Former WWE NXT UK Star Comments On Mercedes Mone's NJPW Debut

Mercedes Moné, formerly known as Sasha Banks while with WWE, made her debut for New Japan Pro-Wrestling at Wrestle Kingdom 17 — attacking IWGP Women's Champion KAIRI in the process. This was Moné's first pro wrestling appearance since May, when she and former tag team partner Naomi walked out of "WWE Raw." Leading up to the show, there had been rampant speculation regarding Moné appearing at Wrestle Kingdom, with her presence in Japan confirmed days prior to the event. 

Former "NXT UK" star Nina Samuels has thoughts on the not-so-secret debut of Moné and how Moné helped Wrestle Kingdom. "She's definitely a huge brand," Samuels said appearing on "Ten Count" with Steve Fall. "I think her surprise on Wrestle Kingdom was one of the worst kept secrets in the business, but maybe it was meant that way because, I mean, how many more people would be watching Wrestle Kingdom than normal just to see if she was going to appear ... I think the poorly kept secret was worth it in that respect and even though people knew it was coming, their reaction for her was still huge and it still made an enormous impact."

Despite Moné having massive momentum in her debut, when she attempted to nail KAIRI with what looked to be a Gory Bomb turned into a DDT, the move went noticeably awry. Samuels commented on Moné and KAIRI seemingly botching the move. "Someone showed me a video of her doing it in training," Samuels said. "It didn't look quite how she planned, but I mean ... It's her. She's going to brush it under the carpet. She's going to move on. She's going to deliver killer matches."