NXT Champion Joe Hendry Calls Out ‘Jealous’ WWE Star

Published: Mar 17, 2026 by Dave Adamson | Last Updated: Mar 17, 2026 by Dave Adamson

Dave has been a website writer for WrestleTalk since October 2022, having previously written for Den of Geek, among a number of wrestling, movie and television-related sites. Dave has been around the independent wrestling scene for more than a decade, including behind-the-scenes.

NXT Champion Joe Hendry Calls Out ‘Jealous’ WWE Star

NXT Champion Joe Hendry has shared his belief that a WWE rival is ‘jealous’ despite being a talented star in his own right.

Signing with WWE in November of last year, Joe Hendry’s history as an in-ring talent in the company dates back to June 2024 and would also see him compete at WrestleMania 41 as Randy Orton’s opponent.

Having been NXT Champion since February 3, his rivalry with Ricky Saints is seemingly far from over, with the Scottish star reflecting on their issues in a recent interview with Gaming Bible.

Asked if he believes Saints, a former NXT Champion in his own right, was jealous of the former TNA Wrestling star, Hendry said:

“I think jealousy is part of Ricky’s attitude towards me. I think he’s supremely talented, no question. His motivation is what’s in question. I made it clear that when I came to WWE, I was gonna do everything that I could do to give value to NXT and be a big part of the team.

“That was my goal. So I’m in the Performance Centre every day. I do every house show that I can do. I’ve only had this title for a few weeks, and already, I’ve had four title defences that people might not know about.

“Whereas Ricky, I think he sees himself as above all, a little bit of a superstar, blaming other people for his failures.”

‘Burn It Down’ Saints Calls Out Hendry and Others For Undoing His Work

Saints reflected on the story of his own career, suggesting that Hendry and others burn down the work he puts in to elevate the business.

Believing that he should have taken Hendry more seriously in the Ladder Match to determine the new NXT Champion in February, Saints promised to recapture the title, although he would be unsuccessful at Vengeance Day.

A former AEW World Tag Team Champion and FTW Champion, the star know as Ricky Starks would part ways with the Tony Khan owned company in early 2025.

Starks was one of a handful of releases from the AEW roster in February of last year, with Tony Khan sharing his thoughts on letting stars go on a ‘case-by-case basis‘.

The NXT Championship Defenses People Might Not Know About

Hendry last defended the NXT Championship at Vengeance Day on March 7, defeating Ricky Saints to retain the title.

From becoming NXT Champion in February, and between his television matches, Hendry has regularly defended the title on the NXT Live house show circuit.

He holds unbroadcast match victories against Saints, Jackson Drake, Grayson Waller, Dion Lennox, Cutler James and, recently, Lexis King.