From there, R-Truth described his journey into pro wrestling as a “fairy tale.” During his initial years in the industry, he was able to meet the likes of AJ Styles, who saw his potential. “He said, ‘You belong on TV, man!’ I said, ‘Bro, I’m just happy I’m not in jail, and I can wrestle,'” he recalled.

From there, he was told to make a wrestling tape and send it to WWE, and two weeks later he got a call from Terry Taylor. “It’s rolling, it’s happening, I’m like, ‘Okay, this is crazy,'” Truth said. “Two weeks [later], I got the call, they … flew me in to meet Vince [McMahon].” Truth then recalled how he lied about his weight and height to get into WWE, but Taylor took him in to meet Vince McMahon anyway. “Vince loved me, and two weeks after that, I was given my first contract.”

Truth also expressed that pro wrestling took him on a different route he never expected, and a part of him wishes he started sooner. “[Wrestling] never was my thing, but sometimes you have to take a different route to get to where you’re going!” he stated. “Wrestling was my different route, it saved my life; it got me out of the streets, it taught me decorum, it taught me how to be a man, how to be professional.”

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “Six Feet Under with The Undertaker,” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

In December 2023, Lash Legend left the WWE Universe in awe when she bodyslammed Otis, a 300-pound former Raw Tag Team Champion, in the ring on “WWE NXT.” According to Legend, the weight on her shoulders was easy to manage. The specific positioning of it, however, produced some difficulties.

“I love Otis. I think he was amazing to work with,” Legend told “The Sportster.” “Just being able to have the opportunity. I had Shawn [Michaels] right there like, ‘Let’s do it.’ I was super appreciative for that because you’ve got to make moments. You got to have risk. I feel like that one was a big risk, but with a huge reward. I was just super grateful. But actually, Otis was huge. He clearly was the biggest person I’ve ever picked up. It wasn’t even just the weight. Obviously, he’s huge pushing 350 [pounds]…It was all adrenaline and all God at that point. Physically, the number was fine. It was just like, dang, I can’t adjust. Once I got him, I can’t move. It is what it is.”

The slam to Otis came amidst a mixed tag team match which pitted Alpha Academy (Chad Gable, Maxxine Dupri, and Otis) against Meta-Four (Legend, Noam Dar, and Oro Mensah) on “NXT.” Gable eventually picked up the win for his team after catching Dar’s enzuigiri, then cinching in the ankle lock that Dar tapped out to.

In the present day, Legend works alongside a fellow powerhouse in Nia Jax on WWE’s main roster. Otis, meanwhile, remains a member of Alpha Academy, sans Chad Gable.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “The Sportster” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Steve Maclin will be beginning a new chapter in his career in the coming days as it has been reported that he has been granted his release from his TNA contract.

On June 7, TNA Wrestling took to its official company website to formally announce that both Maclin, and Knockout Myla Grace have been released from their contracts, with the company wishing them the best in their future endeavors. Shortly after the official statement from TNA, Maclin took to his X (formerly known as Twitter) account to confirm that not only was the news true, but that he had actually requested his release the week prior, and is ready to start stacking bodies around the wrestling scene.

Last week I requested my release from TNA.

I put my blood, sweat, and tears into everything I’ve done over the last 5 years and I’ll always be thankful for my time there.

But now, it’s time to STACK BODIES.

See you soon 🥃

— Steve Maclin (@SteveMaclin) June 7, 2026

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select was able to gather more information about Maclin’s release and how it came to happen. The first thing Sapp noted was that Maclin wanted to keep the word about his departure quiet, especially considering he had requested his release a week before and little-to-no news or rumors had sprung up. However, that all changed when TNA released an official statement, which according to Sapp was a rare thing for the company to do, and neither Maclin or Grace were consulted about the statement prior to it going live on TNA’s website.

Sapp went on to report that Maclin had been very outspoken about his frustrations regarding the company’s creative direction, both to people in TNA and the public on social media dating back to last year. Maclin was also one of the many talents who didn’t believe that TNA had improved since “TNA Impact” debuted on AMC back in January, as well as being frustrated about the pay scale within the company, something that has been an issue for some time as many roster members are now on short-term deals as opposed to long-term salary deals.

As for where Maclin will land next, Sapp was told he will likely have interest from a number of companies in the coming days and weeks, as will Grace who is expected to eventually land with either WWE or AEW. Maclin leaves the company after five years as the inaugural TNA International Champion, a title he would hold on two occasions, a former TNA World Champion when the company was known as Impact Wrestling, and main event level experience as he was main eventing TNA pay-per-views as recently as March 2026,

Like most pro wrestlers of his generation, R-Truth experienced the harshness of being on the road all-year ’round, admitting that he missed many important milestones, like his son’s school graduation, funerals, anniversaries, and many more things. “Because of this wrestling business and I did it, I did the best I could, but my son said: ‘Dad, it was worth it,'” he recalled. “And to see the fans, to hear them man, like, I’m watching them, I’m hearing them: ‘We want Truth!’ Y’all don’t know how that feels.”

However, the gratitude didn’t just extend to his son, as Truth noted that it wasn’t just fans and his son who inspired him, but the many people who work for WWE who were on his side. “Every part of that machine that makes it work spoke up, again, for me – like, we always ask ‘are we worthy?’ and it brings like, such joy almost, makes me want to cry… Because, to feel that kind of love, is like, I want everybody to feel that at some point,” Truth further expressed.

“It was a good testament too of, that many people, over 100 million on all social media,” he added. “Everybody all agreed on one thing. That was deep to me; in this world, at this time?” 

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “Six Feet Under with Undertaker” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.