What’s the story?
As usual, NXT taped three weeks of television in one evening last night and it would seem that recent signee Heidi Lovelace has been given her new name for future competition in WWE. Lovelace worked a dark match at the tapings against Kimber Lee and was billed as Ruby Riot, a name that was reprised later in the evening during the tapings when Riot came out to even the odds in the fight against SAnitY.
The name Ruby Riot conjures up images of punk rock that will fit Lovelace’s ‘Punk Rock Ragdoll’ gimmick to a tee. The future looks extremely bright for the former CHIKARA Young Lions Cup champion.
In case you didn’t know...
Heidi Lovelace made her pro wrestling debut in 2010 but it wasn’t until 2014 that she really burst onto the scene with her work in CHIKARA. In the pre-show of the Tomorrow Never Dies IPPV Heidi Lovelace defeated Missile Assault Ant in the final of a tournament to crown a new Young Lions Cup champion, following in the footsteps of Ricochet, Chuck Taylor, Mark Angelosetti and others.
Lovelace went undefeated through 2015 and eventually relinquished the title with losing, and in 2016 she challenged CHIKARA Grand Champion Princess Kimber Lee for that title at a show in Gibsonville, North Carolina. This was the first time in the United States that a major promotion’s primary title was contested between two women. Lovelace came up short that night, but her place in the history of the industry is assured.
The heart of the matter
On January 4 this year, it was confirmed that Heidi Lovelace had signed a developmental contract with WWE and would be reporting to the WWE Performance Center. Less than two weeks later, Lovelace made her in-ring debut at an NXT live event but it wasn’t until last night’s tapings that Lovelace truly made her mark.
From this point forward, Heidi Lovelace will be known as Ruby Riot.
What’s next?
NXT’s women’s division was in somewhat dire straits towards the end of 2016, seemingly consisting of Asuka and a whole lot of not much else, but all of a sudden it seems as though the transitional period may well be over. Asuka still stands as champion but a new generation of challenges stand in front of her in the shape of Nikki Cross, Ember Moon, Peyton Royce and now Ruby Riot.
Sportskeeda’s Take
Whenever a noted independent performer gets a new name in WWE the reaction tends to be somewhat tepid, but it is difficult to think of a name that would suit Heidi Lovelace better than Ruby Riot. We look forward to seeing what Ruby Riot achieves in NXT and eventually WWE.
