A WWE Superstar has revealed that they tipped off Triple H to let him know that Tama Tonga would be a free agent soon.
At NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 on January 4th, Tonga defeated Shingo Takagi to become the new NEVER Openweight Champion. In a surprising announcement at the press conference following the victory, Tonga announced that he would be departing the promotion once his contract had expired. In late February an update was provided that stated that the NJPW star would be joining WWE and had been in discussions with the company over the past year. In a new interview, another former NEVER Openweight Champion was the one who bridged that gap.
Appearing on Busted Open Radio, Karl Anderson discussed his appearance at Wrestle Kingdom the previous year. Anderson reigned as NEVER Openweight Champion when he signed with WWE and was permitted to compete at the show while under contract. The former Tag Team Champion revealed that he texted Triple H to let him know that Tonga would be a free agent in 2024 and that he should be signed to the company:
After my Tokyo Dome match in 2023, which Triple H let me do because we signed back with WWE and I was still a champion in New Japan. And he still allowed me to go back and do two more dates with New Japan Pro Wrestling with no issue at all. I remember texting Triple H and telling him that Tama Tonga’s contract is coming up and I think Tama is a full-blown can’t-miss if you ask me. And he wrote back right away. It took a year to get it done but, like I said, I’m a big believer in things happening for a reason.
I think it’s great that Tama’s had 15 or 16 years all in New Japan Pro Wrestling, to come into WWE and show them that experience and that he is ready for prime time. It’s unlimited right now for what Tama Tonga can pull off in the WWE. I’m excited to watch.
Tama Tonga made his highly anticipated debut on the SmackDown after WrestleMania, where he and Solo Sikoa launched a brutal attack on Jimmy Uso following the events that took place in Philadelphia. Continuing the interview, Anderson stated that Tonga’s debut was on short notice:
He had no clue he was going to debut that night either, which is kind of WWE-style. They’ll bring you in and then you gotta debut.
It was pretty fun to just watch my friend and brother go through the fact that he knows he’s about to go on live national television for the first time ever, really. I’m proud of him. I think he knocked it out of the park.
Triple H Comments On Major Development On WWE Raw
The April 15th episode of Raw opened with sad news as Rhea Ripley announced that she was forced to vacate the Women’s World Championship due to injury. Following the announcement, Triple H gave his thoughts.
H/t to F4WOnline.