This did not happen; instead, wrestlers were taught legitimate holds and stretched to the point of agony and injury before their trust was earned. Infamously, Hiro Matsuda broke Hulk Hogan’s leg on his first day of training in the most extreme example of this objective: to make the aspiring pro wrestler feel like they proudly belonged to an exclusive secret society that only inducted those tough enough. The badge of honour and the endorsement came with it a pact to protect the secrets of the industry. The process of becoming a pro wrestler was still very painful, but largely, not quite so toxic. NXT wasn’t just very good, especially relative to the incoherent, goofy, and punishing main roster: it was nice.