LA Knight has arrived on WWE SmackDown.
On the May 20 episode of the show, Knight, under the name Max Dupri, introduced himself to WWE official Adam Pearce. He noted that he represents Maximum Male Models, a group of talent that can headline fashion week in Paris and get it done in the ring. When he told Pearce that Sonya Deville hired him, the WWE official told Dupri that she had been relieved of her duties, so their agreement was invalid. But Dupri stated that he has a signed WWE contract, so it looks like he’ll be sticking around.
Max Dupri, CEO of Maximum Male Models, has ARRIVED on #SmackDown! @ScrapDaddyAP pic.twitter.com/gRnIRR7SHc
— WWE (@WWE) May 21, 2022
In recent weeks, Knight has been at multiple WWE tapings of SmackDown; he has been working in a managerial role for Mace, among other superstars.
Knight had a memorable run in NXT; he won the Million Dollar Championship and feuded with some of the brand’s top stars, such as Cameron Grimes. In his final NXT match, he lost to Gunther at NXT Stand & Deliver on April 2. Before he signed with WWE in February 2021, he was a renowned star on the open market. As Eli Drake, he had a successful stay in TNA/IMPACT Wrestling; he won the IMPACT World Championship. He also won the NWA World Tag Team Championship with James Storm in 2020.
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