Joe Hendry Calls Out Critics After NXT Title Win, Brie Bella Talks WWE Return, Rumors on AJ Styles

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

Hendry Speaks Out Following NXT Title Win

Joe Hendry won a seven-man ladder match to win the NXT Championship on Tuesday night, and he addressed his critics shortly after the biggest victory of his career.

During an appearance on Busted Open After Dark (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), the new NXT champ, said, "At this level, you deal with a lot of criticism. Sometimes the criticism that hurts the most is what's actually true. That happens all the time in your career."

However, Hendry went on to suggest that the criticism also helps motivate him to be better, saying, "The reason I actually get a kick out of it is because when people criticize me, they think they're criticizing the finished product. But I'm evolving every single day. I'm not afraid to get in there. I do rolls every day. I do drills as fast as we can possibly do them. I push myself, and I'm happy to do that every day."

The 37-year-old Hendry rose to stardom during his time in TNA from 2022 to 2025, holding the TNA World Championship once.

He parlayed that into an appearance in the Royal Rumble, a WrestleMania match against Randy Orton, and finally a WWE contract.

Hendry officially signed with WWE late last year, and it didn't take him long to reach the top of the mountain in NXT, as he won the title vacated by Oba Femi when he made the move to the main roster.

While Hendry has a long career ahead of him and plenty of work left to do, he reflected on how meaningful it is for him to become NXT champion, saying, "For the last couple of years, it was about telling the world who Joe Hendry is. Now the journey has been about stepping up as a championship-caliber athlete who can go to the very top of the business. To have that goal realized by winning this championship—one that has been held by some of the most prestigious names in the business—I'm so honored to represent this brand."

Now, Hendry must find a way to hang onto the title, and he will likely have no shortage of viable challengers, including former NXT champ Ricky Saints, who he knocked off the ladder to win the title on Tuesday night.

If Hendry maintains his current level of success and remains hugely popular with the NXT fanbase, a call-up to WWE's main roster could be in his future as well.

Brie Bella Reveals What Led to WWE Return

After her surprise return to WWE in the women's Royal Rumble match over the weekend, Brie Bella divulged how her return came together.

During an appearance on NotSam Wrestling Live (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News), Brie noted that WWE president Nick Khan reached out to her in order to facilitate her return to the company.

"I've been wanting to come back. I would joke about it a lot but yeah, I kept hearing no," Brie said. "So when it came Thanksgiving time, I was like, 'Alright, I'm not going back,' and I kind of just started to look at 2026 differently. I had a couple other opportunities that were put on the table… and then Nick Khan all of a sudden called me and I wasn't expecting it and just really wanted me back."

Brie said she was "very shocked" by the call from Khan since she thought "the door was closed" with regard to a WWE return.

She also told Sam Roberts on NotSam Wrestling Live (h/t Upton) that her husband, Bryan Danielson, was instrumental in preparing her for the Rumble.

Danielson, who wrestled in WWE as Daniel Bryan before joining AEW, has not wrestled a legitimate match since October 2024 and may be retired from in-ring competition due to injuries.

However, Brie noted that Danielson helped coach both her and her twin sister, Nikki Bella, leading up to the Royal Rumble.

Brie also appeared on Good Morning America (h/t Carrier) after her return, and she gave her take on why it was the right time for her to re-enter the fold, saying, "I just feel like this is the perfect time for The Bella Twins. The women's division is on fire, it's the best I've ever seen it. And I'm just like, I can't sit at home anymore and be watching like a fan. I'm like, I gotta get in."

Prior to returning, Brie had not had a match since the 2022 Royal Rumble, and she was essentially in semi-retirement.

However, Nikki returned to WWE last year, which undoubtedly made a Brie return far more realistic.

Despite their success as a tag team, they never had a chance to vie for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships, and based on what Brie and Nikki said Monday night on Raw, the titles held by Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky are firmly in their crosshairs.

Reported Details on Styles' WWE Retirement, Future

AJ Styles' WWE in-ring career came to an end with a loss to Gunther at Royal Rumble, but there is still uncertainty regarding where The Phenomenal One will go from here.

According to Fightful Select (h/t Carrier), a WWE source said Styles "very much had it his way" when it came to his retirement match and the build toward it. Another source told Fightful that while WWE would "happily" extend Styles contract, AJ has "made it very clear for years" that he was heading toward retirement.

Although Styles is done wrestling in WWE, he reportedly may still be doing some work with the company in the near future.

PWInsider.com (h/t Upton) reported that the 48-year-old veteran is scheduled to visit WWE headquarters soon, and while it isn't definitively known why, it could he in order to record a podcast or multiple podcasts.

WWE has a podcast network featuring shows hosted by several current and former stars, including Cody Rhodes, The Undertaker and Stephanie McMahon.

Of course, the burning question among fans is whether Styles would consider closing out his in-ring career elsewhere even though he is done wrestling in WWE.

Per Fightful Select (h/t Carrier), Styles' status was a "major point of conversation" backstage at AEW last week, and while his intentions are not known, sources expect that AEW would make an attempt to sign Styles if he is open to it and wants to keep wrestling.

However, if Styles makes the rounds on WWE podcasts soon, as PWInsider suggests could be the case, it is possible he will make a definitive statement about his future and end any speculation about returning to the ring.

If Styles is indeed done wrestling, one of the truly legendary careers in the history of the business is now over, and a WWE Hall of Fame induction awaits him.