"We didn't have a single bad segment" – Former WWE Superstar Top Dolla on Hit Row's impact

Former WWE Superstar AJ Francis (fka Top Dolla) believes he and his fellow Hit Row stablemates flourished after their call-up to the main roster.

In 2021, AJ Francis, with Ashante "Thee" Adonis, B-Fab, and Isaiah "Swerve" Scott (fka Swerve Strickland), formed the stable known as Hit Row in NXT. The group garnered a huge following quickly and was called up to the main roster after just five months into their run as a stable.

In a recent interview with Ignatius Grifol of Solo Wrestling, AJ said Hit Row never had a bad segment on WWE's main roster as they took their craft seriously:

"People loved what we did. We didn't have a single bad segment. Anyone can watch it again, there wasn't a bad segment as we take our s**t seriously, we take everything seriously. We could be at my house until 2 in the morning practicing promos, we did our songs, our promos, the concept of how we'd dress the same color on different days and change the color…we did everything ourselves. We clearly knew what we were doing and had a good time." (H/T - Solo Wrestling)

Despite Francis' opinion of Hit Row's run on the main roster, all four superstars were eventually released by WWE 15 days after their SmackDown debut.

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Swerve Strickland was embarrassed after his WWE release

With over ten years of experience in the wrestling business before arriving in WWE, many assumed Swerve Strickland would be a mainstay for years to come.

After winning the NXT North American Championship from Bronson Reed in 2021, Swerve became one of the brand's biggest and most popular stars.

However, after his main roster call-up later that year, Swerve and his Hit Row partners were released by WWE from their contracts. Speaking on his podcast Swerve City, Strickland spoke of the embarrassment he felt after getting released:

"When the release happened, I was upset. It was more of an embarrassment to my family because I felt I let them down because I talked up so much about how everything was going to be okay, I'm going to exceed the expectations. But, once again, I look around and I'm appreciative of all that I've accomplished. Everything that I've done in the WWE, I'm proud of." (H/T - Fightful)

Now signed to AEW under the ring name Swerve Strickland, the wrestling star may finally achieve the worldwide recognition he rightly deserves.