Carmelo Hayes Articles - Page 2

For much of his NXT tenure, Trick Williams was nothing more than a side performer, the Marty Jannetty to Carmelo Hayes’ Shawn Michaels, even if they were positioned more as friends than a traditional tag team. Sure, Trick Willie looked the part, acted the part, and even talked the part, but Melo was “Him,” an […]

There was a time when Big E looked like he was the next big thing in professional wrestling. A do-it-all powerhouse who was as strong as he was charismatic, Big E transitioned from FCW standout to one of the most popular people in the promotion period as a member of the New Day, where he […]

As Carmelo Hayes prepares for the biggest match of his current NXT run against Ilya Dragunov at Halloween Havoc, with a win taking him back to the top of the power rankings and a loss effectively icing him out of the NXT Championship picture, at least for now, another question has been fresh at the […]

There was a time when Carmelo Hayes was the certified face of NXT, and arguably the top priority in WWE’s developmental system. On paper, it made sense, right? After working his way up the ranks, beating darn near every performer the brand had to offer and establishing himself as the next great do-it-all cruiserweight, Hayes […]

When WWE loaded up the NXT card on 10/10 to compete head-to-head against AEW Dynamite and the in-ring debut of Adam Copeland, booking current and future Hall of Famers like Paul Heyman, John Cena, Asuka, and The Undertaker in addition to the television debut of Carmelo Hayes versus Bron Breakker, it generated all sorts of […]

With his second-ever defense of the NXT Championship officially on the books for Week 2 of Halloween Havoc, Ilja Dragunov followed his challenger, Carmelo Hayes, in having a sitdown interview with lead commentator Vic Joseph about his current place in the WWE Universe, the tough road he took to the promotion, and, most importantly of […]

When Baron Corbin decided to use his status as a free agent to become a fixture of the NXT locker room on the regular, it turned a few heads around the WWE Universe. Sure, it’s no secret that WWE is looking to use main roster talent to help bolster the ratings of its developmental brand, […]

Why was John Cena on the 10/10 edition of NXT? Well, there are two reasons actually, one Kayfabe, on not so much. What Cena, Paul “Triple H” Levesque, HBK, and the rest of the WWE higher-ups would like you to believe is that, for some reason, about a half dozen Hall of Famers, current and […]

After landing yet another loss in a big-time NXT match in 2023, an unfortunate reality that has become all too familiar for the son of a Steiner in WWE developmental, Bron Breakker decided to rock Carmelo Hayes into next week, informing the former NXT Champion and the rest of the WWE Universe that he is […]

In case you haven’t heard or somehow just woke up from a wrestling hibernation, NXT and AEW are running the same night with week, with the “Tuesday Night Wars” back in full effect thanks to a concerted effort by Paul “Triple H” Levesque, Shawn Michaels, and company to absolutely load up WWE’s developmental program with […]

After watching his best friend Trick Williams stand in the ring with the man who beat him at No Mercy, Ilja Dragunov, Carmelo Hayes was feeling a certain type of way. Sure, he was happy for his friend, as Trick Willie was happy for him during his title reigns, but after being “Him” in their […]

After watching Trick Williams return to the NXT locker room with his newly won North American Championship around his waist, Carmelo Hayes knew the pressure was on to keep his championship reign alive at No Mercy. Facing off against one of the most prolific performers on the NXT roster, with a commanding win over Gunther […]

After working a highly contested match at The Great American Bash with the NXT Championship on the line, a match some say Trick Williams impacted in a way that severely assisted the champion, Ilja Dragunov and Carmelo Hayes will hit the mat once more at No Mercy, this time, with pride, more so than the […]

After weeks of anticipation, NXT will finally take their show on the road to Bakersfield, California, for a six-match – plus one more on the pre-show – running of No Mercy. With four titles on the line plus the Heritage Cup up for contention, Shawn Michaels is banking on strong television numbers, propelling his program […]

After being stuck in the Performance Center since all the way back in late July, NXT is finally taking the show on the road once more for No Mercy, a fun callback to a vintage WWE Pay-Per-View – and legendary video game – coming to fans live from Bakersfield, California. In a few short hours, […]

Before Trick Williams was Trick Williams, he was Matrick Belton, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound wide receiver from South Carolina who wanted nothing more than to continue his football playing career after graduation. Though his attempts to make it as a pro clearly didn’t work out, as the native of Columbia, South Carolina, never even made it […]

When Trick Williams let it be known to his long-time friend Carmelo Hayes and the rest of the WWE Universe that he was looking to strike it solo instead of being the Flava Flav to the NXT Champion’s Chuck D, it left more than a few fans wondering if the 29-year-old had made the right […]

As Shawn Michaels and WWE attempt to elevate the NXT brand to new heights, mainly with weekly viewers but in general too, the dynamic quarter of Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Rhea Ripley, and Dominik Mysterio, collectively known as The Judgment Day, have made flying into Orlando immediately after RAW a part of their weekly routine, […]

After spending the better part of a week hyping up The Judgment Day‘s journey down to NXT to settle their business with Trick Williams and the NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes, the dynamic quartet of Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Rhea Ripley, and “Dirty” Dominik emerged from the tunnel in the opening segment of NXT and explained […]

After securing a major win over Baron Corbin in the second week of NXT Gold Rush one day removed from his RAW debut versus Finn Balor, Carmelo Hayes, and Trick Williams were riding high, with one of the biggest challenges to the former’s NXT Championship reign eliminated. Unfortunately for Melo, Championship challengers are like members […]

