Hideo Itami, the NXT Superstar formerly known as KENTA, made his long-awaited return at a non-televised NXT live event in Winter Haven, Florida yesterday.

Itami teamed up with the TM61 tag team to take on Wesley Blake, Tino Sabbatelli, and Samoa Joe, and the babyface trio got the win with Itami getting the pinfall.

Itami has been out of action since May 2015 and underwent shoulder surgery. He was supposed to be part of the NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable triple threat match to determine the number one contender for the NXT title but was “attacked” outside the arena to explain why he wouldn’t be participating in the match and writing him off TV. His return was put off several times after complications in his recovery.