10 Hottest WWE NXT Prospects Right Now

The professional wrestling world is evolving and WWE is continuing to try to stay ahead of the curve. With both Raw and Smackdown as well as 205 Live needing large rosters of talent, the development territory known as NXT has been a revolving door of the world’s best talent since 2012.

Since its rebranding, talent like Shinsuke Nakamura, Seth Rollins, Charlotte, Bray Wyatt, Finn Balor, Sasha Banks, and Kevin Owens have come into Full Sail and put NXT on the map before moving on to the main roster. NXT has managed to remain a touring brand due to fantastic scouting of talent by Triple H and William Regal. That said, these are the top 10 prospects currently waiting for that all-important main roster call up.

 

10. The Authors of Pain (Akam and Rezar)

The former NXT Tag team Champions have accomplished a lot since debuting last year, they won the Dusty Rhodes Tag team Classic last year, and they’ve put on fantastic matches with the Revival and DIY. They were a part of the first ever tag team match to main event a Takeover event at NXT Takeover: Chicago back in May and have been the measuring stick of the tag division with the Revival’s move to Raw and DIY’s split. While both Akam and Rezar still could do with some seasoning in the ring, there’s no denying that Paul Ellering’s dangerous duo have done some incredible things in their stay in Tampa. They’ve accomplished nearly everything they can in NXT and a move to the main roster seems to be just over the horizon.

Expect on: Raw after Survivor Series

 

9. SAnitY (Eric Young, Killian Dain, Alexander Wolfe, Nikki Cross)

NXT’s pack of insane dogs that have wreaked havoc since debuting at the Dusty Rhodes Tag team Classic last year. Eric Young, the savvy veteran, is the vocal leader of the group who, along with German-born Alexander Wolfe, are the NXT Tag team Champions after toppling the previously undefeated Authors of Pain. Killian Dain is a big brawler with incredible speed for a man his size and has certainly made his presence felt in the heavyweight division. Nikki Cross is probably the breakout star of the group, her character work is some of the best in the women’s division and she’s coming off of one of the best women’s matches in NXT history in her Last Woman Standing match against Asuka. Some questions still need to be answered about the group’s motivations and goals, but they’ll have plenty of time to develop in NXT, especially now that they’ll be one of the focal points of the show being tag champs.

 

8. Andrade “Cien” Almas

After debuting in NXT at NXT Takeover: The End in June with a win against Tye Dillinger, Almas had kind of been in a slump. He had lost a lot of matches before turning heel in October, but was still booked to lose matches against the likes of Bobby Roode, Roderick Strong, Aleister Black, and more. However, ever since he added Zelina Vega (the former Rosita), Almas has been on a roll. His character work has been some of the best on the roster the last couple of months; his work in the ring is as sound as they come. All he needed was some big wins to jumpstart his momentum, and it started with a win against Johnny Gargano in Brooklyn. With Vega by his side, Almas could be main roster bound in no time.

Expect on: Raw by the end of the year

 

7. Ember Moon

While Asuka has been running roughshod over the women’s division, Ember Moon has quietly been building a name for herself as one of the better in-ring workers of the post-Four Horsewomen era. Her matches with Asuka were fantastic, the match at Takeover: Brooklyn III was arguably the best match on the card, a fantastic story from beginning to end. While her mic work has been on and off since her debut, Moon is a star in the making, perhaps a turn to the dark side would help round out the rough edges in her game and make her more of a total package.

Expect on: Raw by WrestleMania 34

 

6. Hideo Itami

The first major signing of the Performance Center era, the former KENTA was off to a good start in NXT in 2014, however some unfortunate injuries took their toll and now three years later Itami is still in the “developmental system.” It’s a shame because Itami is electric in the ring and his English has vastly improved since his debut.

He recently turned heel and his character work also improved with it, probably going off of real-life frustrations. His recent rivalry with Kassius Ohno has brought out a new fire in Itami, he put on an underrated mat classic against Aleister Black at Takeover: Brooklyn III, it’s hard to argue with the idea that Itami has anything left to accomplish in NXT and is best served moving up to Raw or Smackdown.

Expect on: Smackdown by the end of the year

 

5. Roderick Strong

Upon making his debut in the Dusty Rhodes Tag team Classic, it wasn’t known exactly how the booking committee would handle Roderick Strong. While he might be up there with one of the best in right talents on the roster, he was somewhat lacking in the charisma and promo department. Enter those “Who Is Roderick Strong” promos and now “the Messiah of the Backbreaker” is vying to be the top babyface on the brand. His match for the NXT Championship against Bobby Roode in July was captivating, one of the best on the brand all year. People genuinely thought he was going to win the title. Roddy’s on fire right now and there’s no reason why he couldn’t potentially be carrying NXT like he carried Ring of Honor for the last 13 years.

