Ridge Holland just pulled back the curtain on one of NXT’s more forgotten storylines — and it turns out the people at the top shut it down before it could go anywhere.
Luke Menzies, the man behind the Ridge Holland character, recently revealed that a controversial injury angle involving Ilja Dragunov got killed by WWE brass. Simple as that. The idea made it onto TV, got some momentum, and then someone higher up the food chain decided it wasn’t happening.
Here’s what went down on screen. Menzies returned to NXT in December 2023 after some time away. On the December 13th episode of NXT, he and Dragunov had a match, and the finish involved an angle built around Ilja’s injury. The kind of stuff that’s supposed to blur the line between what’s real and what’s a work — the type of storytelling that NXT used to thrive on during the black-and-gold era.
But somebody backstage with power didn’t sign off on the direction, and the whole thing got shelved before it could develop into anything meaningful.
Menzies didn’t go into specifics about which exact higher-ups made the call, but he was clear that the decision came from above him and had nothing to do with creative not being interested. The angle was there. The pieces were in place. It just didn’t survive whatever internal approval process WWE runs these days.
That’s a rough break for Menzies, honestly. Ridge Holland spent years trying to find his footing in WWE. He came up through NXT UK, made the jump to the main roster, spent time tagging with Sheamus, dealt with real-life injuries of his own, and then cycled back down to NXT. Getting a program with Dragunov — who at the time was one of the most credible acts in all of WWE developmental — would’ve been a legitimate opportunity to show what he could do in a featured role.
Dragunov is no joke either. The guy is an absolute machine in the ring and was NXT Champion during that period, carrying the brand on his back the way he always does. A well-executed injury angle with him could’ve made Holland feel like a genuine threat. Instead, the plug got pulled and neither guy got the payoff.
This isn’t the first time a promising NXT angle has been quietly buried without explanation. The brand has gone through significant identity shifts since moving to the USA Network and adjusting to what WWE’s current leadership wants from its developmental product. What flies in one era doesn’t necessarily survive in the next, and talent caught in those transitions often end up as footnotes.
Menzies was eventually released from WWE in 2024, making this scrapped angle feel even more like a missed window. He had the size, the look, and clearly the desire to make something happen. The Dragunov feud could’ve changed his trajectory on the roster.
Now he’s out of WWE entirely, talking about a storyline that most fans barely remember existed. That’s the business. Things get planned, things get cut, and sometimes you only find out why years later in a podcast or an interview.
At least now we know it wasn’t for lack of trying on his end.
