Cruz Montana’s jump from NXT to helping 946 destroy Roman Reigns on RAW came out of nowhere, and apparently that wasn’t just part of the surprise for fans. The move was reportedly kept so quiet that the people over in NXT had no idea it was coming either.
According to Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Montana joining 946 as the group’s fifth member for WarGames appears to have been a late decision. WWE apparently kept the whole thing under wraps, including from NXT.
“The biggest news was Cruz Montana joining 946 and becoming their fifth member of War Games against the Bloodline team which will likely being back Jacob Fatu shortly. It appears this was a late decision. Nobody in NXT was aware of it, but then again, WWE tries to keep these type of thing secret.”
That created an interesting problem because NXT actually had something going with Montana. Meltzer reported that he was supposed to remain a top babyface, and those plans were still visible just two nights later when Montana and 946 were both presented as babyfaces.
“Shawn Michaels didn’t reference not knowing about this in specific but right after it did talk about how he gets no warning about main roster call-ups and they have to adjust. NXT absolutely had plans going forward with Montana as a top babyface including a match two nights later where he was a babyface and 946 were babyfaces as well.”
Shawn Michaels didn’t specifically say Montana’s situation caught him by surprise, but his comments about call-ups certainly fit the circumstances. Michaels explained that he doesn’t always receive advance warning when the main roster grabs somebody, meaning NXT simply has to adjust when it happens.
Montana’s new direction became clear on the November 2 episode of RAW when he was revealed as the masked man who attacked Roman Reigns. He then joined 946 in taking out The Bloodline, putting him straight into a program with one of WWE’s biggest stars.
Whatever NXT originally had mapped out for Montana is obviously going to need some work now. Instead of continuing his climb there, he suddenly has Roman Reigns and The Bloodline on his plate — which is a pretty ridiculous upgrade for somebody who was still working an entirely different direction days earlier.
What do you make of Cruz Montana’s sudden jump into 946 and WWE reportedly keeping NXT in the dark about it? Let us know what you think in the comments.
