WWE reportedly considered a controversial addition to The New Day following Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods’ heel turn against Big E in December 2024.
According to Dave Meltzer in the latest edition of the *Wrestling Observer Newsletter*, there were internal discussions about bringing former WWE Superstar Ridge Holland into the faction as its third member following the group’s dramatic split.
The proposed move would have carried significant storyline implications because of Holland’s history with Big E, whose wrestling career was derailed by a serious neck injury suffered during their match on the March 11, 2022, episode of WWE SmackDown.
During the match, Big E sustained the injury after taking an overhead belly-to-belly suplex from Holland on the floor outside the ring. The injury prevented Big E from returning to in-ring competition, leaving Kingston and Woods to continue representing The New Day without their longtime partner.
The situation took another dramatic turn during the December 2, 2024, episode of WWE Raw, when The New Day celebrated its tenth anniversary.
What was originally presented as a milestone celebration became one of the group’s most controversial moments when Kingston and Woods turned against Big E, blaming him for their frustrations and effectively ending their longstanding partnership.
According to Meltzer, WWE briefly discussed capitalizing on the history between Big E and Holland by introducing Holland as the group’s newest member. “There was an idea when the New Day turned heel on Big E. to have Ridge Holland as a third member of the New Day,” Meltzer wrote. “It was discussed and ultimately nixed.”
The idea was ultimately abandoned, and Holland never joined the faction.
Had WWE moved forward with the proposal, Holland’s involvement would have added another personal dimension to the storyline, given his connection to the injury that ended Big E’s active wrestling career.
Instead, Kingston and Woods continued their heel run as a two-man team before eventually departing WWE and joining AEW in 2026.
The duo now competes under the name The New Level, with Kingston and Woods continuing their partnership outside WWE.
Holland, meanwhile, had been working on WWE’s NXT brand since December 2023 before being released from the company in November 2025.
The report comes as Kingston and Woods prepare for a major championship opportunity at AEW Full Gear 2026 on Saturday, November 14, in Phoenix, Arizona.
The New Level will team with Swerve Strickland to challenge AEW World Trios Champions “Hangman” Adam Page, Brody King, and Bandido in a Texas Deathmatch.
Although Holland’s potential involvement in The New Day never progressed beyond internal discussions, the revelation offers an interesting look at an alternative direction WWE considered following one of the faction’s most memorable storyline developments.
