Every WWE Release Of 2021 - Where Are They Now? (Five Years Later)
15. Trey Baxter
Then: Blake Christian became Trey Baxter when WWE brought the wrestler in for a stint between February-November 2021. Blake couldn't even roll his eyes at the NXT name generator, because his moniker pre-deal was every bit as WWE-ified as it gets! In total, he'd wrestle just 10 matches for the biggest company in the land.
Trey's brightest moment turned out to be his debut. He worked Kushida for the old NXT Cruiserweight Title on the 15 June 2021 edition of NXT. Matches against the likes of Joe Gacy, Ridge Holland and Greyson Waller followed that, but WWE never seemed intent on using Baxter for very long.
Now: Blake returned to New Japan after his release, then made his way to AEW in March 2022. If you're thinking he's another Dark preliminary story, then think again. Yep, Christian did work a boatload of bouts on the peripheral All Elite show then moved to Ring Of Honor, but he's had some higher profile matches as well.
Plus, Tony Khan has let Blake continue working for New Japan and other independent groups to supplement any bookings he does get for the company. That's a sneaky upside if you're a lower-carder in All Elite.
Christian formed a tag-team with Lee Johnson in 2025, then inked a full-time AEW deal in March 2026. He'd celebrate that moment by showing what he can do vs. Will Ospreay on the 18 March episode of 'A' show Dynamite. That might not be the last time Blake gets to tangle with one of Khan's bigger stars.
Things have panned out well for him.