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Joe Hendry opens up on rising stardom, becoming WWE NXT champion

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More than 60,000 fans packed Allegiant Stadium on Night 2 of WrestleMania 41 with the buzz of the first night still filling the air and the anticipation that anything could happen on the highly anticipated WWE event of the year.

WWE star Randy Orton slithered around the ring, awaiting his opponent. It could have been anybody as the former champion was left without an opponent. But that night in Las Vegas was something special. Not only for Orton who was making his 20th WrestleMania appearance, but for the man who walked through the curtain and onto the entrance ramp.

“Say his name and he appears.”

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Joe Hendry at WrestleMania 41

Joe Hendry makes his entrance during WrestleMania 41 Sunday at Allegiant Stadium on April 20, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Craig Melvin/WWE via Getty Images)

Every pro wrestling fan in the house knew who was coming out. It could only be one person.

“I believe in Joe Hendry.”

Then the Total Nonstop Action (TNA) world champion, Hendry’s appearance was a perennial moment for the sport. It was the first time a TNA contracted superstar appeared at WrestleMania. And it just went to show that a viral push from pro wrestling fans could go a long way.

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“It was an unbelievable moment,” Hendry recalled to Fox News Digital. “I think that is a moment that is even beyond your wildest dreams. There are moments where you have to go, ‘Is this a dream? Walking out at WrestleMania?’ I remember walking, being backstage, seeing the vignette marking 20 years of Randy Orton at WrestleMania, and for me to be the opponent and the surprise opponent, it was just such a perfect moment. And I’m so grateful.”

It was about seven months after his WrestleMania appearance when Hendry was no longer a TNA wrestler, but he was a WWE superstar. He was thrust onto the NXT roster, already having familiarity with the rising stars who were on the brand.

WWE STAR JE’VON EVANS REVEALS WHO DELIVERS NASTIEST CHOP

Hendry quickly made a name for himself. The Scottish star may have lost his opportunity to get a title shot in the Iron Survivor Challenge at NXT Deadline but he redeemed himself earlier this month.

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The Scottish wrestler won a ladder match over Dion Lennox, Jackson Drake, Keanu Carver, Ricky Saints, Sean Legacy and Shiloh Hill to capture the vacated NXT Championship.

Joe Hendry wins the NXT champion

Joe Hendry celebrates his win during NXT at the WWE Performance Center on Feb. 3, 2026 in Orlando, Florida. (Matt Pendleton/WWE via Getty Images)

“It means the world,” he said of being the NXT champion. “It’s very humbling that with the amount of talented people that we have working in the Performance Center and on NXT that I’m the person who has the privilege to be the champion and to represent the brand. It’s a surreal feeling, but it’s a responsibility that I take very seriously and I want to deliver for NXT.”

Hendry took the road less traveled to become a pro wrestler.

Inspired by WWE video games, Hendry told Fox News Digital he became “totally obsessed” with the sport as he watched pro wrestlers from the Attitude Era and earlier compete. He homed in on the other things that make pro wrestlers go from backyard tweeners to immortal icons like the ring gear, vignettes, entrance songs and the like.

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Hendry had gold medals in freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling before his career really took off. He competed in Inane Championship Wrestling in Scotland before moving around to Discovery Wrestling and New Generation Wrestling. He had appearances in Ring of Honor and World of Sport Wrestling before getting to Impact Wrestling, which later returned to its original name of TNA.

But when did Joe Hendry start to believe in Joe Hendry?

“I remember when I got my black belt in judo, that was really the first thing that I finished to completion in my life,” he said. “I’d started a lot of things and stopped them. And when I did that, I was like wow, I achieved the goal. Then after that point, I realized that for a lot of people, the difficult part is they get so close and just to push it over the line, I think as human beings, that’s something we all find difficult, but sometimes you need to give yourself permission to win and go take it all the way to the finish.

“Thankfully, that’s what I was able to do in the ladder match and become NXT champion.”

