Big E: People Crossed The Line And Went Too Far With Threats To Ridge Holland

On the March 11, 2022 episode of WWE SmackDown, Big E took an overhead suplex from Ridge Holland on the floor. Unfortunately, the spot went wrong and E landed on his head, leading to a neck injury where he fractured his C1 and C6 vertebrae.

While he has been able to live a relatively normal life in the aftermath, he hasn’t, and likely will never, wrestle again.

Fans were very angry at Holland after the incident, as E is one of the most beloved wrestlers in the business, going as far as sending him death threats over the incident.

Speaking to Chris Van Vliet on Insight, E discussed the fallout from the spot and his relationship with Ridge.

“It was pretty quickly,” he said of when he talked to Ridge. “I don’t remember the exact timeline, but we ended up talking pretty quickly thereafter. He got a lot of hate, he got threats. On one end I can understand a lot of people. I can appreciate the people who are supportive of me and who wanted to see me continue to wrestle, and felt like he was the reason that I couldn’t, but I know what I signed up for. I know things go awry. It was never malicious. It was never intentional. I felt for him and continued to feel for him. He actually sent me a 10-pound box of meat as an apology, which felt like a very manly thing to do. Here’s a bunch of meat. At the time I really wasn’t eating much red meat, so I was like, oh, this is great, but I sent that to my creative partner, Johnny. Someone enjoyed it, at least. But no, we talked, and he continued to check in. I actually ran into him briefly at the MGM Grand in Vegas for Mania this year. He was on the move, and I was on the move, and there are fans around too, so it’s pretty quick. But it was good to see him. It seemed like he was in a better place, but yeah, I know it really altered his career, and I tried to put out a statement or two to tell people there’s no ill will whatsoever, please leave this man alone. But more than anything, he has a family to take care of. He has kids, and to see him, one, he dealt with a devastating injury of his own. He dealt with losing his job. I really felt for him, continue to feel for him, because I tell people I’m in a great place, I’m very thankful. I still am continuing with the company, doing broadcasting work. I am good, I am truly, truly good. But, yeah, I think he was just in a very difficult position, and I really hate that his tenure in WWE, for the most part, a lot of it’s going to be defined by the injury and his role in it. But I really feel for him and for his family, and I truly hope he’s in a better place. I hope that’s all come to an end, because a lot of people crossed the line and went too far.”

Ridge’s contract was not renewed by WWE at the end of 2025 despite him being sidelined with an injury.

Elsewhere during the interview, E reflected on losing the WWE Championship. You can find his full comments here.