After talking a whole lot of talk in his return to NXT, announcing to current NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes that he is the new gatekeeper of WWE’s developmental system, Baron Corbin was served a big ole piece of humble pie at Gold Rush when his jersey was hoisted up into the rafters of the Performances […]

When Carmelo Hayes and Baron Corbin were brawling outside of the ring in their NXT Championship match, the crowd cheered “Him” on but not with the traditional “Mel-o” cheers that have become a fixture of the Performance Center. No, the crowd instead decided to serenade the current NXT Champ with the war hymn of a […]

After taking part in his first-ever match on RAW, losing a close one to Finn Balor after coming to the aid of Seth Rollins not once but twice in one week’s time, Carmelo Hayes returned to NXT to prepare for his next match as a fighting champion, going head-to-head with Baron Corbin with the NXT […]

When Grayson Waller was drafted onto SmackDown after a very successful run in developmental – even if he never became the NXT Champion – fans were very excited to see the “Arrogant Aussie” showcases everything that makes him special on the main roster. So far, the results have been incomplete. Now sure, Waller has been […]

While Carmelo Hayes has been on RAW before, this month, in fact, alongside his good friend Trick Williams, the go-home edition of WWE’s Monday night flagship program before Money in the Bank featured “Him” in the ring for the very first time, wrestling a clean match with Finn Balor after coming to the defense of […]

After getting attacked from behind by Finn Balor after taking care of business against Bron Breakker on NXT – a move that got 192,000 more fans to watch the show than the week prior – Seth Rollins decided to ask the current NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes to have his back on the final RAW before […]

After taking part in his first NXT match since all the way back in 2013, Seth Rollins had to deal with a second battle at the Performance Center when his current archrival Finn Balor jumped him from behind and began spamming stomps until Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams, fresh off of some locker room wisdom […]

After two weeks of anticipation, Seth Rollins finally got in the ring with Bron Breakker at NXT Gold Rush, and needless to say, he tore the roof off the Performance Center in Orlando. Taking the ring second to his familiar war chorus demanding that “The Visionary” does everything in his power to “burn it down” […]

When Baron Corbin emerged from the back to throwdown Carmelo Hayes and hold up his NXT World Championship, it left fans wondering what the heck was going on in Orlando. Now granted, WWE did make it abundantly clear what was going on during the 2023 WWE Draft, informing fans that free agents like Von Wagner, […]

When it comes to professional wrestling, Booker T has an incredibly interesting perspective. A two-time WWE Hall of Famer who also runs his own promotion/professional wrestling school, Reality of Wrestling, and works as a commentator for NXT, there are very few aspects of the industry that Booker hasn’t had his hands in, making his insight […]

With Night of Champions officially in the books, WWE has one more “Premium Live Event” for fans to enjoy over their Memorial Day Weekend, NXT Battleground, where the next generation of young, hungry stars will test their mettle, prove their worth, and hopefully come out on top just like Seth Rollins, Asuka, Gunther, Sami Zayn, […]

As Carmelo Hayes prepares for the biggest match of his professional wrestling career thus far, defending the NXT World Championship against a newer, badder Bron Breakker near his hometown in Lowell, Massachusetts, the “HIM of NXT” stopped by Cheap Heat with Peter Rosenberg to discuss his current title reign, his New England origin story, and, […]

Carmelo Hayes has been a member of the WWE Universe since all the way back in 2021, when he turned in his Christian Casanova card to take a shot at WWE supremacy. Since then, he’s gone from a standout on 205 Live to a regular on NXT proper, where he became the only man in […]

Though he wasn’t elevated to the main roster during the WWE Draft, it’s hard to argue that Carmelo Hayes isn’t going to be hearing his name called by Samantha Irvin and/or Mike Rome in the not-too-distant future. He’s the only performer to ever hold the North American Championship, Cruiserweight Championship, and NXT World Championship during […]

After standing strong in the ring to challenge Bron Breakker to a televised match to fight for the honor of his best friend, Carmelo Hayes, Trick Williams walked to the Performance Center parking lot and was confronted by none other than Apollo Crews, the former NXT star who was drafted on RAW by WWE. Crews […]

When Bron Breakker lost his match to Carmelo Hayes at NXT Stand and Deliver on WrestleMania 39 weekend, most fans assumed it meant one thing and one thing only: “Baby Steiner” was heading to the WWE Main Roster. On paper, it made sense, right? WWE loves to bring in new stars from free agency and […]

With WrestleMania 39 officially here, fans were afforded a few hours extra hours of wrestling earlier in the day at Stand and Deliver, when the best performers NXT has to offer showcased their talents as they prepare for the big time and a main roster push. For some, this was the start of something new, […]

Though Carmelo Hayes has never actually worked a televised match on RAW or SmackDown, with all of his matches in the WWE Universe either coming on NXT, Main Event, or a single dark match with Trick Williams on SmackDown back in 2021, few NXT Superstars appear as ready to take their show on the road […]

After securing a major mixed-gender tag team victory over Finn Balor and Rhea Ripley at the 2023 WWE Elimination Chamber, Edge was riding high. Sure, he then competed in an unsuccessful challenge for the United States Championship against Austin Theory in Ottawa a few days later, but even after that, Edge’s burning desire to kill […]