WWE legend and company executive Triple H says he is "thrilled" that British star Drake Maverick has earned a new contract, only six weeks after being released by the sports entertainment giant. Maverick was axed as part of a raft of COVID-19 related budget cuts on 15th April, but in The Game's words has "captured people's hearts" with a series of matches in the Interim NXT Cruiserweight Championship tournament.
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In the wake of his initial firing, Birmingham-born Maverick took to social media in a heart-wrenching video that was the talk of professional wrestling. Originally scheduled to take part in the Cruiserweight tournament over the coming weeks, WWE allowed Maverick to see out his remaining dates. Speaking to Fightful, Triple H said "We already had the tournament booked out, I believe we had promoted it already at that time. And then releases happened, which are horrible. Nobody wants to see anybody lose their job, especially in the world right now. But a lot of companies in the world are having to make toughbusiness decisions in this moment in time, to make sure they are still there as this continues. Difficult decisions were made. He was given the option of continuing in the tournament, wanted to and wanted to prove that he could still be here."
Drake Maverick carried this groundswell of emotional support into the tournament, earning rave reviews for a string of excellent performances en route to his defeat in the final last night to El Hijo Del Fantasma. However his determination to succeed meant that his WWE obligations were far from over. At the conclusion of the match, he was offered a deal to continue as part of WWE's NXT brand. "Through the process of this tournament he just captured people's hearts, he captured their imagination. He earned that spot. It was already out there in the biggest way possible, so we turned it into something based on him and his performances. I'm personally thrilled for him that he can continue doing what he loves doing and what he dreamed about doing."
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Triple H himself, in his capacity as Senior Producer of NXT, was the one who walked through the curtain to award Maverick a new contract. A move made all the more poignant when listening to The Cerebral Assassin's thoughts on the cruiserweight superstar. "If you met him or know him at all, he is one of the most passionate guys and loves WWE. He just wants to be here, it's his dream. The whole thing. Couldn't be a better guy."
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All eyes will remain on NXT on Sunday 7th June as they present NXT Takeover: In Your House on the WWE Network.
Featured Image Credit: WWETopics: Triple H, NXT, Wrestling, WWE