Ridge Holland addresses WWE run, Big E injury, tweet that led to termination
In a YouTube video on Friday, Luke Menzies (the former Ridge Holland) opened up about his time with WWE and termination from the company.
While recovering from foot surgery, Menzies was informed last month that his WWE contract would not be renewed when it expired on November 14. WWE would still cover his injury rehab, but he would no longer receive his pay after the November 14 date. The contract ended up being terminated early after Menzies made a social media post this week voicing frustration over the situation, writing that he felt hung out to dry and “totally f*cked” by losing his income while injured.
Menzies expressed regret over the post in today’s YouTube video. He said the comments were made purely out of frustration and because he needed an outlet to vent.
“What I do want to hold my hand up for is that last tweet that forced the situation to get worse. That was purely out of frustration,” Menzies said. “And I’m mad at myself for doing that because [it’s] something kind of out of character for me. I don’t react that way.
“But I think knowing that my career with WWE was coming to an end and I never really got to show my true potential, whether that’s my fault or situational regarding injuries or things that happened [or] whatever, I felt kind of a little bit wronged. I don’t know who by, just by the whole situation. So I hold my hands up and if I had the time again I wouldn’t have posted that tweet, but I needed an outlet. I needed to vent.”
Grateful for the experience
Despite how his run ended, Menzies wants everyone to know that he’s grateful for the opportunities he was given in WWE. He was with the company for seven years and had stints on NXT UK, NXT, the main roster, and Evolve.
“My time at WWE was majority on a positive note. I got to wrestle at WrestleMania. I got to be around some great people. I got to travel the world. It was a hugely positive influence on my life, and I am grateful for it,” Menzies said. “I know the last 12 months has been rough. And the negative always, it always, you know, overshadows the positive.
“But I just want to reiterate that my time at WWE was great, and I am grateful for it. I’m grateful for the opportunity. I’m grateful for the things that I achieved. Coming from a small town in Yorkshire playing professional rugby, it’s something that no one really does. Everyone stays in their little town, in their little bubble. And I’m proud that I took the risk to break out and move my life across the world without any real plan. Yeah, I just want to make sure that everyone knows that I am super grateful for the opportunities.”
Big E injury
The biggest regret Menzies has is the role he played in Big E’s neck injury, which thus far has been a career-ending one for the former WWE Champion. The last time Big E wrestled was in a tag match on SmackDown in March 2022. While taking an overhead belly-to-belly suplex from Holland, Big E’s head hit the floor and he suffered a broken neck.
“If I had a time machine — right here, right now — the first thing that I would do is go back and not do that spot,” Menzies said. “There’s not a day that goes by where I don’t think about what happened. There will probably not be a day that goes by where I don’t think about it.”
Menzies said the injury shook his own confidence, which had a negative impact on his career. He feels fortunate that he had the support of his wife, kids, and WWE stablemates Sheamus and Pete Dunne. And Menzies is especially grateful for the forgiveness Big E showed him.
“Whether I didn’t give him enough [on the suplex], whether he didn’t give me enough — things go wrong. You know, it’s not ballet. Unfortunately, it happened and I’ll always regret that spot,” Menzies said.
“I’m grateful that Big E, the class of human that he is, he forgave me. And he’s been able to be so positive and move on with his life. You know, going into punditry and all the stuff he does for, like, the community with collegiate athletes and stuff, and I think he works for the [WWE] Next in Line stuff. So he’s killing it, man. He’s such a good human being, and I wish nothing but the best for him. And just for people out there who think there might have been any malice in there, there wasn’t. And if I could change it, I would in a heartbeat.”
Going forward
Menzies said he plans to continue using his YouTube channel to give fans updates on his injury recovery. The foot injury he suffered happened while Menzies was representing WWE at a TNA TV taping in September. He had a fantastic experience in TNA despite the injury and enjoyed getting to work with Mike Santana and Moose.
Along with the foot procedure he underwent, Menzies is facing a potential neck fusion surgery. A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help financially assist him and his family while he’s out of action.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.