Well, folks, it seems WWE’s developmental brand, NXT, is officially playing no games. Their latest golden boy, former AEW standout Ethan Page, has made his grand entrance onto the SmackDown stage, leaving everyone—including Booker T—reaching for their phones and maybe a little bit of ibuprofen.
In what can only be described as a “blink and you’ll miss it” rise to the top, Page snatched the NXT Championship faster than you can say, “Wait, wasn’t he just in AEW?” The wrestling prodigy dethroned Trick Williams just weeks after touching down in NXT. Now, with his first main roster appearance, the guy’s making sure everyone knows he’s the real deal. You know things are serious when Vic Joseph’s phone starts blowing up with Booker T on the other end, shouting things that are probably best left uncensored.
Taking to his X account—yes, that’s what Twitter is called now—Joseph humorously shared his surprise at receiving a call from the one and only Booker T. “This is not a joke,” Joseph posted. “Booker T just called me to YELL ‘kill em with a smile,’ laughed, and hung up after seeing NXT Champion Ethan Page on SmackDown.” Whether this was a pep talk, a warning, or just Booker T being Booker T, we may never know.
Meanwhile, back on the Tuesday night wrestling soap opera known as NXT, Page wasn’t just sitting pretty with his new championship. The man was busy fending off challenges from all sides. Joe Hendry from TNA Wrestling strolled into the ring like he was ready to take on the world (or at least the NXT Champion), while Wes Lee and Pete Dunne both threw their hats into the ring for a shot at the title.
In response to the chaos, General Manager Ava didn’t flinch. She simply whipped up a triple threat Number One Contender’s match for next week, featuring Hendry, Lee, and Dunne. The winner gets the honor (or is it the curse?) of facing Ethan Page at the No Mercy premium live event on September 1.
So, will Ethan Page continue his meteoric rise, or will one of these challengers send him crashing back to earth? One thing’s for sure—Booker T’s phone bills are about to go through the roof.