Parker Boudreaux made his NXT debut on this week’s show with his official wrestling name, Harland, along with a new look.
Joe Gacy took on Ikemen Jiro in a singles match. Gacy was able to come out the victor. After the match was over Gacy showed some serious sportsmanship which is seldom seen in pro wrestling. Gacy helped Jiro up from the mat and the two men embraced in a hug of sportsmanship.
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Gacy left the ring with a big smile flashing a big peace sign to the crowd. However, when he was halfway up the ramp something or to be more precise someone caught his eye. The newly renamed Harland was in the stands and was looking down with a death stare. Their energies going into that moment were as opposite as they come with Gacy’s smile and the new fighter’s laser focus.
Is Harland Brock 2.0?
Parker was signed back in February to WWE and was immediately surrounded by a lot of buzz. Many fans and people within WWE, including Paul Heyman, were very excited about his potential within WWE. Many are comparing him to a young Brock Lesnar. He gave up a chance to play college football to try out this pro wrestling thing.
A New Name And A New Look For Parker Boudreaux
He was originally given the name Gunnar Harland, but just a few days later they decided to drop his first name and stick with Harland – a very Cher or Matt Riddle kind of move. He didn’t just change his name but also his look. He shaved his head bald which threw some people off from recognizing him at first.
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The stare down between Gacy and Harland seems to set up a feud between the two men. However, WWE did allude that Gacy may try to recruit his opponent to his “woke” mindset via a tweet “@harlandwwe has arrived to #WWENXT…and @JoeGacy may already be a fan.” Based on Harland’s stare, I don’t think that’ll woke out for Gacy, but good luck to him anyway.
It will be interesting to see what Harland can do in the ring and on the mic. He has the look and if he is at least decent in the ring and on the mic he could go very far. It would also be very interesting to see if WWE leans into the Lesnar comparisons. They could do a “Lesnar’s son” storyline or even a “Lesnar destroyer” angle and team him with Paul Heyman. I could already hear Heyman saying “Sorry Brock, this is the ‘Next Big Thing’ now.”
What do you think of his new debut? What do you think of his new name and look? Do you think Gacy is a good starting feud for Harland? Do you hope WWE leans into the Lesnar comparisons or should they stay away from it? Leave a comment below and let us know if you think Harland is the “Next Big Thing” or is it too early to tell.
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Source: Wrestling Inc.
