Tommaso Ciampa to undergo neck surgery, out for “a long, long time”
More information has emerged about NXT Tommaso Ciampa’s injury, and it’s not good news.
Update: The Wrestling Observer has confirmed with WWE that Ciampa will be undergoing anterior cervical fusion surgery on Thursday. The WWE subsequently released an official announcement.
Last week, reports surfaced that current NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa has been dealing with a neck injury that has lingered for at least four to five weeks. The expectation at the time was that he would work through it, at least to the point where he could participate in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic with #DIY partner Johnny Gargano as well as defend his belt against Gargano at NXT TakeOver: New York and address it afterward.
But Ciampa was pulled from all events and in-ring action in late February, and now we know why: Ciampa is set for neck surgery “in the next couple of days,” according to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio and will be out of action for a “long, long time.”
There is no indication of exactly how much time that will be, but it could be up to a year. And it will most likely require Ciampa to vacate his NXT Championship, forcing a major change of plans to both the Dusty Classic as well as what’s to come in April at TakeOver: New York.
Timing, as is the case so often in these situations, could not be worse for Ciampa. The expectation was that the reunion with Gargano paired with ultimately defending his belt against him next month would be a major tentpole in the two’s longstanding storyline. Now, we’re en route to a new NXT Champion, a new direction for Gargano and a wait-and-see approach to what happens next for Ciampa.
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The hope is, of course, for a complete and speedy recovery. The nature of the surgery is unknown, so it is hard to compare Ciampa’s situation with those that have come before, such as the year-plus that Edge missed after his neck surgery, or the repeated neck injuries that forced Paige’s retirement in 2018.
We wish Ciampa only the best as he works his way back from this latest setback. Pro wrestling is a better place with him a part of it.