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More than 60,000 fans packed Allegiant Stadium on night 2 of WrestleMania 41, with the buzz from the first night still filling the air and the anticipation that anything could happen at the highly anticipated WWE event of the year.
WWE star Randy Orton glided around the ring awaiting his opponent. It could have been anyone as the former champion was without an opponent. But that night in Las Vegas was something special. Not just for Orton making his 20th WrestleMania appearance, but for the man who walked through the curtain and onto the entrance ramp.
“Say his name and he appears.”
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Joe Hendry makes his entrance at WrestleMania 41 on Sunday at Allegiant Stadium on April 20, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Craig Melvin/WWE via Getty Images)
Every professional wrestling fan in the house knew who was coming out. It could only be one person.
“I believe in Joe Hendry.”
Then Total Nonstop Action (TNA) World Champion Hendry’s appearance was an eternal moment for the sport. It was the first time a TNA-contracted Superstar appeared at WrestleMania. And it just showed that a viral push from pro wrestling fans could go a long way.
“It was an incredible moment,” Hendry recalled to Pakinomist Digital. “I think it’s a moment that’s even beyond your wildest dreams. There are moments where you have to go, ‘Is this a dream? Are you going out at WrestleMania?’ I remember going, being backstage, seeing the vignette marking 20 years of Randy Orton at WrestleMania, and for me to be the opponent and the surprise opponent, it was just such a perfect moment. And I am so grateful.”
It was about seven months after his WrestleMania appearance when Hendry was no longer a TNA wrestler, but he was a WWE Superstar. He was inserted into the NXT roster as he already had knowledge of the rising stars that were on the brand.
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Hendry quickly made a name for himself. The Scottish star may have lost his opportunity to win a title in the Iron Survivor Challenge at NXT Deadline, but he redeemed himself earlier this month.
The Scottish wrestler won a ladder match over Dion Lennox, Jackson Drake, Keanu Carver, Ricky Saints, Sean Legacy and Shiloh Hill to capture the vacated NXT Championship.
Joe Hendry celebrates his victory during NXT at the WWE Performance Center on February 3, 2026 in Orlando, Florida. (Matt Pendleton/WWE via Getty Images)
“It means the world,” he said of being NXT Champion. “It’s very humbling that with the amount of talented people that we have working in the Performance Center and at NXT, I’m the person who has the privilege of being the champion and representing the brand. It’s a surreal feeling, but it’s a responsibility that I take very seriously and I want to deliver for NXT.”
Hendry took the road less traveled to become a professional wrestler.
Inspired by WWE video games, Hendry told Pakinomist Digital that he became “absolutely obsessed” with the sport when he watched pro wrestlers from the Attitude era and earlier compete. He touched on the other things that make pro wrestlers go from backyard tweeners to immortal icons like the ring gear, vignettes, entrance songs and the like.
Hendry had gold medals in freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling before his career really took off. He competed in Inane Championship Wrestling in Scotland before moving around to Discovery Wrestling and New Generation Wrestling. He had appearances in Ring of Honor and World of Sport Wrestling before joining Impact Wrestling, which later returned to its original name of TNA.
But when did Joe Hendry start believing in Joe Hendry?
“I remember when I got my black belt in judo, it was really the first thing I finished to complete in my life,” he said. “I had started a lot of things and stopped them. And when I did, I was like wow, I hit the mark. So after that point, I realized that for a lot of people, the hard part is that they get so close, and just to push it over the line, I think as people, that’s something that we all struggle with, but sometimes you have to allow yourself to win and go all the way.
“Fortunately, that’s what I was able to do in the ladder match and become NXT Champion.”
Joe Hendry during the Men’s Royal Rumble match during the WWE Royal Rumble at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 1, 2025. (Joe Camporeale/Imagn Images)
Hendry now sits atop the NXT roster as champion and the face of the brand. But he’s not the only Scot doing it on the WWE roster.
Drew McIntyre is the undisputed WWE Champion as he prepares to defend his title at WrestleMania 42.
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“It was Drew who said to me that Scotland is 0.068% of the world’s population, but we have a much larger percentage of WWE titles. So I’m very proud to be someone who has worked with Drew. The way people talk about the Undertaker in the locker room, that’s how we saw Drew McIntyre when we were on our undertaker and he was then to our undertaker now and he was to our undertaker. champion and for me to be NXT champion on same time. He challenged me when we worked together. He always made me better and brought out the best in me, so I would be happy if our paths could cross again.
