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Ricky Saints relinquishes the gold.
In a tweet, DEFY shared a clip in which Ricky Saints announced that it was an honor to win the DEFY World Championship, but opportunity knocked, so he had to relinquish the DEFY World Championship.
Saints then stated that a new champion would be crowned at DEFY Aftermath. He said that the eight-man DEFY Super 8XGP tournament would determine the new titleholder.
Saints, formerly known as Ricky Starks, won the DEFY World Championship by defeating KENTA at DEFY Hundredth on February 7th. However, he never defended the title. He then signed with WWE and appeared on the February 11th episode of WWE NXT. His new name, Ricky Saints, was revealed the following week. Saints made his in-ring debut on the February 25th episode, where he and Je’Von Evans defeated Ethan Page and Wes Lee.
Ricky Saints On NXT Debut
Following his first match in NXT, Saints shared his thoughts in an NXT Exclusive.
“Wild. Absolutely wild. My story isn’t that untold, as they say—it’s pretty well known at this point. And I think I’ve overcome a lot just to make it to this moment,” Ricky Saints said.
“My first time here, I didn’t know what to expect. The second time I showed up at NXT, still didn’t know what to expect. But this time was different—I knew what was gonna happen. Old Ricky never died. While I thought I put him to bed, guess what? He woke up on his own two feet and was ready to go. Energized. Charged up like a 100% iPhone, you know what I’m saying?”
“If there was ever any doubt about me, tonight proved otherwise. If you’ve been sleeping on me for the past 14 years, we might as well call you a Tempur-Pedic. One thing’s for certain—I always show up and show out. I deliver every time. COD, you get what I’m saying?”
And I thought tonight was probably the most appropriate for where I’m at in my life. I’m an emotional man—I’m not afraid to admit that. But tonight felt like a fever dream that I don’t ever wish to wake up from,” Saints added.
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