In 2020, Apollo Crews won the U.S. title while Sami Zayn captured the Intercontinental Championship. In doing so, both finally erased their names from the list of NXT stars to never capture main roster gold. It's been a concern for fans of the brand that folks who were stars in NXT failed to become nearly as successful on the main roster. The reasons can vary from lousy booking to unexpected circumstances, but the long list of NXT call up failures shows not everyone can succeed.
Amazingly, even some flops have still managed to get some titles: Bo Dallas was tag team champ, and EC3 got the 24/7 belt a few times. Not everyone is so lucky as too many NXT stars neve tasted championship gold on the main roster despite their talents.
10 Tye Dillinger
Where better to start than "The Perfect 10?" Tye Dillinger started in NXT teaming with Jason Jordan before a heel turn sparked him up. His unique ring skills got fans going and promised some stardom. WWE even made the perfect move of having him come out at #10 in the 2017 Royal Rumble.
On SmackDown, Dillinger was often in the mix, challenging for the US title, but kept coming up short. An injury pushed Dillinger out of WWE. He's now in AEW as Shawn Spears to try and get the belt denied him in WWE.
9 Hideo Itami
After a stellar career in Japan, Kenta Kobayashi joined NXT in a big fuss as Hideo Itami. He stood out partnering with Finn Balor and looked ready to rise up with a dream feud with Shinsuke Nakamura.
But the first of many injuries would hit Itami, keeping him out of action for a year. He was moved to 205 Live but kept slumping with poor pushes and not getting a title run. Itami left in 2019 and has gone on record calling his entire WWE run "frustrating" as never getting the promised success.
8 Ember Moon
There were extenuating circumstances, but it's still harsh seeing what happened with Ember Moon. Her striking look and ring work like her Eclipse finisher caught fire in NXT. It paid off with winning the Women's Title for a good run.
The main roster had promise, but Moon was soon lost in the mix with other women getting better pushes. Various injuries have curtailed her career and maybe even cutting it short. Moon never saw close to main roster success that she did in NXT.
7 Adam Rose
Usually, WWE waits until a guy is called up to change his act. Adam Rose was an example of starting it early. Leo Kruger was an impressive force in FCW, holding their title twice as a straight heel. When they changed to NXT, he was transformed into party guy Adam Rose with his "Rosebud" entourage.
On the main roster, it was treated as a total joke with Rose having a brief stint with the Social Outcasts and then being released under harsh circumstances. To put this in perspective, more members of the Rosebuds (Braun Strowman, Becky Lynch, Carmella, etc.) have held titles than Rose himself.
6 Aiden English
The Vaudevillians worked in NXT as a pair of heels who played up a 1920s vibe. They held the tag titles and were over. But on the main roster, they were just weirdos who thought they were from the 1920s and drifted before splitting.
English was lost before hooking up with Rusev and creating the "Rusev Day" chants that got both over nicely. Yet despite his fun mic work and good skills in the ring, English never got any title shots. They tried him out as a commentator before he left with WWE failing to realize what they had.
5 Tyler Breeze
One of the best stars to never be an NXT champion, Tyler Breeze was brilliant with his arrogant "social media star" persona married to excellent wrestling skills. He proved himself in battles with the legendary Jushin Liger and had major promise on the main roster. Said promise soon faltered as he was lost in terrible feuds.
Amazingly, Breeze and Fandango actually clicked as a nutty tag team to entertain fans. Breeze's return in late 2018 to face Ricochet was a great moment, and he and Fandango won the NXT Tag Titles, yet Breeze never got success on the main roster.
4 Emma
Talk about massively dropping the ball. Emma clicked in NXT with her goofy dancing and fun persona. Her first roster run wasn't good, but she was doing much better once she got further training.
Brought onto RAW, WWE had big plans for Emma that would transform her into Emmalina, a throwback to the past's arrogant divas. Literally, as soon as she debuted, the entire act was dropped. Emma left soon afterward without coming close to the potential she should have as a main roster star.
3 Aleister Black
There may be time to turn it around, but as of this writing, Aleister Black remains beltless on the main roster. This is amazing given how striking he was in NXT and his rise should have been better. His winning the title over Andrade was a great moment, and it's possible he should have gone longer before dropping it to Tommaso Ciampa.
Yet Black hasn't clicked on the main roster with rumors Vince McMahon isn't a fan of him. That's amazing given his drive and skills, and a recent heel turn hopefully can invigorate him.
2 The Ascension
Here are the poster boys for "NXT hit turned main roster flop." Viktor and Konnor dominated in NXT, holding the tag titles for nearly a year and looking like the second coming of the Road Warriors. They had heat, they had power, and they had everything it took to dominate.
Upon their debut on RAW...they were beaten by the New Age Outlaws. Yes, the NAO got a tag title run rather than these guys. It kicked off years of jobbing and bad pushes as WWE managed to make these two NXT stars look like total chumps.
1 Austin Aries
"The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived" entered WWE with high expectations. As a multiple former TNA champion, Aries had some major push and expectations he'd take off nicely in WWE. This was a man who would have been perfect for NXT champion, and the idea of him feuding with the likes of Samoa Joe and others was great.
Instead, after a brief NXT stint, Aries was called up...to 205 Live. Not only that, but he was also second fiddle to Enzo Amore. This led to the mess of his release (it's still debated whether he quit or was fired) as Aries remains one major misfire for WWE, although he continues to burn bridges everywhere that he goes.