Wes Lee Will be Absent from WWE Indefinitely While He Recovers From an Injury

The Gist:

• Wes Lee announced on the Dec. 5 episode of WWE NXT that he would be out indefinitely while he recovers from an injury.
• It's unclear exactly how Wes injured himself, but he will reportedly be recovering for the next 8 to 12 months.
• Fans wished Wes well as he recovers and hoped he can return to the ring in full form.

During the episode of WWE NXT that aired on Dec. 5, Wes Lee, whose real name is Deveon Everhart Aikens, made an appearance in the ring, but not because he was doing any wrestling. Instead, Wes appeared to let fans know that because of an injury, he won't be competing for some time.

That announcement was then interrupted by Dirty Dom, who showed up to taunt Wes about the fact that he'll now have the night off instead of challenging North American Champion Dominik Mysterio on Dec. 9. Then, Rey Mysterio announced that Dragon Lee would be in the Dec. 9 fight instead. Now, many are wondering exactly how Wes injured himself.

Wes came into the ring on crutches, and Vic Joseph noted that his recovery timeline is expected to take 8-12 months, so he'll be absent from the ring indefinitely. When Wes entered the ring, he announced that he would have to undergo back surgery, but he didn't offer any explanation as to how he had injured himself. Reporting does suggest, however, that the injury is completely legitimate.

Unfortunately, we don't have any external explanation for Wes's injury either, so all we can do is speculate about what exactly happened to him. Given the nature of the injury, though, it seems possible that he sustained it in training. Wrestling is a highly coordinated sport, and it's not difficult to injure yourself, even if you're careful and comfortable working at the highest levels of the sport.

Although we don't know exactly what happened to him, it's safe to say that fans wished Wes all the best as he recovers from this injury and plans his ultimate return to the ring.

"I was hoping this would be a swerve hope he recovers well," one person wrote in the replies under his announcement.

Other commenters left similar remarks, saying that they hoped the injury was fake, but that turned out to not be the case.

"Let's all pray together for him to recover soon so he can come back soon," another person added.

Wes first joined the WWE in 2020, and he eventually rose to the very top of the league, becoming the North American champion in 2022. He also broke the record for most successful title defenses, and as recently as Nov. 28, he was taking out all sorts of challengers on his way to defending his title yet again.

As great as that match would have been, it seems it will at least have to be put on hold while Wes recovers from his very real injury.