Current champion thought WWE offer phone call was fake; got hung up on

Most top WWE Superstars were once up-and-coming wrestlers with a dream to perform on The Grandest Stage of Them All. Receiving a phone call from the biggest wrestling company in the world can be a major shock to the system, as told by a current WWE champion who has joined the small group that had a hang-up in their initial offer call with the company.

NXT's Era of Ego officially began at Heatwave on July 7 when Ethan Page captured the NXT Championship from Trick Williams in a Fatal Four-Way that included Shawn Spears and Je'Von Evans. The 35-year-old set a new record for the shortest time between a debut and NXT Championship win, with 40 days.

After three years with TNA, Page spent three years with AEW, and that run included several months in Tony Khan's ROH. His last AEW outing was on December 5, but he kept working ROH until February 10. The Canadian grappler was removed from the AEW and ROH website rosters on May 2 of this year. World Wrestling Entertainment pulled another big shocker as Page debuted for NXT 26 days later.

All Ego booked almost 70 indie dates after his AEW release because he had bills to pay, as revealed in his new INSIGHT interview with Chris Van Vliet. Page said it was time to leave AEW as he wasn't getting what he magically gets in WWE: the opportunity to show what he brings to the table.

The two-time TNA World Tag Team Champion recalled getting a phone call from WWE while traveling from Detroit to Dayton for The Revolver Wrestling.

"I got a phone call, a number that I didn't have [in] my phone. They were like, 'Hi, is this Ethan Page? This is so and so from the WWE.' Yeah, sure! [They said] 'We'd like to offer you a contract this long, this amount...,' I'm just like this is not real. I just go, 'Honestly, that sounds fantastic.' They hung up on me. My phone rings instantly. 'Hi, this is so and so from WWE.' And I was like, 'Whoa, wait, that phone call I just got was real? And you agreed to everything?'" Ethan Page said.

The NXT Champion continued:

"They said, 'So we would like to email [the contract] to you, have it signed, send it over over.' I'm like, 'Whoa, whoa!' Then I'm calling my wife, 'I think the WWE just offered me a job.' She's like, 'Wait, aren't you coming?' 'Yeah, I'm on my layover. Like, I'm about to land, and I have to go do this show. But yeah, I think I'm gonna work for the WWE,'" Ethan Page said. [H/T to INSIGHT]

Page just passed the 170-day mark of his NXT Championship reign. Since dethroning Williams at Heatwave, he has retained against Dante Chen, Oro Mensah, and Joe Hendry in televised matches. It'll be interesting to see what Triple H and the creative team have planned for him.

Ethan Page to defend the WWE NXT Championship

A new era of NXT will begin next Tuesday night when the show officially moves from the USA Network to the CW Network. The episode will air live from the Allstate Arena in Chicago.

Ethan Page will headline the NXT CW premiere as he puts the NXT Championship up against Trick Williams. Hometown star CM Punk will be the Special Guest Referee. Below is the lineup:

1. NXT Championship: Ethan Page (c) vs. Trick Williams (Special Guest Referee: CM Punk)
2. NXT Women's Championship: Roxanne Perez (c) vs. Giulia
3. Chicago Street Fight: Wes Lee vs. Zachary Wentz
4. Lola Vice and Jaida Parker vs. Fatal Influence
5. The Miz will host MizTV with Tony D'Angelo and North American Champion Oba Femi as the guests
6. Women's Tag Team Champions Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill will appear

Week two of NXT on CW will also air on the road, live from The Factory in Chesterfield, MO. The episode will feature Randy Orton vs. Je'Von Evans, Tony D vs. Femi for the North American Championship, A-Town Down Under vs. NXT Tag Team Champions Fraxiom, and a Sexxy Red appearance.