R-Truth was originally set to lead popular WWE faction on SmackDown, according to 33-year-old star
R-Truth has been with WWE for over a decade and entertained millions of fans across the globe weekly, regardless of any regime. Recently, a former star revealed that there was a pitch that would've made Truth lead a popular faction in the promotion.
Last year, Hit Row made their presence felt under the new regime when they rejoined WWE. However, the stable felt incomplete as Swerve Strickland had joined All Elite Wrestling, and the remaining three stars joined Friday Night SmackDown under Triple H's creative leadership.
Speaking to Muscle Man Malcolm, Top Dolla (AJ Francis) revealed that there were pitches made for R-Truth to join and lead the stable as Truth's character matched with the stable during their run.
Sadly, the management turned it down, but Dolla added that they are doing a similar bit between Truth and The Judgment Day.
"So the whole pitch was R-Truth coming to us like, Yo what y'all got going it's not working. Y'all not winning, I've been in this game for a long time. Let me show you how it's done and we can all be successful... So, we hear him out, and I'm still against him a little bit. But it was kinda like the whole thing they did with Damian Priest and JD McDonagh. That's the whole thing where I'm like against it, but eventually, I'm like alright, cool, it's working," said Dolla. [From 34:25 to 35:30]
Dolla added that R-Truth was supposed to be what Edge was to The Judgment Day before they snapped and kicked him out of the stable.
Top Dolla also pitched for another WWE star to join Hit Row
Hit Row was created on the developmental brand but couldn't replicate the success it earned on NXT onto WWE's main roster, and it eventually ended when all stars were released from the promotion.
Last year, three of the four stars from the stable were rehired, but the stable failed to make an impact. Speaking on Muscle Man Malcolm, Top Dolla revealed that he had pitched to WWE regarding the addition of Odyssey Jones to the faction.
"I even talked about adding Omari Jahi [Odyssey Jones] to Hit Row like as muscle... So it's not a crazy thing. So we talked about adding him too."
Odyssey Jones was drafted to SmackDown during the annual WWE Draft but hasn't been featured on the blue brand. The star has competed in a couple of dark matches before the Friday Night show in August 2023. Since then, Jones has been active on the road as he was in action at live events.
Hit Row spent all their time on WWE SmackDown before the eventual end of the faction in September 2023.
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If you use quotes from this article, please credit Muscle Man Malcolm and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.