It's finally happening! Je'Von Evans has his first match as an official member of the Raw roster, Jordynn Grace defeats Alba Fyre in her debut match on Smackdown, and Trick Williams pins Rey Fenix in his of the same. Let's talk about it. Je'Von especially has been making teaser appearances on the main roster over the last few months, notably the only one repping NXT in The Last Time is Now tournament, though he was eliminated in the first round after an impressive showing against Gunther. I'll admit, I haven't followed much of his career on NXT, but his charisma and athleticism are undeniable, so I'm excited to see what new energy the Young OG brings to Raw.
Meanwhile over on the Blue Brand, the latest of Sammy Zayne's inspiring speeches is interrupted by Trick Williams, with the crowd all on board for the newcomer, chanting 'whoop that Trick'. The two go at it on the mic, with Trick promising he would be going after a world title, and would succeed where Sammy has famously failed the duration of his career. Sammy claims Trick just has yet to be humbled, which I personally hoped would culminate in a match between the two, but a later backstage confrontation between Trick and Rey Fenix resulted in a match between the them being scheduled instead. Trick would roll Fenix up, grabbing a handful of tights out of view of the ref to pick up a dirty win. In my opinion, Trick came out of his debut looking like a star. While some discourse online suggests his in-ring ability isn't yet on the level of a main roster main-eventer, his match against Fenix showed that he's come a long way; not at all the same rookie who debuted on NXT in 2021.
Later on in the night, we see the debut of Jordynn Grace in a bout against Alba Fyre, wherein she would ultimately come out on top, only for Jade Cargill to step to her in what I felt was one of the champ's more convincing and exciting promos. It's refreshing to have a more believable challenger for the world title on Smackdown with Bianca Belair still out with injury. I'll admit when I saw they were pitting Jordynn against Alba, I was taken back to a recent interview Chelsea Green had with CVV where she expressed an interest in having Jordynn as a member of her Secret Hervice, possibly sporting a suit with tearaway sleeves. As genuinely hilarious and fun as that sounds, I feel the world title picture is much more suitable to the former TNA Knockouts Champion.
I can't close out an article about NXT call-ups without talking about the Bringer of War, Oba Femi. Though nothing has been officially confirmed, no backstage segments discussing signing with either brand, and no casual appearances, there have been plenty of teasers for the Ruler's upcoming signing to either Raw or Smackdown. Oba is more than ready for the main roster, and it's my not-so-hot take that he's bound to be a star wherever he ends up. Though my prediction is Raw, his recent match against Cody Rhodes could suggest that Smackdown is more the way to go. His relinquishment of the NXT title at New Years Evil without a word has left his arrival on the main roster scene shrouded in a bit of mystery, especially for people like me who live under a rock when it comes to socials. The quiet way the company is building excitement for The Ruler is a strong move that announces him as the future main-eventer he's expected to be.