"I said that to him" - Released WWE Superstar recalls the one condition he told Triple H he would return for
WWE, unfortunately, has to make budget cuts throughout the year, but we often see popular stars brought back not long after their initial departure. One twice-released superstar has just revealed a conversation he had with Triple H.
AJ Francis was known to WWE fans as Top Dolla of Hit Row. The former NFL player originally signed with the company in January 2020 but was released in November 2021 due to pandemic budget cuts. The faction was brought back the following year with Dolla, B-Fab, and Ashante "Thee" Adonis reuniting and making a surprise return to SmackDown in August 2022.
Hit Row's second run ended in the fall of 2023 as Dolla was released from his contract along with other budget cuts. Speaking on Insight with Chris Van Vliet podcast, Dolla recalled a phone call he received from Triple H. The rapper revealed the one condition he gave to the Chief Content Officer before his return in 2022.
"Then I get brought back because Hunter [Triple H] gets the power. And Hunter recognizes the wrong of the situation as well. So Hunter calls me and says, 'When can I have you?' And I was like, 'Tomorrow if you booked a flight. I'm ready right now. ... But I don't want to come back if I'm not coming back with the rest of the Row [Hit Row].' I don't know if me saying that is the reason he decided to bring them back, too, or if he was already going to bring us all back, but I said that to him," he recalled.
Dolla continued and commented on how things just didn't work out creatively for Hit Row on the main roster.
"So, then two days later we set up a call with all of us, and Hunter laid out the plan, and then we re-debuted the week after that. And that's when we came out in North Carolina, and it was a great time and the crowd reacted crazy. But then, like after that, like, there was never really a plan for Hit Row. We would pitch ideas and 90% of times they wouldn't use them, and a lot of times when they did use them, like, it was cool, and it worked," he said. [From 25:27 - 26:26]
Dolla's final WWE match came on September 10, 2023, at a non-televised live event in Charlottesville, VA. He and his Hit Row stablemates were defeated by Elektra Lopez, Joaquin Wilde, and Cruz Del Toro.
The 33-year-old star's last televised match was also his last singles bout, as he lost to LA Knight during SmackDown on August 11.
Former WWE Superstar Top Dolla makes TNA debut
AJ Francis was released from WWE in September 2023, and since then, he has worked for multiple wrestling promotions.
The former Top Dolla returned to GCW by attacking Joey Janela in late December. Janela then defeated him at GCW Look At Me in late January. Dolla debuted for MLW with a win over Mr. Thomas last month.
Francis is currently finding success in TNA. He teamed with Deaner for a debut loss to Joe Hendry and Rich Swann late last month but then defeated Hendry in his TNA singles debut two weeks later.
Dolla also debuted for the NWA at Hard Times earlier this month. The former WWE Superstar was said to be a big draw for merchandise sales.