Just over three months on from arriving in NXT from TNA Wrestling, Cruz Montana has now been officially called up to WWE’s main roster.
Debuting as the newest member of The 946, Montana made a major statement on this past Monday’s WWE Raw by laying out World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns; setting the stage for a major five vs. five showdown between 946 and The Bloodline inside WarGames at Survivor Series 2026.
While the future is looking bright for Montana, his call-up does leave NXT without another one of its main event level talents; a repeated occurrence in 2026.
Thankfully, NXT is very good at adapting to change and, as well as talent graduating from within WWE’s developmental system, the brand could look at plucking some top talent from the free agent market.
Here are three potential new WWE NXT free agent signings to replace Cruz Montana:
Enzo Amore
Enzo Amore and Big Cass were both released by WWE in 2018
We begin with Enzo Amore, someone who, according to reports, is now back under WWE contract once again for the first time in almost a decade.
Surprisingly however, the former WWE Cruiserweight Champion is expected to be returning to the NXT brand rather than showing back up on main roster TV alongside his former tag team partner Big Cass.
While this is certainly an interesting decision for many reasons, it would be a massive coup for NXT to welcome someone of Amore’s experience to their roster and he would perfectly fill that babyface main event level spot that will be left by Cruz Montana.
The 39-year-old is still among one of the most gifted talkers in all of wrestling, so any new recruits rising through the WWE system could certainly benefit from working alongside him.
Richard Holliday
After impressing at a WWE tryout in February, it was reported by Fightful Select in July that WWE was likely set to sign former MLW star Richard Holliday.
Holliday appeared to be saying his goodbyes to the independent scene during a GCW event that same month, adding to the anticipation of a WWE move, but this ultimately never materialized.
It’s unclear whether Holliday is still on WWE’s radar given the radio silence regarding the situation, but it’s worth noting that Enzo Amore’s move to the company also fell quiet after reports of his signing over the summer, so perhaps this one will still happen at some point before the end of the year.
Killer Kross
With WWE re-signing Enzo Amore, Baron Corbin, Paige and Brie Bella this year, it’s hard to say a former talent will “never” return to the company, especially whilst they remain a free agent.
Killer Kross is one name most fans would welcome back to WWE with open arms, as there is a real sense of unfinished business with his WWE run.
Just as Kross started to build some actual momentum in 2025, his contract was not renewed and he departed the company. To his credit, Kross took this momentum and carried to the indies, becoming a mainstay of promotions such as MLW and GCW.
While most fans would prefer to see Kross on WWE’s main roster again should he return to the company, a move to NXT could see him attempt to equal Samoa Joe’s record by becoming a three-time NXT Champion.
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