Expect on: the main roster end of 2018

 

4. Johnny Gargano

Johnny Gargano has the ability to become the next beloved babyface of NXT on par with the likes of Sami Zayn. His in-ring work and selling during his time in DIY was remarkable and drew comparisons to Hall-of-Famer Ricky Morton of the Rock N Roll Express. Now that his tag team days are on hold, Gargano is setting out on his first singles run in NXT. He’s proven during his time on the independent circuit that he’s more than capable of being a singles star, and he proved it with an outstanding match at NXT Takeover Brooklyn III against Andrade “Cien” Almas. Not to mention his rivalry with Tommaso Ciampa has the potential to do gangbusters for both men once the latter returns from injury. Johnny Wrestling is going to be a valuable piece of the NXT brand from here on out, and the fans will be behind him every step of the way.

Expect on: Raw after WrestleMania 34

 

3. Kassius Ohno

His ranking on this list is more a testament to his abilities as opposed to his booking. The former Chris Hero, after being released by WWE in 2013, was having world-renowned matches across the globe before returning to NXT at the beginning of the year. Since then, he’s had great matches with Bobby Roode, Aleister Black, and more, but he currently sits in the “most underutilized talent on the roster” spot in NXT. He’s only wrestled on one Takeover show since returning, his feud with Hideo Itami was gaining some traction, but Itami faced Aleister Black instead of Ohno at Takeover Brooklyn. He’s got the talent for the main roster, his mic skills are very good, all Ohno needs is some momentum to get him going.

Expect on: the main roster by Summerslam 2018

 

2. Aleister Black

WWE may have stumbled upon a diamond in the rough with Aleister Black. Making his debut at NXT Takeover Orlando, Black’s presence has been felt throughout the NXT universe since. His arsenal of strikes, knees, and kicks are very impressive, he’s put on great matches with Andrade “Cien” Almas, Bobby Fish, Kassius Ohno, Kyle O’Reilly, and Hideo Itami, laying a path of undefeated destruction in his wake. Right now NXT’s main event scene is slightly crowded, but Black’s name has to be coming up in the discussion for potential contenders for the NXT Championship. The guy is magnetic, he has an aura about him that, if utilized correctly, could put him in the same breath as the Undertaker one day – Black is that good.

Expect on: the main roster by Summerslam 2018

 

1. Drew McIntyre

A former WWE Intercontinental Champion and WWE Tag team Champion, could’ve gone to Raw or Smackdown off the bat and made a big splash, and here’s Drew McIntyre working his way up from NXT. Now a world-traveled top guy since his release in 2014, McIntyre has been lighting it up in Full Sail since returning to the company. The NXT faithful have embraced the Scotsman wholeheartedly and he could be the biggest babyface on the roster right now. He just won the NXT Championship from Bobby Roode at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn III and expect him to be the placeholder in NXT for a good long while.

Expect on: Smackdown after WrestleMania 34

 

Honorable Mentions

Tommaso Ciampa
Would’ve placed on the list if not for a bad ACL surgery expected to keep “the Sicilian Psychopath” out of action until potentially WrestleMania 34. He’s got a juicy rivalry waiting for him in former tag team partner Johnny Gargano, but Ciampa’s momentum from the turn is all but gone at this point.

The Iconic Duo (Peyton Royce and Billy Kay)
Two longstanding members of the women’s division, Royce and Kay have been an entertaining excitable, mean girls-esque duo who’ve looked good in mostly defeats against the likes of Ember Moon, Asuka, Ruby Riot, etc. Their act, while never quite hot enough to unseat Asuka in her long title reign, would work perfectly in a championship program on Raw or Smackdown.

Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, and Kyle O’Reilly
While the three men are well-known by many in the NXT Universe, the trio haven’t accomplished enough in the territory to warrant a spot on this list yet. Cole’s debut at Takeover: Brooklyn was astounding and expect him to contend for the title soon, as well as Fish and O’Reilly for the tag team titles. However, at this moment all the ROH alumni have accomplished is two singles losses (Fish and O’Reilly) to Aleister Black on NXT TV.

*Bobby Roode was taken off of the list after making his Smackdown debut this past Tuesday

**Asuka was also taken off the list after relinquishing the NXT Women’s Championship and starting negotiations with Raw and Smackdown