Tommaso Ciampa Says He'll Refuse to Join WWE Raw or SmackDown Live Once He Returns

Back in March WWE announced that reigning NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa would have to relinquish to relinquish his title due to a serious neck injury that would require anterior cervical fusion. Ciampa's original return timetable was set at six to 14 months, but Triple H confirmed after NXT TakeOver XXV that Ciampa was ahead of schedule on his recovery.

The former champ spoke with Sports Illustrated this week, where he emphatically stated that once he is cleared for an in-ring return he'll only go back to NXT.

"I don't know if people think I'm going to Raw or SmackDown, but here's a spoiler, I'm not," Ciampa said. "I'm going to NXT. If someone tells me anything else, I'm answering them with a no. I bleed black and gold. NXT is home. And I have unfinished business there."

Weeks before the news of his injury broke, Ciampa arrived on WWE's main roster alongside Johnny Gargano, Ricochet and Aleister Black as part of a special NXT call-up. He and Gargano picked up wins over The Revival and The Bar before returning to WWE's developmental brand.

With Ciampa gone and the years-long storyline between he and Gargano put on hold, Gargano defeated Adam Cole for the vacated NXT Championship at NXT TakeOver: New York a month later. Cole took the title from Gargano in a rematch at NXT TakeOver: XXV, causing Ciampa to turn his attention to the current champion.

"When I was in Ring of Honor, Adam Cole was the champion," Ciampa said. "When I won the title in NXT, in the back of my head, I told myself, 'I have to do for this title what Adam Cole did for the Ring of Honor title.' He was the champ and carried the company to a new level. My job was to create my own footsteps, but do the job he did. So I don't have any hard feelings for Adam. The only disservice to Adam Cole is the second I get cleared."

Cole will defend the NXT title against Gargano at NXT TakeOver: Toronto on Aug. 10 during SummerSlam weekend. The match will be contested in a Two out of Three Falls match, with each wrestler picking the stipulation for one of the falls. NXT general manager William Regal will pick the stipulation for the third fall if (when) there's a tie.