Report: Ridge Holland Breaks Silence on WWE Exit and Says GoFundMe Wasn’t His Idea
Former WWE star Ridge Holland (Luke Menzies) is trying to regain control of the narrative after a hectic week that saw his contract end earlier than expected, a family-run GoFundMe in his name blow past $10,000, and fans question whether he really didn’t know about it.
In a new video on his YouTube channel, Holland laid out the timeline: his WWE deal officially ended on November 5, 2025, after he had negotiated a one-year extension while recovering from injury. He said WWE ultimately chose not to renew. Then things got messy.
The GoFundMe He Says He Didn’t Approve
A GoFundMe titled to help him with “medical and family expenses” was launched by a woman identified as Susan Chapman (some online are saying that’s his mother). The fundraiser pulled in $10,188 from 151 donations toward a $60,000 goal in just a few days — with notable names like Chelsea Green, Omos, Nick Jackson, Kyle Fletcher, and Jinder Mahal contributing.
But according to Holland, he never authorized it.
On X, he posted:
“I want to clarify that I was not aware the page was going live and had no prior discussion with the family member who created it… I’ve since requested that no further donations be accepted… Once we figure out how to move forward and I recoup the amount donated, I will be donating said amount to charity.”
— Luke Menzies (@RidgeWWE) November 9, 2025
He also apologized if the page “caused any upset.”
That didn’t end the conversation — it started another one.
Some fans felt he was being too proud, pointing out that he does have medical bills and a family to support:
“Don’t you literally need the money to pay your bills?”
Others were more irritated that he wants to donate the money instead of refunding it:
“If you don’t need the money yourself, refund it to the donors… people are struggling these days.”
And then there’s the third group — the skeptical one — who think it’s at least possible he knew about it and is now embarrassed at the optics. Holland insists he didn’t know. But anytime a fundraiser goes live for a public figure, raises five figures in 72 hours, and then gets walked back, people are going to side-eye it.
“That Tweet Was On Me”
Holland also confirmed something fans had speculated on: he said his final tweet — which he admitted was “frustration” about how things ended — did accelerate his WWE exit.
WWE, like most major companies, has social media conduct clauses. Holland said straight up that his post violated company policy and “forced the situation to get worse.”
“I do want to hold my hands up for that last tweet that forced the situation to get worse. That was purely my frustration… I’m mad at myself for doing that… If I had the time again I wouldn’t have posted that tweet.”
He said that knowing his time in WWE was ending, mixed with being injured and unable to work, made him feel “wronged” and he lashed out online — something he called out of character.
Grateful… But Frustrated
To his credit, Holland didn’t bury WWE. He said his run was “majority positive,” highlighted getting to wrestle at WrestleMania, traveling the world, and working with top names. But he also said being injured after the TNA match with Moose, having his mom fly in to help with his kids, and then getting the call that WWE wasn’t renewing created a storm of uncertainty.
On finances, he shut down the armchair accountants:
“I’m not going to air my financial details… opinions are like assholes — everyone’s got one and the majority of them stink.”
He plans to keep posting updates on his recovery and next steps in wrestling.
Wrestling.news | Backstage Take
This one is messy because it hit three hot buttons at once: a WWE release, a family-run GoFundMe, and a social media post that triggered discipline. Holland did the right thing by addressing it quickly, but fans aren’t wrong to ask: if donors gave to help him, should that money be re-routed to a charity they didn’t pick? And if a family member really launched it without telling him, that’s a bigger conversation behind the scenes.
The more interesting part is his admission that his tweet sped up his release — that’s rare honesty from a talent right after leaving WWE. It sounds like a guy who knows he still wants to work there (or at least not burn the bridge), but also doesn’t want to look like he was begging for money. Expect him to keep over-communicating for the next few weeks to clean up the optics.
