NXT has been operating in its current format since 2012, and not only has it been a great breeding ground and developmental system for some of WWE’s current top stars, but many claim that it has surpassed RAW and SmackDown Live in terms of quality.
Unfortunately, there are only so many spots on the main roster, and with so many performers being called up from NXT each and every year, not all of them are going to be a success, so today, we are going to look at this situation from both sides.
Some performers you’d expect on this list haven’t been on the main roster long enough to cast a verdict, but keeping that in mind, sit back and read along as we look at seven NXT superstars that have prospered on the main roster, seven that are considered flops, and look towards the future as we analyze the next seven NXT stars to make their way to RAW or SmackDown Live.
21 Succeeded – Kevin Owens
Kevin Owens made his WWE debut four years ago in a match with C.J Parker, and later that night, he turned on his best friend Sami Zayn, and he really hasn’t turned back from that point. He’d go on to win the NXT, Universal, Intercontinental and U.S. Championship, and despite some odd booking, he’s still one of the most popular wrestlers in the entire company. KO is signed with the company through 2023, and it would surprise no one if he was thrown straight back into the main event upon return in 2019.
20 Flopped – Enzo & Cass
Down in NXT, the duo of Enzo Amore and Big Cass were arguably the most popular tag team in the history of the brand, and with their catchphrases and marketability, it seemed like they’d be a sure thing on RAW. Unfortunately for Cass, Enzo was more of a problem backstage than anyone knew, and when his personal problems became evident, the only thing they could do is let him go. It didn't help that Cass had some outside-the-ring issues of his own, though to a lesser degree.
For the most part, the flops on this list are WWE’s fault, but this one was completely on the performers, who should have been big stars. They are nothing but a big disappointment.
19 Next Call-Up – Kassius Ohno
Kassius Ohno has been wrestling all over the world for the past two decades, and he’s become a master of his craft, and with everything it takes to be a star in WWE, he should be on the main roster in 2019. He was reportedly only meant to be coming to NXT, but we heard the same thing about Samoa Joe and Asuka, and with depth needed on RAW, it makes perfect sense to fill that void with Ohno. He’s likely too old to be considered a future World Champion at this point. However, he’s a legit performer with a great connection to the crowd, and a two to three year run on RAW is well deserved for the former Chris Hero.
18 Succeeded – Big E
Given how well he’s been going with The New Day, many people no longer associate Big E with NXT. However, he was the man who dethroned Seth Rollins, making him a very accomplished singles wrestler too. His early days on the main roster were typical of a strongman like E (then known as Big E Langston), but now that he gets to show his charisma and personality with Xavier and Kofi, he’s shining. WWE needs to give him a solo run at some point, as he is a man worthy of the World Championship. Even if that doesn’t happen, Big E is one of NXT’s biggest success stories.
17 Flopped – The Vaudevillians
The duo of Aiden English and Simon Gotch got over quite well in NXT, as most fun, unique gimmicks do, but their push on the main roster was seemingly doomed from the start. They did become No. 1 contenders at one point by beating the duo of Enzo and Cass, but following that, they were never taken seriously by Vince McMahon, as most tag teams truly aren’t in this day and age. Ultimately, this was a lot of potential wasted by WWE, as these two could have been either a face or heel Champion in the Tag Team Division, but when tag teams aren’t a priority, a lot of them from NXT will flop.
16 Next Call-Up – Nikki Cross
The NXT Women’s Division is full of young, up and coming talent, but no established names, which is why Nikki Cross was forced to stay down in developmental while the rest of SAnitY joined SmackDown Live. WWE essentially confirmed as of this writing that they will soon be whole again, due to Cross' upcoming call-up. NXT’s Twisted Sister is a fantastic character worker, and tremendous in the ring, and she is the spark that Sanity is missing on SmackDown Live. The group should be a key part of the main roster programming, but they’re yet to find their footing, and Cross' arrival should help them live up to their potential.
15 Succeeded – Bray Wyatt
When it comes to people who have been held down, the first names that come to mind are Rusev, Cesaro, and The Eater of Worlds, Bray Wyatt, who took his cult leader gimmick from NXT to superstardom on RAW. Sure, he has been held back, but he has also won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship as well as the WWE Championship, and his promos are still some of the best in WWE. His return is expected soon, and with all the injuries occurring in WWE right now, they could finally get behind him, and if reunited with the Family, he could become the megastar we’ve all been waiting to see.
14 Flopped – Apollo Crews
On the surface, it looks like Apollo Crews has everything it takes to be a main event level player in WWE: the body, the looks, and the athleticism, but as we saw from Bobby Lashley’s first WWE run, sometimes, that isn’t enough. He was brought into NXT off an impressive career on the independents. However, WWE decided to rush him through the process, and it’s cost him dearly, as he still struggles with his personality and connecting with the crowd. There’s still time to turn it around, but it would be best for Crews to head back to the indies (i.e. the way Drew McIntyre and EC3 did) to better himself there because he is struggling mightily on the main roster.
13 Next Call-Up – EC3
EC3 once wrestled on the main roster, but he was released, and after a few years on the independents finding the Ethan Carter character, he is now ready to make a true impact on the main roster (pun intended), with WWE having recently announced his imminent call-up. He was reportedly meant to start on the main roster following SummerSlam, but an injury kept him out. Now that he’s healthy and the Royal Rumble is just around the corner, it wouldn’t surprise us a bit to see him promoted before then. The One Percenter has all the tools it takes to become a top star, and now he’s loaded with experience, so he should be right in the main event picture before 2019 is done.
