RAW General Manager Adam Pearce has responded to Xavier Woods’ recent claims of a serious neck injury not with sympathy, but with ridicule. Pearce posted a video on social media showcasing footage from his own wrestling career in the NWA where he is seen delivering a piledriver, the very type of move at the center of the controversy. The clip was edited to include the audio of Woods’ own roar from a video in which he blamed the RAW GM for his condition.
The response from Pearce comes after Woods, appearing in a neck brace, publicly blamed the general manager for a “debilitating injury” sustained during his match against Penta on the August 18 episode of RAW. Woods alleged that Pearce failed to enforce WWE’s ban on piledrivers, allowing Penta to defeat him with a Mexican Destroyer. In a social media post, Woods accused Pearce of sending his “masked mercenary” to injure him and prevent The New Day from securing a deserved rematch for the Tag Team Championship.
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Woods has amplified his accusations by claiming a double standard within WWE management. He questioned why he received no immediate medical attention, contrasting his situation with the responses to recent piledriver attacks on Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes. “Where was my care? Where was my Jason Jordan, where was my Shane Helms?” Woods asked, demanding to know why the general manager was absent.
Despite claiming to be in “searing neck pain,” Woods has rejected the idea of taking time off. In a reply to a fan on August 24, he stated, “Even with an injured neck, I’m still coming to work because I care about my friends that much,” positioning himself as more resilient than others who “need stretchers and time off” after getting hurt.
While Woods has been seen wearing the neck brace in public, there is speculation that the injury is part of a storyline. Reports have noted that Woods has a history of feigning injuries annually before his appearance at DragonCon. The current situation aligns with The New Day’s recent heel turn, with Woods vowing that his partner, Kofi Kingston, will avenge him by defeating Penta.
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