New reports have officially confirmed that Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley, known as The Motor City Machine Guns, have signed with WWE after nearly six months of speculation following their departure from TNA Wrestling. Initially reported by Pro Wrestling Nexus, the news was later corroborated by Fightful and Pro Wrestling Insider, citing sources within WWE.
While details about their brand destination and debut date remain unconfirmed, Pro Wrestling Nexus suggests they are set to join “WWE NXT,” potentially making their debut on the show’s premiere on The CW Network on October 1. This aligns with Dave Meltzer’s earlier reporting in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, which indicated that Sabin and Shelley were indeed heading to “NXT.”
The duo left TNA in March, leading many fans to believe they would sign with All Elite Wrestling. An April report from Bodyslam indicated a deal with AEW was imminent, but that never came to fruition, and the Guns did not appear on AEW programming—having only competed in one match at All Out 2022.
In July, both Meltzer and Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp revealed that the Guns had not signed with AEW after all and were actually moving to WWE, marking this week’s announcement as the first official confirmation. Fightful’s report also noted that there had been discussions between the Guns and AEW, but no agreement was reached.