Joe Hendry’s Belief In Himself Is Behind His Meteoric Rise In WWE

Joe Hendry’s career is not destined to be that of a one hit wonder.

While the Scotsman has utilised song and social media to supernova his wrestling career over the last couple of years, there is still so much more to come from the former TNA and NXT Champion.

In 2026, Hendry is a prominent fixture on WWE Monday Night Raw. He sings songs that go viral and annoy Logan Paul. He is a former NXT Champion who has faced Randy Orton at WrestleMania and appeared on John Cena’s last ever show as an in-ring wrestler.

Prior to 2024, Hendry was a well known face on the independent scenes of the UK, Europe and the United States. His graft, constant willingness to differentiate himself and take risks eventually paid off when ‘I Believe in Joe Hendry’ didn’t just simply go viral. It entered the UK singles charts, roaring straight into the top 10, peaking at number 4 on the UK Single Download Chart as well as the UK Big Top 40.

Joe Hendry’s WrestleMania moment was only the beginning

When the Scotsman was revealed as Randy Orton’s mystery opponent at WrestleMania 41, the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas became charged with more energy than the entire Strip and Fremont Street combined. A moment that could have fallen flat with the heightened anticipation of a surprise opponent instead became a bona fide WrestleMania moment.

“I remember being in gorilla and watching the video package,” Hendry says during a recent exclusive interview with SPORF ahead of WWE’s current European tour, “the moment was so big it was almost hard to comprehend.”

It was not a moment the then TNA Champion was overawed by, however.

“Randy’s on his way to the ring and they’re showing this video highlighting his career because it’s his twentieth WrestleMania. And I remember being backstage, watching the TV thinking, ‘wow, this is an amazing video package for Randy Orton’s twentieth WrestleMania. This is so well done…oh wait it’s me!

“I’m standing behind the doors and you can hear the rumbling of the crowd. It was like the first time when I appeared on NXT. When you’re standing behind those doors, you know that your life’s work is going to be validated in an instant or you’re going to have a reality check.

“Thankfully for me it was an amazing reaction. And once again it’s the energy that the fans brought that continues this path. I can’t really put into words how I felt when I got that reception.”

From the indies to viral superstardom

Hendry may have come up short in a relatively abrupt effort against the 14-time World Champion in Sin City that night, but no amount of RKO’s could halt the Edinburgh native’s momentum.

“Two years ago when this whole thing kicked off, I had 18,000 Instagram followers,” Hendry explains. A keen analyst of social media metrics in the modern online age of pro-wrestling, “Now I have over 600,000. The sky’s the limit. Everybody knows I have big ambitions. My goal is to become the type of wrestler who can do it at the highest level. That’s what this journey is to me.

“I’m excited to see how far I can take this and how much value I can provide.”

Despite his stratospheric rise over the past two years, Hendry still stresses just how important the fans have been to his ascent to the big leagues.

“Ultimately, the whole thing about what I do in professional wrestling, is that it’s the fans who put me in this position. The fact that they’re still reacting to what I’m doing, the reactions continue to get even bigger, especially if you look at the metrics on social media.”

It is these continued reactions that have kept Hendry in the spotlight for the past two years. Rather than seeing his popularity wither after an initial supernova, the Scotsman has not only maintained his fandom. He has increased it.

Now a regular fixture on Monday nights, Hendry is leading sing-a-longs of ‘Fire Logan Paul’, antagonising the YouTuber-turned-grappler while Hall of Famer Paul Heyman grimaces in disgust.

Lessons learned from John Cena

Not content with merely annoying social media celebrities, in December, 2025, Hendry was one of the chosen few who took to the ring during Saturday Night’s Main Event in Washington DC for John Cena’s final match.

The former NXT Champion was involved in an impromptu ‘match’ with The Miz, appearing to surprise the two-time WWE Champion and score not necessarily official pinfall victory over him, with R-Truth making the count.

Recounting the experience, Hendry explained how grateful he was for the opportunity to share the stage with some of the greats on such a momentous night, while also revealing how much he has learned from the Never Seen 17.

“Wherever John can, he’s always creating new opportunities for up and coming talent and providing a showcase for them. I’m grateful that that was John’s perspective on his final show, that up and coming talent should be showcased.

“So to be involved in that was a great honour and I’m so grateful to him. I’m really inspired by John. When you see John interact with the fans, you realise the responsibility we all have on our shoulders as WWE superstars.

“When I walked back through the curtain I let John know that I was inspired by what he does with regards to that and I keep that in mind whenever I’m interacting with fans. I’ll sign autographs and take pictures and things like that. I try and give the audiences as much value as I can. I had a chance to let John know that and I was there when he did his speech to the locker room as well, so that was great too.”

Joe Hendry’s European tour with WWE is very different to his previous ones on the continent

With an NXT Title reign to his name, Hendry now finds himself a major part of one of WWE’s marquee European tours, which will take in a first ever Premium Live Event in Italy tonight (May 31st) before Monday Night Raw in Turin and a series of shows across Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom, culminating with back-to-back events at London’s O2 Arena, when Raw and SmackDown emanate from the English capital on June 22nd and 23rd respectively.

For Hendry it is a return to the continent where he cut his chops as an independent act. Taking in cities such as Barcelona, Lisbon, Rome, Paris, Madrid, Florence and London as a bona fide WWE star with one of the most beloved theme tunes in the business is a serious come up for the 38-year-old Scotsman, who toiled away in venues far smaller than the ones he now operates in across Europe.

Should 2026 continue the belief in Joe Hendry’s journey even further, this European tour will be the first of many.

WWE European Summer Tour Will Visit Italy, Spain, France, Portugal & U.K. with Raw broadcasting from Turin, Paris & London and SmackDown emanating from Barcelona & Bologna. Tickets can be found HERE

Featured Image Credit: WWE