Blake Christian Recalls Triple H Shutting Down Character Change In NXT That Is Being Used On TV

AEW

A former WWE star has recalled Triple H shutting down a character change in NXT that is currently being used on television.

Blake Christian arrived in WWE in the summer of 2021 as part of the NXT brand under the name of Trey Baxter.

Despite solid in-ring showings, Christian was released from the company just four months after his television debut.

On the latest Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling podcast, Blake Christian reflected on this period of his career and revealed a character change that Triple H shut down that is now being used on television.

He said:

“Triple H was there [NXT] when I started. Obviously, the first match with KUSHIDA or whatever. This one gimmick was pitched to me that I was totally okay with, you know?”

“At the time, I wanna be on TV and used the best way I can so maybe this is it so they pitched it to me and Triple H shot it down. He’s like, ‘No. This guy’s a wrestler, let’s let him wrestle. Put him in there with KUSHIDA’ and I’m very grateful for that. I got that opportunity.”

Christian continued on to discuss how the brand changed when Triple H departed due to his health issues, saying:

“But when 2.0 came around, that’s when Triple H was out with the heart issues or whatever. He was recovering from that and really, we just — we didn’t take our business to him because he’s recovering with his family so it was Shawn’s show.”

“So Shawn [Michaels] was running things and we had made a video for Triple H and stuff like that but, yeah, Triple H was there for the beginning of it, not towards the end.”

In regards who received the gimmick, Christian wasn’t willing to give the name away, but he did confirm that the competitor is a tremendous wrestler.

He said:

“I prefer not to [say what the pitched gimmick was]. It’s out there on TV now but, yeah, the guy they gave it to is a tremendous wrestler and I love him to death so very much. I’m very thankful that they gave it to somebody that would do well with it.”

Christian concluded by noting how the landscape changed with the 2.0 rebrand, saying:

“When we first talked about it, it was like they were shooting it down because that’s not what NXT was but NXT became something different when it became 2.0.”

“It was more colors, more young audience, stuff like that. So, the gimmick very much hit this 2.0 audience and they were all for it, even John Laurinaitis was high on me too but, you know, things just don’t work out and sometimes you get cut.”

“It’s okay, it’s a part of life. I knew what I was signing up for when I signed that contract. Like I said, I didn’t wanna live my WWE career in fear of getting released. I wanted to have fun so, it is what it is.”

Blake Christian currently works for various promotions including AEW, Ring of Honor and Game Changer Wrestling.

Stay up to date with the NXT roster’s win-loss record (for televised matches) at this link.

Transcription via POST Wrestling

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