When news broke that Karl Fredericks was leaving New Japan Pro Wrestling after a standout stint as a member of the LA Dojo, it wasn't too surprising for fans of the promotion. Sure, Fredericks was used a ton on NJPW's American streaming content, and even had a burgeoning relationship with Christopher Daniels going, but he decided to bash his booking publically, was held off of Forbidden Door as a result, and ultimately decided to leave the promotion when his contract expired in August. But where would “The Alpha Wolf” end up? Would he join CD in AEW, where the “Fallen Angel” was no longer an active wrestler but still worked dark matches from time to time? Or would he make the massive leap to WWE, where the 32-year-old could make more money than anywhere else if he actually transcended his spot in NXT to become a main roster talent?

Well, as it turns out, Fredericks chose to sign with WWE, according to Pro Wrestling Insider, and on January 20th, he turned up at the NXT Live event in Fort Pierce, Florida, to stare down Axiom after his match with Oro Mensah.

Sporting a new, shorter haircut and an outfit that would make Ricky Starks proud, Fredericks appeared from the back, walked into the ring with a mic in hand as the crowd chanted, “who are you?” and, after soaking in the moment for a moment, threw the mic down before exiting, implying he wasn't ready to spill the beans just yet.

On social media, Fredericks did address his live debut at least a little bit, posting the pirate emoji followed by his typical wolf emoji, but he's been silent ever since, save a retweet of Deebo Samuel biking into Levi's Stadium ahead of the San Francisco 49ers' Week 20 playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys.

What gives? Is Fredericks about to debut on the penultimate edition of NXT in January? Or was this a simple tip of the cap to the smart mark fans who love to see an indie guy make good as a member of WWE? Either way, keep an eye on NXT programming moving forward, as it would appear “The Alpha Wolf” – or whatever nickname he's going to use – will be heading to television in the not-too-distant future. Fortunately, his old LA Dojo pals love to see it.

Clark Connors is happy to see Karl Fredericks in WWE.

Even if fans of NJPW might not be particularly excited to see Fredericks leave the promotion, as he was a true standout of Strong during the pandemic, Clark Connors, one of his closest friends and fellow LA Dojo trainees couldn't be more excited to see his friend earn a new chance to shine, especially since it could theoretically lead to opportunities for himself and their mutual friends down the line.

“It’s awesome. I’m so happy for him, Connors said via Fightful. “I think I might be more happy for him than he’s happy for himself even. He originally turned down a WWE contract to train with WWE. He was already ready to do that four years ago. Karl is older than me, he’s like 32 right now, 31 or 32, and I’m always like, ‘You gotta make the most of your time, dude. You gotta go there, you gotta make money, and they’re gonna use you and respect,’ because he’s a phenomenal wrestler, but he’s a phenomenal superstar, which is what they look for over there. In my opinion, I think he’s gonna do really great things quickly. Then hopefully, he cozies up close with the bosses [so there’s] a spot for me when I’m ready to rock.”

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While only time will tell how Fredericks' run in WWE turns out, if he can overcome the odds, shine bright through the company's homegrown talents and become a legit main event star, the rest of his Big 4 NJPW Strong buddies, Alex Coughlin, Gabriel Kidd, and Connors, are excited to see Fredericks shine, as he was always the “superstar” of the group.

“He was and is the man,” Connors said. “It was always nice because when we’re together, we’d take inventory of each other, in terms of, the four of us, Alex, Gabe, myself, Karl, we’re very honest with each other about what we need to fix, what we need to do, who we are as wrestlers. We’ve always said that. Out of the whole group, Karl’s a superstar. He’s the guy you could see having an action figure and on box of Wheaties and sh*t, and that’s his role. So it’s always been that way, and we love it, and we’re excited for it.”