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WWE NXT wrestlers Tatum Paxley and Kendal Grey have been two of the standout performers on the brand over the course of 2025.
Paxley went from being on the tag-team scene with Gigi Dolan and Shotzi Blackheart to start the year and quickly worked her way up the ladder to earn shots at the NXT Women’s Championship and the NXT Women’s North American Championship.
She became the NXT women’s champion after she defeated Jacy Jayne at Halloween Havoc. However, her recent relationship with Izzi Dame and The Culling fractured, leading to an emotional match at NXT Deadline, which she lost thanks to help from Dame’s compatriots.
Sol Ruca, who has made her own waves in NXT over the last three years, told Fox News Digital in a recent interview she was over the moon for Paxley as her hard work paid off.
“Tatum, she’s grown so much and when she won the title, I was literally backstage, like, trying not to cry because she’s just tried so hard and she’s just always on it,” Ruca said. “She’s always showing up and ready to work and I think she really deserved being the NXT women’s champion.”
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Grey found her footing at WWE Evolve as she split time between that brand and NXT. She won the Evolve Women’s Championship against Kali Armstrong back in September. Then, she won the Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge and earned a shot at the NXT Women’s Championship.
Ruca suggested she was impressed with Grey’s growth over the last two years. Grey joined the WWE organization in 2023 as part of WWE’s Next In Line program five years after being named the USA High School Wrestler of the Year.
“Same with Kendal, she’s gotten really good within the past, I don’t know, she’s been here for what? Like two years, maybe? I think the background in amateur wrestling definitely helps but they’re really putting her in the deep end right now,” Ruca said. “And I think she’s definitely holding up.
“I think she’s performing very, very well. I think her promos are getting better, and I don’t think she’s super nervous about the position she’s in. I think she’s pretty confident, which is definitely a good thing for her.”
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Ruca will have a big opportunity to make an impression with WWE fans. She will take on Bayley on Saturday at Saturday Night’s Main Event, which will also be John Cena’s final match of his WWE in-ring career.
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