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What's the story?
Recently the WWE announced the signing of top independent wrestling tag-team War Machine, which consists of Hanson and Raymond Rowe. However, new details have emerged from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that there was an element of doubt as to whether or not the deal would go through.
In case you didn't know...
War Machine is a prolific independent wrestling tag-team. The duo has competed in most of the prominent non-WWE promotions such as Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling. During their time on the circuit, they have captured the Ring of Honor World Tag-Team Titles and the IWGP Tag Team Championships twice.
The heart of the matter
The WWE Universe seemed absolutely thrilled to see the hard-hitting yet surprisingly agile indy team sign for WWE. But as Dave Meltzer has indicated on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there was a chance that it might not have happened.
With War Machine, there was some worrying with Hanson (who did a farewell show with Chaotic Wrestling, one of the company’s he started with, over the weekend) about the physical since he’s had neck problems in the past, but he passed it.
The WWE's medical check has stopped the signing of several people in the past. With the likes of Jazzy Gabert, who competed in the Mae Young Classic actually getting signed and then dropped after the medical revealed a problem with herniated discs. Also, Japanese wrestling talent Io Shirai who was turned down due to several medical issues.
What's next?
War Machine has reported to the WWE Performance Center and we can expect to see them either on NXT or the main roster, that depend on what the WWE's plans for them are in the coming months.
Author's take
The well-being of the performers has to come first, but it would have been a shame if Hanson's previous neck injuries prevented War Machine from signing with the company. For that reason, I'm glad they passed.
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