Roderick Strong Is The Most Underappreciated Wrestler Of His Era
Daniel Foster
Published Mar 28, 2026
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With all the recent transitions and cuts going on in WWE’s NXT brand, only a handful of its stars from just a few short years ago remain on the roster. One of those, Roderick Strong, recently asked for his release from the company. Whether he gets his wish remains to be seen, but either way, should he stay with WWE, or eventually move on to reunite with his Undisputed Era brothers in AEW, it doesn’t change the fact that Strong is the most underappreciated wrestler of his era. He has accomplished so much in his career, and it deserves to be celebrated.
Roderick Strong Is A Ring Of Honor Legend
It is not hyperbole to say that Roderick Strong was not only a legend in Ring of Honor but was one of the few faces of the promotion. If there was a Mount Rushmore for ROH, Strong would be on it.
What Sting was to WCW, what AJ Styles was to TNA, Strong was to ROH. He stayed with the company for 13 years, amassing the World Championship, the TV Championship, and the Tag Team Championship, making him their second Triple Crown winner. He even christened himself with the moniker of Mr. Ring of Honor. Nothing could be truer. Roderick Strong was Ring of Honor.
He was the Arn Anderson of the upstart tag team, Generation Next. He would later win tag team gold with Austin Aries. In 2010, he became the world champion, beating the departing Tyler Black, who was off to WWE to become Seth Rollins. In 2012, he would complete the trifecta, by defeating Jay Lethal for his World Television Championship.
Along the way, he faced countless future legends. Not only Black, but CM Punk, Kevin Steen (Kevin Owens), El Generico (Sami Zayn), Adam Cole, Claudio Castagnoli (Cesaro), The Young Bucks, Kazuchika Okada, Shinsuke Nakamura, and A.J. Styles. He once went almost an hour in the ring with Bryan Danielson. Roderick Strong did it all in Ring of Honor and was even allowed to expand and compete in Japan and TNA.
RELATED: 10 Wrestlers You Didn't Know Roderick Strong Faced
Strong Was A Major Part Of NXT’s Golden Era
In 2016, with nothing left to accomplish in Ring of Honor, Strong took the biggest risk of his career, leaving the comfort zone of the company he had helped to build to join WWE. He found immediate success in NXT’s midcard. The brand was a perfect fit for Strong, with its indie feel and small arena of rabid fans.
He was a fan favorite, putting on high-caliber matches against Andrade, Eric Young, Bobby Roode, and Drew McIntyre, but he never quite found his footing. Whenever Strong got to the top of the ladder, he seemed to lose and get knocked back down a few pegs, but still, there he was, always near the top.
His biggest success in the company, and what many mainstream fans will long remember him for, is when he joined The Undisputed Era in 2018. It was an easy but brilliant choice, to have him reunite with his Ring of Honor brethren. The faction would dominate NXT for years, becoming the face of the brand, and the coolest kids on the block. Adam Cole may have been the leader, but Strong was the glue that made them complete. That glue would be tested with injuries to other members of the group that would see them compete at times as a trio, but Roderick’s best quality, his consistency, kept the faction together, where he would accumulate two NXT Tag Team Championships and the North American Championship.
When The Undisputed Era disbanded and his partners left for AEW, Strong found himself placed in another faction called Diamond Mine. Though he would win the Cruiserweight Championship, he became an afterthought who no longer felt like he fit in. With no plans to seemingly ever promote Strong to the main roster, he asked for his release. It is a shame that WWE does not see the talent they have in Strong. He has not only the ability to get himself over but to help build new talent as well.
RELATED: 5 Reasons Why Roderick Strong Was The Best NXT North American Champion (& 5 Why It Was Adam Cole)
Is AEW Next For Roderick Strong?
With so many WWE releases in the past few years (ten more were just released from NXT), Strong’s days in WWE seem numbered. When it comes to an end, any company would jump at the chance to have him. The most obvious destination would be AEW. Yes, the company has been taking on too many former WWE talents, but you can’t say no to Roderick Strong. Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, and Bobby Fish are all back together in AEW as the Undisputed Elite, but their success hasn’t matched what they accomplished in NXT. Something is missing, and it’s Roderick Strong.
Strong has done it all in every company in the world and still has a lot left. He has been underappreciated for too long. Whatever match or faction he has been attached to has become bigger because of his talent and star quality. It’s time we all give him his due.
