Bugenhagen made his
professional wrestling debut on the October 19, 2017 episode of
WWE NXT, where he lost to
Lars Sullivan in a
singles match. After an injury set him back significantly, he returned to wrestling at NXT live events under the ring name
Ric Boogs. On the May 1, 2019 episode of
WWE Worlds Collide, he participated in a
20-man battle royal as
Rik Bugez. On the February 21, 2019 episode of
WWE NXT Live, Bugez teamed up with Denzel Dejournette to unsuccessfully face the
NXT Tag Team Champions of the time,
The Viking Raiders (
Ivar and
Erik). A notable confrontation of his career took place on the February 22, 2020 episode of
WWE NXT Live, where Bugez competed against
Finn Balor in a losing effort. While working on NXT, he also appeared at
EVOLVE 143 and
EVOLVE 144, two events promoted by
Evolve during their relationship with WWE in January 2020. Bugez made several appearances as an extra in the main shows, being one of the many
NXT performers being used as part of a makeshift crowd on
Raw at the beginning of the
COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Leading up to
WrestleMania 37, Bugez played
Old Spice representative character Joseph Average/The Nightpanther in several backstage advertisements at
Fastlane and after WrestleMania 37, during which he defeated
R-Truth and
Akira Tozawa to capture the
WWE 24/7 Championship twice. On May 21, 2021, Bugez, now going by the tweaked ring name
Rick Boogs, made his debut on
SmackDown, playing
Shinsuke Nakamura to the ring with an
electric guitar. They also worked as a tag team, facing
The Usos for the
SmackDown Tag Team Championship at
WrestleMania 38 Night 1, but during the match, Boogs suffered a torn
quadriceps/
patellar tendon injury, requiring surgery. After a nine-month absence due to injury, Boogs made his return on the January 30, 2023, episode of
Raw as the newest member of the roster, but during the
2023 WWE Draft, Boogs was drafted back to the
SmackDown brand. At
SummerSlam, Boogs competed in the Slim Jim Battle Royal where he was unsuccessful in winning. This would end up being Boogs' final appearance for the company as he was released from his contract on September 21. On January 4, 2024, he confirmed in an interview with
Chris Van Vliet that he no longer wishes to wrestle anymore after his release from WWE, effectively announcing his retirement from professional wrestling. ==Other media==