The Big Picture
Will Hobbs burst into the national spotlight as an unsigned extra who just looked too good to ignore during the pandemic era of professional wrestling. Now rebranded as Royce Keys on the WWE SmackDown roster, he is carrying his family's legacy onto the biggest stage in sports entertainment.
Before he completely establishes this new identity and chases major championships, we need to examine how he got here. Let's rank the heaviest hits, the biggest swerves, and the career-defining highlights of his devastating run so far.
10. The All Out 2020 Casino Battle Royale Breakout
Will Hobbs was a complete unknown when he stepped into the 21-man Casino Battle Royale at All Out in September 2020. He entered late in the match and immediately started launching established talent over the top rope with shocking ease. He dumped Brian Cage out of the ring, showcasing raw strength that instantly caught the attention of the front office.
He lasted until the final sequence alongside veterans like Lance Archer and Eddie Kingston. It was a true star-making performance that forced management to offer him a contract days later. You rarely see an unheralded rookie walk in off the street and look like he belongs in the main event picture on night one.
9. The Spinebuster That Broke the Internet
If there is one move that defined his early television run, it is his terrifying version of the spinebuster. While Arn Anderson perfected the mechanics of the hold, Hobbs turned it into a high-speed car crash. He did not just drop his opponents; he accelerated them into the canvas with frightening velocity.
Whether he was catching a cruiserweight out of mid-air or flattening a local talent on YouTube, the move looked lethal. It became his signature transition spot and a guaranteed crowd reaction. It is a simple maneuver, but his explosive execution separated him from the rest of the heavyweight pack.
8. Joining the Don Callis Family
By late 2023, his character badly needed a creative reset after lingering in the midcard. He found that reset by aligning with Don Callis, the most hated manager in the professional wrestling industry. The pairing gave him a desperately needed mouthpiece and inserted him into high-profile television programs against legendary stars like Kenny Omega.
The visual of the massive enforcer standing silently behind Callis in a tailored suit presented a massive shift in his presentation. He looked less like a generic brawler and more like a high-end corporate assassin. While the faction suffered from occasional booking inconsistencies, the association permanently elevated his status on the card.
7. Crushing Chris Jericho on Dynamite
You do not just beat Chris Jericho in a squash match on national television. But that is exactly what happened on an October 2023 episode of Dynamite. The match barely lasted five minutes before the referee had to step in.
He ragdolled the former world champion, hitting him with multiple heavy power moves before finishing him off with an inescapable torture rack submission. Jericho has always been highly protective of his television time, so watching him bump around like a helpless amateur for the big man was incredibly jarring. This definitive statement win solidified his spot as the primary muscle of the Don Callis Family.
6. The Brutal Betrayal of Team Taz
Team Taz was a beloved faction, but the tension between the members always felt like a ticking time bomb. The inevitable breakup finally happened when he turned on Ricky Starks following a shocking tag team loss. Starks was cutting an emotional, heartfelt promo in the center of the ring when his partner simply leveled him with a vicious clothesline to the back of the neck.
The execution was cold, calculated, and perfectly timed to maximize the audience's outrage. Fans legitimately loved the duo, but he needed to break out on his own to reach the next level of stardom. The ensuing blood feud with Starks gave us incredible television segments and cemented his role as a premier singles heel.
5. The Cinematic "Book of Hobbs" Vignettes
Wrestling television frequently struggles with nuanced character development, but the "Book of Hobbs" series was a rare creative home run. These cinematic vignettes explored his genuinely difficult upbringing in East Palo Alto and the real-life tragedy of losing his brother to street violence.
They grounded his massive physique with a compelling, deeply personal backstory that made him feel human. He was not just a generic heavy who liked to fight; he was a hardened survivor who fought because he had absolutely no other choice. The production value was excellent, and the gritty storytelling set him apart from typical cartoonish wrestling villains.
4. The Lights-Out Match vs. Ricky Starks
The bitter, deeply personal feud with Ricky Starks culminated in a brutal Lights-Out match at the Grand Slam event in Arthur Ashe Stadium. This was a chaotic, weapon-filled sprint that allowed both men to showcase their raw aggression without any disqualification rules holding them back. He took absolutely insane bumps during the bout, including being slammed forcefully onto a steel chair that looked like it bent his spine out of alignment.
Starks won the match, but the defeated giant proved he could anchor a marquee, pay-per-view-quality program. The intensity they brought to the ring felt uncomfortably real, a direct byproduct of their long history traveling together.
3. Facing CM Punk in Chicago
Early in his career, he was handed the ultimate test: facing CM Punk on a live episode of Rampage in front of a rabid Chicago crowd. Punk was fresh off his historic return to wrestling and had his pick of opponents, yet he specifically requested to work with the promising big man.
The match was a masterclass in ring psychology, with the veteran struggling to overcome his opponent's overwhelming physical advantages. He controlled massive portions of the match, locking Punk in a devastating bear hug that drained the hometown hero. Even though he lost via submission, hanging tough with the biggest star in the company proved he belonged in the main event conversation.
2. Winning the TNT Championship in Sacramento
Every wrestler desperately needs that first taste of singles gold to validate their career. He finally got his massive moment when he defeated Wardlow in a shocking upset to win the TNT Championship in his hometown of Sacramento. The crowd reaction was absolutely electric, heavily favoring the hometown villain over the established babyface.
Wardlow was booked as an unstoppable monster at the time, making the victory feel hard-earned rather than handed out by management. Winning via referee stoppage after hitting a massive powerbomb off the entrance ramp was a highly creative finish that protected both men perfectly. The title reign itself was arguably cut way too short by questionable booking, but the image of him hoisting the belt remains a career highlight.
1. The WWE Debut: Enter Royce Keys
Sometimes you simply have to bet on yourself and take a massive risk. Leaving a comfortable spot to sign with WWE was a huge gamble, but it paid off instantly when he made a surprise debut at the 2026 Royal Rumble. Now officially known as Royce Keys, he entered the match and immediately eliminated two midcard staples, sending a clear signal that Triple H views him as a major player.
As he noted in an interview regarding his name change with WrestleTalk, the new name honors his family origins, giving him a deeply personal motivation.
"You can't really F up,"
Keys said regarding the heavy expectations attached to his new moniker. Jumping straight to the SmackDown roster rather than spending a year in NXT shows massive institutional trust from WWE management. He has the size, the look, and now the global platform to become a main event fixture for the next decade.
Honorable Mentions
- His wildly entertaining dark matches where he routinely tossed local talent into the third row.
- The highly anticipated clashes against huge men like Miro and Samoa Joe that always delivered exactly what fans wanted.
