While the pipeline of WWE talent from the NXT roster getting called up to either Monday Night Raw or Friday Night SmackDown slowed considerably during the COVID-19 pandemic, Fightful Select‘s Sean Ross Sapp reported on Monday that a number of call-ups from both NXT and NXT UK are on the way. Sapp noted, “Fightful has been told ‘multiple’ (call-ups) have bene planned or at least in the works for a while, spanning across both Raw and SmackDown.” The first of those was seen last Friday when Rick Boogs (real name Eric Bugenhagen) arrived on SmackDown and helped Shinsuke Nakamura pick up a win over Baron Corbin with his guitar-playing distraction.
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The call-ups could freshen up both rosters just in time for WWE’s return to touring arenas across the country. A 25-city tour was confirmed last Friday, beginning with the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas for the July 16 episode of SmackDown.
One wrestler who has maintained he’ll never make the jump is NXT Grand Slam Champion Johnny Gargano. During an interview with ComicBook last week, “Johnny Wrestling” pushed for Daniel Bryan (technically a free agent at the moment) to join him on the Black and Gold Brand.
“I remember back then when he was making the pitch for me to come to SmackDown, he really wanted us to be a team, which would have been amazing,” Gargano said. “Obviously, I had other things going on in my life during that time with Tommaso and everything like that. And I definitely didn’t feel like I was anywhere near leaving NXT, but now obviously, I think the door should be wide open for him to come to NXT. Obviously, NXT now is a different incarnation than it was back in 2018.”
“But I think now he has the opportunity to come here and selfishly, I want him to come here just because I think the potential match-ups for him here are just so exciting. I’m able to throw my name in the ring of having the ultimate street match, I guess ultimate underdog street match in me versus Daniel Bryan,” Gargano said. But also, you have matches with Pete Dunne, you have matches with Kushida, you have matches with Tommaso, you have matches with Cole, you have matches with Kyle O’Reilly. I think the list goes on and on and on of guys that Daniel Bryan getting in the ring with, it would be amazing to see. So yes, Daniel Bryan, if you are listening to this, please come to NXT. Everyone here wants you. Everyone wants to get in the ring with you. That’d be tons of fun, man.”
