Samoa Joe wasn’t all too impressed with a few “TNA” chants during an NXT promotional event in Sydney. The former TNA World Heavyweight Champion had left the organisation after nearly a decade of service and had made his debut for NXT in 2015.
The Samoan Submission Machine has been on a tear at NXT and has been involved in a great feud with Shinsuke Nakamura. While he might be having a great time in the WWE, Joe showed a big thumbs-down as the crowd in Australia cheered for his former promotion.
The 37-year-old, after warming up a bit in the corner, then gestured to the fans that “it was all about the money.”
Joe had defeated Nakamura at NXT TakeOver: Toronto on 19th November but the “King of strong style” got his own back against the “Nation of violence” by winning the title in December. Here’s a video of the same:
The former TNA champion, in his gesture to the crowd, might have actually shared the real reason why he left the promotion. The company has had a history of financial problems. Stories of performers in TNA not being paid have surfaced all too regularly in the past.
In October this year, four companies had lodged various lawsuits against the wrestling promotion with the damages being greater than $500,000. TNA even had trouble setting up its biggest pay-per-view event “Bound for Glory” in early October and it was a last minute save that had kept the show going.
Also read: WWE News: Samoa Joe’s main roster debut imminent
Joe was one of the most impressive performers in TNA and stayed loyal to the brand. It was surprising to many that he didn’t jump ship to the WWE brand earlier. The 37-year-old now looks set to break into the main roster of Vince McMahon’s company after finishing his feud with Shinsuke Nakamura.
It will be interesting to see just which brand he joins. While RAW does have a greater number of stars to pair Joe off against, SmackDown Live has AJ Styles, against whom Joe has fought a number of battles in TNA.
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