SUMMARY
- Boogs first appeared on SmackDown on May 21, 2021, when he was seen playing Shinsuke's theme song in the ring.
- In his recent interview on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, the 36-year-old superstar was asked about his return to the ring in 2024.
Eric Bugenhagen, popularly known as Rick Boogs, is an American professional wrestler who is most known for his tenure in WWE. He has been playing as an acquaintance of Shinsuke Nakamura and has made his reputation as a strong wrestler and a guitarist.
Rick made his debut in the Triple-H-led promotion in the NXT episode on February 6, 2019. He fought in the 20-man battle royal and performed well. Boogs first appeared on SmackDown on May 21, 2021, when he was seen playing Shinsuke in the ring. Two months later, Rick made his in-ring debut on the Blue Brand, teaming up with Shinsuke Nakamura and winning against Apollo Cress and Commander Azeez.
Real shame about Rick Boogs.
He had something and could have something special. It’s clear that the injury and then the release have killed his enthusiasm for wrestling pic.twitter.com/Aeb1OGeuqs
— Just Talk Wrestling (@JustTalkWrestle) January 4, 2024
Rick Boogs had an injury during his match against the Usos and had to rest for about nine months. After his long absence, he made his return on RAW and defeated The Miz in his first match on January 30, 2023. He had a short run in WWE before being released by the company on September 21, 2023.
In his recent interview on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, the 36-year-old superstar, when asked about his return to the ring in 2024, replied in a straightaway manner. He said, “Not for now, nah. I mean we’ll see what happens, but, it’s never rule it out, never say never, but I’ve got a lot. I’m busier now than I was in WWE.” Boogs went on to explain that he has started a YouTube channel now and has no intention to get back to wrestling for now.
Boogs was very serious about wrestling when he decided to pursue it. He quit his job and trained hard, even though he had a family and was unemployed. His wife was not happy with his decision, but he made it to WWE anyhow.
Rick Boogs believes that Vince McMahon’s departure killed his career
Rick Boogs thinks that the removal of Vince McMahon from the creative direction of WWE destroyed his prospects in the company. He said, “Well, I mean if you look at it objectively, look at my NXT run and then look at when I was seen by Vince and look at that run. Then, when management and the whole regime changed again, look at that run.” He compared his runs in the company under Vince and under the new regime.
He explained that a lot of people believed that he was injured. But the truth is that he was not cleared even after nearly two months of rehab. Rick Boogs was a loved character in WWE, and fans will surely miss him. According to the interview, he will most probably be seen on his YouTube channel and will continue to live his life away from the ring.