas Champion.

He also wrestled for several international promotions, such as Pro Wrestling NOAH, both in the UK and Japan. His last match dates back to April 12, 2026, when he battled Jay Joshua for the RevPro Undisputed British Heavyweight Title.

WWE NXT notes: New faces emerge, Sean Legacy returns, Tavion Heights

Posted on by Bryan Rose

The theme of Tuesdayā€™s NXT was new faces.

The start of NXT saw Shawn Michaels, Matt Bloom, and Robert Stone hint that new faces would be making their debut on Tuesdayā€™s show, noting international prospects and those from Evolve and LFG were looking to make a name for themselves. By the end of the night, that became quite apparent.

After Myles Borne defended the NXT North American title against Saquon Shugars, he was interrupted by Tristian Angels, who appeared in the crowd. He identified himself as ā€˜Mr. Englandā€™ and told Borne he would see a lot more of him in NXT. That was when Kam Hendrix, who has appeared on WWE LFG, jumped Borne from behind and laid him out.

EVIL, who wasnā€™t referred to by that name, also made his debut on Tuesday. After he handed Tony Dā€™Angelo another object with the Japanese symbol of war on it, he walked away. But the segment wasnā€™t over as Tavion Heights, who hadnā€™t been seen on television in weeks, suddenly jumped Dā€™Angelo. After Heights was done, an unidentified heavyset man came out and gave Dā€™Angelo a top rope moonsault.

The man was later identified online as Will Kroos, who has previously worked for Progress and has held their Atlas Championship.

One return on Tuesday was Sean Legacy, who was sidelined for the last few weeks with a leg injury. After Birthright showed themselves attacking Dorian Van Dux backstage, EK Prosper came to the ring and went on the attack. He was being taken out when suddenly Legacy ran in for the save.Ā After Prosper & Legacy won their match, the rest of Birthright attacked them until Tate Wilder, who has made a few appearances on NXT television, came out to make the save.

The night ended with Michaels, Bloom, and Stone talking about the events of the show when D’Angelo walked in. He told Michaels that they got a one up on him tonight, but he was ready for the chaos.

“Let’s f****** go!” he declared as the show went off the air.