Tommaso Ciampa is going to be out of action for a while as the NXT Champion is set to undergo neck surgery.
WWE announced the following today:
NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa to undergo neck surgery
NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa will undergo neck surgery tomorrow, WWE.com has confirmed.
Following a medical evaluation today, Ciampa has been scheduled for an anterior cervical fusion.
Stick with WWE.com for more details as they become available.
Dave Meltzer said last night on Wrestling Observer Radio that Ciampa isn’t going to be able to wrestle “for a long, long time.” While the exact amount of time isn’t know yet, Meltzer speculated that Ciampa could be out anywhere from six to 14 months.
Ciampa will have to vacate the NXT Championship and plans for a match against Johnny Gargano at TakeOver: New York are off. Meltzer speculated that the situation must have gotten so bad that it was decided they have to do the surgery as soon as possible.
The 33-year-old Ciampa has held the NXT Championship since July, and his reign as NXT Champion is the fourth-longest of all time and the longest since Finn Balor from 2015-2016. It’s quite likely that he will relinquish the NXT Championship at next Wednesday’s NXT television tapings, which is the final set before TakeOver: New York.
Ciampa joined WWE’s main roster last month and teamed with Johnny Gargano on Raw on February 18 and SmackDown LIVE on February 19. Ciampa then wrestled at NXT’s TV tapings the next night and hasn’t had a match since then.
