John Cena is a big fan of new NXT star Mason Rook.
For the second straight week, John Cena has endorsed former PROGRESS Atlas Champion Will Kroos. This time, though, Kroos confirmed his official new ring name for WWE, Mason Rook.
After NXT Champion Tony D’Angelo defeated Tavion Heights in this week’s WWE NXT main event, Rook charged in from behind them and caused them to collide. With D’Angelo stacked on his shoulders, Rook then sent D’Angelo crashing into Heights once more, courtesy of a cannonball. From there, Rook signaled his debut with a statement: “My name is Mason Rook, and I’ve arrived in NXT!”
Cena, who appears to be a legitimate fan of the former Will Kroos, praised him on X afterward. “He’s BIG …. He’s BAD…. He’ll BODYSLAM YER DAD!!!!” Cena wrote.
Taking notice, Rook addressed Cena’s nod of approval, writing, “Sounds so nice, the [GOAT] had to say it twice.”
Initially described as a “fan,” Rook marked his first NXT appearance last week by flattening D’Angelo with a moonsault. This earned additional praise from Cena as he referenced the chant associated with Rook from his independent wrestling run: “HE’S BIG…. HE’S BAD…. HE’LL BODYSLAM YOUR DAD!!!”
Given his back-to-back attacks on D’Angelo, it seems that Rook is already eyeing NXT’s top prize, the NXT Championship. Naraku (formerly EVIL), another new WWE signee, made his championship intentions clear in a vignette aired in the same NXT episode.
RELATED: WWE Changes Planned Name for NXT’s EVIL Despite Filing Trademark — REPORT
