On a media call ahead of this weekend’s NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day, Triple H addressed the status of a couple NXT stars who haven’t been on television lately, in response to a question from Jason Powell of ProWrestling.net.
First up is Velveteen Dream. The person behind the gimmick, Patrick Clark, has allegedly been sexually inappropriate online with minors, but he has denied those allegations. Triple H previously asserted that WWE looked into the matter and didn’t find anything, and that WWE is comfortable continuing to promote Velveteen Dream as an NXT talent.
Dream hasn’t been on television since December, when he lost a match against Adam Cole. Whenever he is off television for a stretch, questions about his status pop up. So Triple H addressed Velveteen Dream’s current status:
“There’s really nothing to add with Velveteen Dream. We’ve gone over it a million times. Status update - he’s still training. He had a little bit of a physical thing here for a bit. But, still there, still with us, still PC, still training, still on the roster.”
It sounds to me like Triple H isn’t too interested in discussing that situation any more. But for now, “a physical thing” will have to suffice for why Velveteen Dream is off NXT television.
Moving on, Pat McAfee has also been away from an NXT ring in 2021. Triple H explained that Pat just needed a break:
“He’s a busy dude. We’ve been talking about it. He had said, ‘Look, give me a moment to breathe when the Super Bowl is over.’ He just got married not that long ago. He’s like, if I don’t take a breath for a minute after this Super Bowl, I might not be married for much longer. My words, not his. I think he just needed to take a breather.”
His response strongly suggests that McAfee will be back working with NXT soon enough; it’s just a matter of time.