Back in March of 2022, Big E suffered a broken neck after taking an overhead belly to belly suplex from Ridge Holland on SmackDown and he’s been out of action ever since. Big E and Ridge Holland are both in different spots now as Big E has confirmed he’s retired from in-ring competition, and Ridge Holland is no longer with the company.
While talking about the situation during an interview with 107.7 The Bone, Big E confirmed that he talked to Ridge Holland right after he suffered the injury, and he has never held a grudge against the former WWE star.
“I talked to Ridge right after it happened. He actually sent me like a 10-pound box of meat as well. You know, that’s how men say I’m sorry, ‘Here’s a box of meat.’ [laughs] Thankfully, we had a conversation. There was never any grudge held on my end.”
“Things happen in our industry. Things happen, people get hurt, it wasn’t malicious. I told him immediately there was no hard feelings. I know, unfortunately, he’s gotten a lot of flack online. And I know he’s dealt with injuries of his own. He’s dealt also with losing his job. My heart in many ways goes out to him. And I hope he’s doing okay, and I hope he’s recovering. But, man, there was never a moment of ill will at all for me. It’s the nature of what we do. You signed up for something that is incredibly fun, incredibly rewarding, but also has very inherent dangers as well.”