After being released on April 15 as part of the company-wide cutbacks, Drake Maverick officially re-signed with WWE on Wednesday's NXT.
Before his release, Maverick was announced for the Interim NXT Cruiserweight Title Tournament before his release and allowed to continue in the tournament. He posted an emotional video on social media following his release and NXT used the video, his release, and his fight to return to highlight Maverick's tournament run. Though Maverick lost in the finals to El Hijo del Fantasma, Triple H greeted him after the match and offered him a new contract.
Speaking on Thursday's NXT TakeOver media call, Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp asked Triple H about Maverick's situation, when plans may have changed, and any details on Maverick's new contract.
"We already had the tournament booked out and I believe it was a little bit of a jumble, but we already had it promoted," he said. "Then, the releases happened, which is horrible. No one wants to see anyone lose their job, especially in the world right now. A lot of companies, around the world, are having to make tough business decisions to ensure they're still there. Difficult decisions were made. He was given the option of continuing the tournament and wanted to prove he that he could still be here. If you've met him or know him, he's one of the most passionate guys and loves WWE. Couldn't be a better guy. As we said when the release happened, it wasn't like he was involved in anything, it just happened. But through the process of this tournament, he captured people's hearts and imaginations. He earned that spot. It was already out there, in the biggest way possible. You either ignore it or turn it into something, so we turned it into something based off him and his performances. I'm personally thrilled for him that he can continue to do what he loves and dreams about doing. I'm thrilled we were able to get where we did."
While Triple H is thrilled for Drake, not everyone quite feels the same way. Lio Rush, who was also part of the April 15 releases, took to social media on Thursday to say the angle was a "slap in the face" to turn it into a worked shoot. Rush noted that he was happy for anyone to get their job back but there was also real trauma for others involved.
In a WWE interview following NXT, Maverick said he took the opportunity and ran with it. You can find his full interview by clicking here.
If you use any of the quotes above, please give a h/t and link back to Fightful for the transcription.
