The Plan for Tavion Heights is to Become Undeniable [Exclusive]

Tavion Heights has lofty goals for his time in WWE. He wants to be one of the greatest wrestlers to ever step foot in a WWE ring.

Well, there ya go. As I said, lofty.

Heights isn't just wishing to be the best. He's putting in the work. A lot of it. And it wasn't all easy. As an Olympian, Heights is programmed to reach high goals, but getting to where he wants to go in WWE is going to be a journey. Heights says he's ready for it.

In an interview with The Takedown on SI, Heights talked about his time in the WWE developmental system. Heights opened up on how his amateur wrestling helped him with his WWE career, Japan, Myles Borne, and so much more.

"The thing I love is that I’m a combat athlete," Heights said. "I love wrestling. Something Mr. Regal told me is that I’m not in the wrestling business, I’m in the business of wrestling, and that’s something I love. What pro wrestling has most in common with combat sports is that it’s physical, and that’s what I love about it."

The biggest difference between amateur wrestling and WWE

Heights is keenly aware of the differences between amateur wrestling and the pro wrestling game. Of course, it's the crowd, and that was a a major thing he learned about early in his development.

"The difference is that there’s a crowd you have to react to and engage with," Heights said of pro wrestling compared to his previous passion. "In amateur wrestling, you’re hardwired, hard focused, you cut out all distractions. We’re getting down to business. Here, it’s not quite that. It’s more like, 'I’m going to whoop his ass and I want everyone to know I’m enjoying doing it.' Before, it was just, 'I did it. Thank you. Yes, sir. Let me get to the back and keep training.' So that’s very different for me."

Heights signed with WWE in 2022, but only recently has become a regular mainstay of the NXT television product on a week to week basis. Because of that, he's had a massive rolodex of information to him regarding how to go about his business in the ring. Heights says that he uses that feedback, but keeps it in perspective.

"Wrestling is subjective, right? It’s an art form. It’s a craft," Heights said. "So you’ve got to get a lot of opinions from a lot of different people. And the beautiful thing about it is that you should take advice from everyone you come across, whatever works for you.

"I still remember lessons I learned in Pro Wrestling NOAH when I wrestled out in Japan. I still have advice from Shawn Michaels from my first month of training that I remember. It’s all these pieces you keep taking. You add these brushstrokes to your grand artwork, and that artwork is the canvas of the ring. So I think that’s a good way to do it. You get all these pieces and take in what works for you."

Tavion Heights elevated by an excursion in Japan

Heights spoke very highly about his time in Japan. Heights worked for Pro Wrestling NOAH in Japan in August and September of 2024. He was a part of an exchange program between the two companies.

Height wrestled in the annual NOAH N-1 Victory singles tournament. He had a record of three wins and two losses in the tournament. The wins came against Alpha Wolf, Kenoh, and Yoshiki Inamura.

He said that the experience in Japan was a big learning curve, but also a big elevation for him. The schedule and style stood out as major differences compared to NXT.

"It was a humongous elevation for me, going over there and not being able to communicate like I can here," Heights said of his time in Japan. "It was different. It was a huge learning curve. I had to immerse myself in the sport of professional wrestling ... And it was a schedule I wasn’t used to. Some weekends we wrestled four nights in a row, and I was coming from NXT, where we do live events two nights in a row. Now double that."

WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!?!? 🤯

A VICIOUS attack on Tavion Heights by Myles Borne! pic.twitter.com/ZHZOi9ZKtv
— WWE (@WWE) September 16, 2026

Stylistically, Heights was able to hang because of his commonality with physicality, but it was a contrast to his usual work. Still, Heights maintains he'd go back to Japan in a heartbeat if offered the chance.

"They have a different style. A little bit stiffer," Heights said. "They’re doing a little bit crazier moves sometimes, some moves that are banned in WWE. So it’s like, okay, I’ve got to take these hard hits and keep it rolling each night. You learn a lot about yourself, what you’re capable of, what you’re able to do back to back.

"You learn the psychology of the crowd. That’s where I had to learn it, on those trial-and-error nights, because you get them back to back to back. I’m seeing it, like, “Okay, they like when Tavion Heights throws this big clothesline.”

Myles Borne

Until recently, Heights worked next to Myles Borne. The two men tagged together, but also were supporters of the other in their singles career endeavors. That relationship ended recently.

Borne turned on Heights and has now attacked him multiple times. Borne crushed Heights' ankle inside a steel char two weeks ago on NXT television. Heights hasn't forgotten and vows that Borne has a receipt coming his way.

"Myles is going to see me very soon," Heights said. "He’s going to see me very soon. When I first came to NXT, Myles and I immediately (connected) off our amateur backgrounds. Amateur wrestling is a very small, niche sport, so you kind of bond together as brothers when you’re in wrestling, and we clicked off that immediately.

"We clicked, and I thought in my head that we had done things that make us brothers for life. The things we experienced together, the months we trained and sweat together, bled together through training, through the matches. That should have meant something. It did to me."

Heights will be out of action because of his injured ankle. He was not able to provide an update on an exact timeline to return.

Though there is clear business for him in NXT still, the main roster is right around the corner for Heights and it's a place he wants to be, so he can have matches with talents like Julius Creed and Jacob Fatu. He's knows his goals, though. And remember, they're big.

"I believe I need to become undeniable by securing a singles championship here at NXT, and that’s something I know I’m capable of doing," Heights said. "And I also need to speak with the crowd more. The fans need to get to know me and I can do that by getting on the mic. That’s something I’m excited to do. I’m excited to let these people see who Tavion Heights is and realize what I’m capable of."

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