Duke Hanson Says WWE Hasn’t Given Thea Hail the Opportunities She Deserves Post-Chase U

Duke Hanson, the former NXT talent once known as Duke Hudson, has some strong feelings about how WWE has handled Thea Hail since the dissolution of Chase U — and he doesn’t think the company has done right by her.

Appearing on the podcast Between Two Jobs, Hanson opened up about his time working alongside Hail and made clear he believes she’s a special talent who hasn’t been given a fair shot. ‘She’s very talented. She’s very enthusiastic. She’s very passionate,’ he said. ‘She deserves some flowers and deserves an opportunity. I hope she gets it.’

Hanson didn’t mince words about how he read the situation during his own time in Chase U, either. He described a recurring dynamic where Andre Chase remained optimistic about the group’s prospects while Hanson took a more pragmatic view. ‘I’m just going off of what they’re giving us,’ he explained. He applied that same lens to Hail’s current situation, saying he expected her to break out after Chase U ran its course — and that it simply hasn’t happened yet.

The argument he made was pointed: WWE frequently cited Hail’s youth as a reason to be patient, but Hanson noted that the company has chosen to push other young performers in the meantime. ‘What about Roxanne? What about these other young people that you ARE giving the opportunities to? You choose who to give it to and not to.’

As a measure of just how central Hail was to Chase U’s appeal, Hanson put it bluntly: ‘We were there being a part of the Thea Hail Show.’ He even recalled shouting ‘Don’t hurt my money!’ during a PC Live match when Hail took an awkward bump, half-joking but underlining how much he valued her.

Hail is currently the lone Chase U member still on the WWE roster, following the departures of Hanson, Chase, Riley Osborne, and Ridge Holland. While she did pick up a North American Championship reign in recent months — one that was reportedly unplanned — consistent television time has been hard to come by. Whether WWE moves to change that remains to be seen, but Hanson is clearly not holding his breath.