Details On Which NXT Stars Were Backstage At SmackDown

Could Ridge Holland be set to move to Raw or SmackDown?

by Andrew Pollard
Ridge Holland
AEW

With this year's WWE draft now underway, the expectation is that several NXT names will be making their way to Raw or SmackDown. And now, there's an update on which NXT names were backstage at Friday's episode of SmackDown.

In addition to Hit Row being drafted to SmackDown, Talking Smack saw Aliyah formally added to the blue brand and Austin Theory moved to Raw. Those talents weren't the only NXT faces in attendance for the first night of the 2021 WWE Draft, though.

As per PWInsider, Ridge Holland was backstage at SmackDown. There's no word right now on whether Holland is expected to be called up from NXT, although WWE is clearly extremely high on the powerhouse.

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In recent weeks and months, WWE has had a handful of NXT stars at Raw or SmackDown to take a further look at for a potential call up, with the aforementioned Theory and Aliyah two such names who WWE officials have cast an eye over.

Prior to SmackDown, WWE also put on a dark match that had Xia Li beat Dakota Kai. Both Li and Kai have been heavily rumoured to be move to the main roster in the last few months, with both competitors wrestling several dark matches or, in Kai's case, Main Event bouts during that time.

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Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.