Ethan Page wearing a green jacket - Wwe/Getty ImagesElla JayWed, January 14, 2026 at 2:31 AM UTC·2 min readHeading into his backstage conversation with "WWE NXT" General Manager Ava, Ethan Page wanted to be on the shortlist of NXT Championship contenders. Coming out of it, though, he found himself off the list and set up for a defense of his existing NXT North American Championship instead.
Amidst his discussion with Ava, Page pointed out that, as NXT North American Champion, he had a record number of title matches in 2025, and because of it, he is now also approaching a record amount of days as the champion. Much to his surprise, Ava then praised Page for his efforts with the title, while adding that it deserved its own spotlight. With that in mind, Ava also confirmed that Page would defend the respective title against French luchador Elio LeFleur on next week's edition of "NXT."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementFor Page, this will mark his 11th televised title defense as NXT North American Champion, with the likes of Tavion Heights, AAA's Mr. Iguana, and TNA's Moose and Mustafa Ali previously challenging him. For LeFleur, next week will serve as his "NXT" TV debut.
Over the past week, WWE has released introductory vignettes of LeFleur, who promises to "slash the sky." LeFleur joined WWE last year following a successful tryout in the United Kingdom in March 2025. In October 2025, WWE fans got their first look at LeFleur when the company unveiled a photo of him, unmasked, alongside other new signees such as Zozaya and Mike D. Vecchio. On the independent scene, wrestling fans knew LeFleur as Aigle Blanc, a former wXw European and APC Champion.
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Read the original article on Wrestling Inc.
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