12 Succeeded – Alexa Bliss
Alexa Bliss was in NXT for quite some time, but she never had a solo run that made fans excited to see her on the main roster. However, when she arrived, she certainly made her mark from day one. The Goddess came to SmackDown Live after the 2016 brand split, and despite her limited in-ring skill set, she became a star with her promo ability, and is now a multiple-time RAW and SmackDown Women’s Champion. Her momentum has been derailed as of late due to the arrival of Ronda Rousey and injuries, but there’s no doubting she is one of the most successful women of this era.
11 Flopped – The Ascension
The Ascension have been a joke ever since being promoted to the main roster, but there was a time during their NXT days where they were the most dominant tag team the promotion had ever seen. Sure, there have been better tag teams since, but The Ascension were talented, and if booked right, they could have been a key part of the main roster tag team scene. Unfortunately, Vince McMahon didn’t see it that way, and weeks into their career on RAW, they were buried by a bunch of legends, and never managed to recover.
10 Next Call-Up – Johnny Gargano
In a similar fashion to Sami Zayn, Johnny Wrestling has become the heart and soul of NXT, but just like Zayn, he is going to debut on the main roster soon, and he will have many struggles. He’s still got plenty of character and story arc to go before his time in NXT is done, but someone who connects with the crowd so well deserves to be on the biggest stage possible. He’s small like Sami, so he will no doubt struggle to get over in Vince McMahon’s eyes, but if he keeps being the Johnny Wrestling we all know and love, he could ascend to the top of the wrestling business.
9 Succeeded – Paige
The Women’s Evolution in WWE is at its peak right now, with an immense amount of tremendous performers over four brands, and the woman who was at the forefront of that is current SmackDown Live GM, Paige. Sure, her career may have ended prematurely due to a vicious bump taken at a house show, but Paige did plenty during her short career on the main roster. The Anti-Diva won several titles during her time, and unfortunately was injured before the current wave of talent arrived, but she will still be seen as one of the most successful and influential performers of this generation.
8 Flopped – Emma
Alongside Paige, it was Emma who began to help change the perception of women in WWE through their great matches down in NXT. Unfortunately, she didn’t fare as well on the main roster. Her beginnings unfortunately were a sign of things to come, as she was paired with Santino Marella for comedic effect, and it was all downhill from there. She did go back to NXT to re-invent herself as Evil Emma, and despite again looking like a star, WWE treated her terribly, and someone who should have been a star was released with little fanfare.
7 Next Call-Up – Tommaso Ciampa
Just over a year ago, the team of DIY looked like future Tag Team Champions on the main roster, but fast forward to now, and Tommaso Ciampa is perhaps the best heel in wrestling as the NXT Champion. He turned on Johnny Gargano, but has kept the momentum as he moves up with his career, and it’s hard to see how he doesn’t succeed on the main roster. There’s no reason to rush him, but by the end of 2019, he will be on the main roster, and will make an immediate impact if treated properly.
6 Succeeded – The Four Horsewomen
It would have been easy to make individual entries for these four, but that would just take up too much of the article, so we’ve decided to lump this iconic group from NXT together because even though their levels of success are different, they have all succeeded. Sasha Banks and Bayley currently aren’t big stories on RAW due to the presence of Ronda Rousey, but they are both great performers who have held gold on RAW. Charlotte Flair was expected to be a success, and at this rate, she may go down as the greatest female wrestlers to ever live, but the big success story is The Man, Becky Lynch, who has become the biggest name in WWE despite how she lost her SmackDown Women's Championship at TLC.
Going forward, expect all four of these women to continue their success, but especially Becky.
5 Flopped – Bo Dallas
Bo Dallas was around in the early days of NXT, way before they became notorious for signing elite indie talent from across the globe, and although he flopped on the main roster, it’s something that a few people predicted. Dallas was never exceptional in the ring, but he could have good matches with great opponents. Even then, his gimmick was just never going to take him far. He’s won the RAW Tag Team Championship alongside Curtis Axel, but it’s clear that a comedy duo was never going to take him far, and despite the success of his brother, Dallas has to be seen as a flop on the main roster.
4 Next Call-Up – Shayna Baszler (with Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir)
We’ve just mentioned WWE’s version of The Four Horsewomen, but there is a group from MMA also, and with Ronda Rousey doing great work on the main roster, it’s only a matter of time until her friends join her. Shayna Baszler is the current NXT Women’s Champion, and with the very green Duke and Shafir by her side, it’s unlikely she’ll be beaten anytime soon. However, with the four Horsewomen vs. four Horsewomen bout being teased, it’s only a matter of time. She’ll likely spend most of 2019 down in NXT, but before the end of the year, you can bet these three are by the Rowdy One’s side.
3 Succeeded – Seth Rollins
In recent years, NXT has been getting bigger and bigger as they continue to sign top indie wrestling talent, so much so that many people forget Seth Rollins was actually the first ever NXT Champion. Since that point, he’s gone on to win the Tag Team Championship, both the U.S. and Intercontinental Championship, as well as the WWE Championship, so it’s clear that he’s a major success. Seth is actually quite young too, so he has at least a decade left in his career, and by the time he’s done, he won’t just be an NXT success story, but he may be regarded as one of the best wrestlers of all-time.
2 Flopped – Neville
Down in NXT, The Man That Gravity Forgot looked like a sure-fire star, but due to his size and relative lack of personality, WWE pushed him to the then-struggling cruiserweight division. There, Neville became the King of The Cruiserweights, and looked like a main event level talent. However, WWE insisted on holding him down, and that frustrated him to the point where he left the company. Sure, he did hold the Cruiserweight Championship for quite some time, but given the potential that he showed, it’s hard to see the man known once again as PAC as anything but a main roster flop.