WWE Star Returns To NXT With New Look
A trending topic coming out of this weekend's WWE NXT live events is Commander Azeez (real name Babatunde Aiyegbusi) returning to the NXT roster in a bodyguard/managerial role for Cora Jade. As seen in the image below, Azeez is sporting a full beard, a new hairstyle, and wearing all-black attire to fit Jade's darker look. The addition of Azeez is the latest alteration for Cora Jade's character since her heel turn on the 7/12 episode of "NXT 2.0" when she hit Roxanne Perez with one of their shared NXT Women's Tag Team Title belts during her NXT Women's Championship match against current Champ, Mandy Rose.
This past week's edition of "NXT 2.0" saw Jade showcase her new attitude in a promo to the audience, saying it is now the "generation of Jade" before dropping her NXT Women's Tag Team Title in the trash. According to the avid skateboarder, the attack on Perez was due to her cashing in her breakout contract against NXT Women's Champion Mandy Rose just 30 minutes after they won the NXT Women's Tag Team Titles at The Great American Bash. She will likely appear with Azeez by her side on this week's episode, hopefully, granting some more information on his new persona.
The 32-year-old Azeez has been with WWE since 2016, signed after a career in pro and semi-pro football. He made his in-ring debut on September 30, 2016, at a NXT live event, competing in a Battle Royal match. His main roster TV debut came at the Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia and would eventually lead to him serving his most prominent role in the company so far when he became Apollo Crews' manager on "SmackDown." Their most memorable feud came against Big E, which culminated in a "Nigerian Drum Fight" match at WrestleMania where Crews won his first Intercontinental Championship with Azeez by his side.
Crews also jumped back to NXT earlier this year to work programs with some of the rising stars in the promotion. At the time, it was reported that Azeez joined Crews in moving to the roster, but we did not see him make an appearance until now.