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Joe Hendry at the 2025 Royal Rumble

Joe Hendry during the Men’s Royal Rumble match during the WWE Royal Rumble at Lucas Oil Stadium on Feb. 1, 2025. (Joe Camporeale/Imagn Images)

Hendry now sits on top of the NXT roster as the champion and the face of the brand. But he’s not the only Scotsman who is doing that on the WWE roster.

Drew McIntyre is the undisputed WWE champion as he gets ready to defend his title at WrestleMania 42.

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“It was Drew that said to me that Scotland is 0.068% of the world’s population, but we have a much larger percentage of WWE titles. So, very proud to be someone that’s worked with Drew. The way that people talk about the Undertaker in the locker room, that’s how we saw Drew McIntyre when we were on the independents. He was our Undertaker and so to see him now as undisputed WWE champion and for me to be NXT champion at the same time is an amazing feeling. He challenged me when we worked together. He always made me better and brought out the best in me. So, I’d be delighted if our paths could cross again.”

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NFL fans react as Dallas Goedert reaches agreement with Eagles to return for 9th season in Philly

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Dallas Goedert will remain in the City of Brotherly Love for a ninth straight season.

On Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles were reported to have re-signed the veteran tight end to a one-year, $7-million contract:

Sources: Tight end Dallas Goedert reached agreement today on a one-year deal to return to the Eagles for his ninth season in Philadelphia.

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Reaction to it, however, was skeptical:

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@AdamSchefter This means AJ Brown is gone

@AdamSchefter They just refuse to do a rebuild

@AdamSchefter One year deal? Either Dallas Goedert isn’t confident in his future, or the Eagles don’t trust him long term.

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@AdamSchefter Damn I was hoping he would get signed somewhere else

@AdamSchefter Ok, but I want that TE from Oregon in the draft.

@AdamSchefter ANOTHER AWFUL SIGNING FOR THE EAGLES LMAOO. NFL RECORD FOR THE WORST SIGNINGS IN FREE AGENT HISTORY LMAOO😭😭🤣🤣🤣

The move ensures some continuity for an offense that is still undecided on whether to trade away AJ Brown. The star wideout had been very vocal about wanting out of the Eagles throughout the 2025 season as he struggled under Kevin Patullo’s system.

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Amidst all that, Goedert emerged as an unlikely scoring threat, catching a team- and career-high 11 touchdowns in 15 regular-season games. In the Eagles’ wild-card loss to the San Francisco 49ers, he became the first tight end in NFL history to rush for a touchdown in a playoff game (he also caught another).


ALSO READ: Eagles insider reveals team’s interest in $70,161,063 worth TE amid Dallas Goedert’s uncertain future in free agency

ALSO READ: “It’s time to draft his successor”: NFL fans react to Eagles GM Howie Roseman’s comment on Dallas Goedert’s future


Insider shared thoughts on what Dallas Goedert staying with Eagles would mean for AJ Brown

During a recent appearance on Anthony Gargano’s eponymous show, Mike Garafolo posited that Dallas Goedert‘s and AJ Brown’s futures in Philadelphia were “interconnected” and that they could afford to lose one or the other, but not both:

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“They’re going to have to (make a decision), one way or another. Now, the Goedert window being moved back was not just for Goedert, that was for A.J. as well … If you lose Goedert, you take a huge cap hit. If you trade A.J., you take a huge cap hit. So there’s not going to be an A.J. trade and a Goedert release. It’s going to be one or the other.”

Later that day on the NFL Network’s The Insiders, he further explained:

“The Eagles can’t pay Goedert if they’re keeping Brown. … But I’m sure Howie’s going to continue to have conversations …about A.J. Brown over the weekend. We’ll see. He’s still an Eagle right now. Will he be? At this point, I don’t know. I’m tired of guessing. We’ll let you know.”

Brown is entering the final year of a $100-million extension that he signed in 2022 upon being traded from the Tennessee Titans. After 2026, he will begin another extension, this time lasting three seasons and costing $96 million.