WWE Training Questioned After Several Injuries

Some believe WWE’s training methods could be hindering rather than helping its rising stars.

After missing the majority of the second half of 2023, Cora Jade returned to action in December and seemed primed for the biggest push of her young career. However, that momentum seems to have already come to a shuddering halt.

At a live event on January 12th, Cora Jade suffered a knee injury, and her match against NXT Women’s Champion Lyra Valkyria was waved off.

Speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez gave their thoughts on the injury and reflected on the similar injuries suffered by others in NXT in 2023. Alvarez went on to note that Jade’s knee “wasn’t looking good” while she was out celebrating her birthday.

And we do not have an update yet, but said to be a knee injury and potentially serious. And it was her birthday yesterday, by the way. Apparently she was out celebrating, but knee apparently not looking good. Perhaps a torn ACL, which a lot of people, a lot of people in NXT have suffered the torn ACL. So whatever’s happening, I don’t know.”

Meltzer revealed that he’s had people suggest to him that WWE’s coaching methods could be to blame for the injuries.

“I’ve had people. This was before Cora Jade was hurt, but this was when Sol Ruca went down. And, you know, a couple of the others, Wendi Chu, Nikita Lyons, just telling me that that they were questioning the method of training when it feels like all that….Tegan Nox got two of them. One each leg, I believe. Right? And, you know, just questioning, like, ‘what are they doing in training?’

Because historically, women don’t get torn ACLs left and right, NXT, whatever it is, you know, they train them very, very hard, which is, in theory, a good thing. But not if you’re going to have this, this level of this many injuries. You know what I mean?

One of the things was, was I remember even years ago when it came to the NXT stuff, it was like, they would want everyone in this great and great condition. They would train them really hard. And then there’d be all these injuries and it was like, they you got to kind of find that balance to where you’re getting people in condition but not, it doesn’t benefit your conditioning to then have injuries because the injuries take away from your conditioning no matter how hard you train.

So you don’t want to over-train the people. And I’m sure that in time, you know, this will all be worked out and figured out because it’s all, you know, this the type of training that they do there with legitimate strength and conditioning coaches and things like that it’s somewhat new for wrestling, I mean, in the sense that it’s more sophisticated training.”

NXT Stars Blamed WWE Coaching Staff For Injuries

Following the injuries to Sol Ruca, Nikkita Lyons, and other NXT stars who hadn’t made it to television in 2023, Dave Meltzer reported that some of those involved blamed WWE’s coaching staff. Meltzer quoted one person who believed a new strength and conditioning coach was to blame for the raft of injuries, with a focus on heavy lifting putting increased strain on knee joints.

Previously with an earlier coach, the emphasis had been on more athletic drills linked to explosiveness.

H/t to WrestlingNews.Co