Cruz Montana Debuts on WWE Raw, Joins The 946 Faction

Cruz Montana made his main roster arrival in dramatic fashion on Monday, November 2, surfacing as the newest member of Royce Keys’ 946 faction during the go-home moments of WWE Raw from Brooklyn.

The angle unfolded after the main event between Solo Sikoa and Royce Keys spilled into a post-match brawl. With Roman Reigns and The Bloodline appearing to seize control, a masked attacker emerged from the crowd and cracked Reigns across the face with a steel chair before hitting him with a Spin The Block. The masked man pulled off his disguise to reveal himself as Cruz Montana, tipping the numbers game back in the 946’s favor and validating Keys’ insistence that strength comes from the group rather than any one man.

Montana’s debut carried extra significance given the location. Raw emanated from the Barclays Center, and Montana — a Bronx native who has long made his New York City roots central to his identity in the ring — chose his hometown as the backdrop for stepping onto WWE’s flagship show. He had spent 104 days on the NXT brand before getting the call-up.

The move also leans on existing relationships rather than a cold start. Montana already has history with two other 946 members, Bronco Nima and Lucien Price of OTM. Back on the March 31 edition of NXT, held at The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Nima and Price recruited Montana as their partner for a six-man tag against DarkState, a match the trio won. That alliance gives his arrival in the group a layer of continuity rather than feeling like a random addition.

There’s also a longer-standing connection to the man running the 946 itself. Before a stint in TNA and his return to that promotion in 2024, Montana — previously known as Mike Santana — spent five years in AEW, where he crossed paths with Powerhouse Hobbs. The two were never aligned as a team, but got to know each other during their overlapping run. Hobbs, of course, is now wrestling in WWE as Royce Keys and is the architect of the 946, giving Montana a built-in rapport with the faction’s leader even before Tuesday night.

Stylistically, Montana also fits the group’s street-level presentation and its “Ain’t Nobody Safe” mantra, built around the idea that numbers win wars. And after bouncing between AEW and TNA before landing in WWE, Montana arrives with the kind of chip-on-the-shoulder motivation that fits a crew defined by having something to prove — fittingly, his first order of business on the main roster was going right after the reigning World Heavyweight Champion.

For WWE, folding a wrestler with Montana’s résumé and built-in ties to multiple 946 members into the group is a low-risk, high-upside swing. It instantly deepens the stable’s ranks heading into a stretch where The Bloodline appears poised to push back, and it gives Montana a clear, structured role rather than asking him to find his footing on the main roster alone. Expect the 946 to lean on that numbers advantage as this rivalry with Reigns and The Bloodline escalates in the coming weeks.