3 Former NXT Champions who are struggling on the main roster
Getting called up to the main roster from NXT may be one of the best days of a wrestler’s career, but not every call-up lives up to its promise.
Men like Mojo Rawley, Apollo Crews, No Way Jose, and Tye Dillinger are some of the men who have suffered terribly after being called up to the main roster.
While all is not lost for the men mentioned above, it would be terrible to see them getting released by WWE before they can make a notable impact because of all the work they’ve had to put into training and at NXT.
While there is plenty of time and chances for all men and women in WWE to grab gold on the main roster sometime or the other, knowing that guys like Bo Dallas and Heath Slater have won championships makes one wonder what others have done wrong.
With that said, many NXT Champions too have failed to make a real impact on the main roster, with several failing to capture gold since their call-up. Here are three of the top NXT Champions who moved from the developmental brand to the main roster but have failed to capture gold or find real success.
#3 Asuka
Asuka was probably that hottest prospect to come out of NXT. No one, not even Drew McIntyre, had as much hype around them while making the transition as Asuka had.
Over a year later today, Asuka is fighting to stay relevant on the mid-card which makes one wonder how a wrestler can slip so much in the company and find themselves on such a different level only twelve months later.
Asuka held the NXT Women’s Championship for a year and had the longest undefeated streak. Her fairytale run on the main roster included winning the women’s Royal Rumble victory and the Mixed Match Challenge alongside The Miz.
After losing her first match in the WWE at WrestleMania to Charlotte Flair for the Women’s Championship, Asuka has kept slipping down the ranks. She even lost a championship battle to Carmella which was really embarrassing for the Japanese superstar.
Unlike Charlotte, Paige, Sasha Banks, or Bayley before her, that makes her the first NXT Women’s Champion not to capture a title in her first year on the main roster.