Why Grayson Waller Lost His First WWE Main Roster Match

WWE has a lot of Superstars with a ton of potential, but Grayson Waller stands above many of them. The former NXT standout just competed in his first match on the WWE main roster, an impressive showing against Edge. There was a reason for that move on WWE’s part.

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During Friday’s episode of WWE SmackDown, fans were treated to an unexpected match between WWE Hall of Famer Edge and former NXT star Grayson Waller. The match came about after Edge appeared on The Grayson Waller Effect, where he issued a challenge to Waller, seeking to test the young talent’s mettle in the ring.

The Edge vs. Waller match turned out to be the longest bout of the night, lasting nearly 15 minutes. This was primarily due to the extensive segments involving The Bloodline that advanced the ongoing Civil War storyline. In the end, Edge emerged victorious with his signature Spear, while Waller faced defeat in his main roster in-ring debut.

During Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer shed light on the rationale behind Edge’s win. There is a lot more to this story, but fans will have to be patient.

“They still have the idea that if you get beaten by a star, you’re seen as a bigger star because you’re in the ring with them. And depending on how the match works, sometimes that’s the case… I was surprised [Waller] wrestled because I didn’t think he’d be back this soon.”

Although Waller was drafted from NXT to SmackDown at the end of April, he hadn’t competed since April 25 when he challenged Carmelo Hayes for the NXT title. Waller claimed to have suffered a broken leg during that match and has been undergoing rehabilitation since then. Despite his absence from in-ring action, the Australian native has made appearances on SmackDown by hosting his own in-ring talk show with various WWE superstars.

Edge’s last match took place on the May 12th SmackDown in a first-round triple threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship tournament, where AJ Styles emerged as the victor. With six matches already under his belt in 2023, it remains to be seen what lies ahead for the Rated-R Superstar in WWE’s plans.

We will have to see what’s next for Grayson Waller in WWE. The company could have some big plans in the pipeline for him, and his story started with Edge on the main roster.

Grayson Waller could accomplish a lot in WWE, but does he have a championship run coming this year? Sound off in the comments to let us know what you’re thinking!