Triple H made three superstars think they had been fired… then he called them up to WWE SmackDown
Triple H tricked The Forgotten Sons into believing they had been fired shortly before their call-up to WWE SmackDown.
The three-man group (Jaxson Ryker, Steve Cutler, and Wesley Blake) performed in NXT between February 2018 and March 2020. They debuted on SmackDown in April 2020 before being removed from television due to Ryker’s controversial pro-Donald Trump tweet.
In a recent interview on the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling podcast, Ryker recalled how the NXT founder amusingly delivered their main-roster call-up news:
“He just goes, ‘Hey, so listen, tonight we’re gonna just kind of write you guys off TV,'" Ryker recalled. "You could hear this deathly sigh of, ‘Oh God, they’re getting rid of us.’ Then he goes, ‘It’s because you guys are going to SmackDown.’ We were all like, ‘Come on, man!’ He kind of got us but then he got us with the handshake.” [50:38-51:02]
The Forgotten Sons’ last match together came in May 2020 when they competed in a Fatal 4-Way tag team encounter at Money in the Bank. The following month, Ryker’s show of support for Trump led to the group’s removal from WWE programming.
Jaxson Ryker enjoyed working for Triple H
Don't. Cross. This. Man.
@JaxsonRykerWWE #WWENXT https://t.co/mI5NIQ1nvY
While The Forgotten Sons never held the NXT Tag Team Championship, the trio still appeared regularly on television during their two-and-a-half years as a group.
Jaxson Ryker liked Triple H’s managerial style and had no issues asking the 14-time WWE World Champion questions:
“Very approachable, even from the first time I had a meeting with him in 2017 or whatever," Ryker continued. "Very approachable. Always, always out there in the ring going over stuff with guys, telling you what he envisioned.” [39:05-39:27]
Following a six-month storyline with Elias on RAW, Ryker received his release from WWE in November 2021. Steve Cutler and Wesley Blake were also let go by the company earlier in the same year.
Please credit the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling if you use quotes from this article.