Best Mason Rook/Will Kroos matches to watch | Opinion

Will Kroos Mason Rook WWE NXT
Will Kroos Mason Rook WWE NXT (Image credit: WWE)

Mason Rook (formerly Will Kroos on the indies) has taken a lot of flak over the last few weeks since his debut on WWE NXT programming. It’s mostly based on his appearance and the fact that he doesn’t look like your ‘typical’ WWE ‘Superstar.’

Rook is a big lad, he’s not got an athletic build and he won’t be on the cover of Muscle and Fitness anytime soon…but he also is incredibly athletic for a man of his size and, quite frankly, a phenomenal professional wrestler.

Pro wrestling is at its best when it is presented as a variety show. If you have the same 10-15 people on a roster with the same build, the same style and the same moveset, that only gets you so far. Having someone like Rook/Kroos adds an extra flavour, it’s all about different presenting the audience with characters they can relate to as well as showcasing those larger than life superhero-build behemoths. This isn’t a new thing, just look someone like Mick Foley, a performer who “wouldn’t pass the airport test,” but his ability to engage a crowd and be someone you could relate to that made him a beloved figure for decades.

I think that the criticisms levied at Kroos so far have been, honestly, premature and narrow-minded because of the way he looks. Rook has been brought into the company and put on NXT programming very quickly, so the right people in NXT know exactly what they have in him as a talent.

John Cena is a big fan of Rook and NXT has been crying out for someone in that Bam Bam Bigelow/Bronson Reed mold for a long time now. Rook has the ability to fit that easily, plus when the time comes to pivot him to a proper title-chasing babyface role, he has the athletic ability, fire and can connect to an audience in a way that I think will shock a lot of people.

Best Will Kroos Matches

It’s difficult to judge a performer based on a few weeks of NXT programming, so I’ve decided to put together some suggestions for matches you can watch. These should help you get a sense of the level of performer that Mason Rook/Will Kroos really is.

He’s big, he’s bad, he’ll bodyslam your dad (which I believe Maffew from Botchamania came up with), and here are some matches you should try and seek out if you want a true reflection of what Kroos is all about:

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Jake Skudder
Jake Skudder

Jake is the Head of Audience at F4WOnline, having previously worked as a Combat Sports, Gaming and Pro Wrestling writer, successful Editor in Chief and Sports Coordinator for NationalWorld. He has more than ten years of experience covering mixed martial arts, pro wrestling, football and gaming across a number of publications, starting at SEScoops in 2012. His work has also been featured on Wrestling Headlines, Wrestlingnewsco, HotNewHipHop and The Hard Times.

Previously, he worked as the Editor in Chief of 24Wrestling, building the site profile with a view to selling the domain, which was accomplished in 2019. Jake was previously the Editor in Chief for FightFans, a combat sports and pro wrestling site that was launched in January 2021 and broke into millions of pageviews within the first two years. He previously worked for Snack Media and their GiveMeSport site, creating Evergreen and Trending content that would deliver pageviews via Google as the UFC and MMA SEO Lead. Jake managed to take an area of GiveMeSport that had zero traction on Organic and push it to audiences across the globe. Jake also has a record of long-term video and written interview content with the likes of the Professional Fighters League, ONE and Cage Warriors, working directly with the brands to promote bouts, fighters and special events.

He previously also worked for PROGRESS Wrestling, as PR Head and Head of Media across the social channels of the company.