D-Von Dudley reflected on the legacy of New Jack, describing him as one of the most unpredictable and intense personalities the wrestling business has ever seen, while also opening up about the deep personal bond they shared behind the scenes.

Speaking during an interview with DJ Vlad, D-Von explained that while New Jack’s in-ring persona was chaotic and dangerous, the man behind it, Jerome Young, was someone he grew to genuinely care about.

Their relationship, however, was far from smooth. D-Von admitted the two had multiple real-life altercations over the years, both inside and outside the ring. One of the most explosive moments came after WWE asked talent to contribute to a music project. D-Von decided to include a Tupac-inspired lyric that referenced New Jack, knowing how much he admired the rapper.

“I took a piece out of Tupac and put that in the lyrics, and actually put his name in it, and it pissed him off something morally. He went nuts and he threatened to kill me, shoot me, everything,” D-Von said. “I knew I got underneath his skin at that point.”

The tension between them lingered for years before the two eventually reconciled not long before New Jack’s passing. D-Von shared that they both came to realize how much they respected one another and chose to move forward.

“We both realized that we were two guys that basically really cared for one another, and we let something like that stupidness come in between us for so long, and we buried the hatchet,” D-Von said.

Their final interaction remains a meaningful memory for D-Von, recalling a heartfelt exchange at an independent wrestling event.

“I remember we both said to each other at the same time, ‘Love you, bro.’ And I was like, ‘No, I love you.’ He’s like, ‘No, I love you.’ And we separated and went our separate ways,” D-Von said.

D-Von also addressed one of the most infamous and dangerous moments involving the two, when he threw New Jack off a scaffold during a match. While the original plan involved a safer landing through stacked tables, D-Von admitted things did not go as intended, revealing it was done in retaliation.

When asked if the situation could have ended in tragedy depending on how New Jack landed, D-Von acknowledged that it could have been fatal. He also confirmed that, in that moment, his intent was to seriously harm him.

Despite their turbulent history, D-Von made it clear that the bond they ultimately shared outweighed everything else, admitting he still misses New Jack every single day.

WWE added several major matches to the WrestleMania 42 lineup during Monday Night Raw, with multiple championships and rivalries now officially locked in.
CM Punk vs Roman Reigns
Cody Rhodes vs Randy Orton
Jade Cargill vs Rhea Ripley
Stephanie Vaquer vs Liv Morgan
AJ Lee vs Becky Lynch
Sami Zayn vs Trick Williams
Nia Jax and Lash Legend vs Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss vs The Bella Twins vs Bayley and Lyra Valkyria
Penta vs Dragon Lee vs JD McDonagh vs Je’Von Evans vs Rusev
Drew McIntyre vs Jacob Fatu

Seth Rollins vs Gunther

Brock Lesnar vs Oba Femi

Dominik Mysterio vs Finn Balor

Penta and Kofi Kingston had a solid match tonight for the Intercontinental Championship, a match that made Penta look strong going into WrestleMania 42, but it also did something for Kingston in defeat, or at least I hope so. As Kingston continues to kind of tease a babyface turn once again, hopefully to join up with Je’Von Evans, there were two separate points in this match where he tried to tell Grayson Waller to go away.

I wasn’t a huge hater of Waller in the New Day back when he initially started to hang around them, but I do think he’s stayed a bit over his welcome. WWE probably should have pivoted away from his involvement when Xavier Woods went down with an injury, but I suppose that’s a bit more difficult to write around, when you’re kicking someone out of a group that is now just down to two people as it is.

When Kingston had Penta on the floor with a back body drop, he told Waller to go away, and a bit later in the match Waller tried to get involved again. The second time, he cost Kingston, allowing for him to be laid out by the champion, and when he was gloating over the fallen Kingston, Waller took a Mexican Destroyer for his trouble.

I might not mean much now, as I don’t know if I see WWE breaking them up and going into a different story ahead of WrestleMania when so many things are going on already, but I like that the seeds are being planted. Kingston and Woods need something different after WWE failed to capitalize following their heel turn on Big E, and maybe pivoting once again for them, or even just Kingston, to align with Evans could be what they need.

I also loved the fact Penta revealed after the bout that he had taken it upon himself to go to “Raw” General Manager Adam Pearce and book himself into a title defense at WrestleMania. Not just any defense, but a ladder match. He was so confident during his promo about it all, too, and said that it was “his kingdom” on top of that ladder. I don’t necessarily love how convoluted it all was for a second when it came to Penta’s challengers, with Michael Cole saying there were qualifying matches already (though, there apparently weren’t?), but if you just look at the graphic, you get the picture. Penta will be taking on Dragon Lee, Je’Von Evans, Rusev, and JD McDonagh, which is a solid field already, and commentary mentioned those were the men involved “thus far,” which leaves things open and interesting these next two episodes of “Raw.”

Written by Daisy Ruth