5 Challengers for Johnny Gargano’s NXT North American Championship in 2021
Three-time NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano broke the curse just a few nights ago when he defeated Leon Ruff to retain his title. 2020 proved to be another mixed year for Johnny Wrestling. He started the year by teaming up with Tommaso Ciampa to compete against Moustache Mountain, and then ended up competing against his partner soon after.
Gargano won the NXT North American Championship from Damian Priest at NXT Halloween Havoc but lost it to new-comer Leon Ruff soon after. He won the title once again from Ruff and ended 2020 as the NXT North American Champion.
With 2021 coming up, there will be several Superstars waiting to get their hands on The Rebel Heart to take the title away from him. Several NXT Superstars managed to prove themselves in late 2020, and they will be looking to be the first ones to get their chance against Gargano.
Timothy Thatcher, Tommaso Ciampa, and Pete Dunne are some of the big names who'll be getting Championship opportunities sooner rather than later. Keeping that in mind, we will look at the 5 most deserving Superstars who could challenge Gargano for his title in 2021.
#5 KUSHIDA deserves a WWE NXT North American Championship run in 2021
How KUSHIDA hasn’t already won a title in WWE NXT is still beyond many fans, who see him as a world-class performer. KUSHIDA has competed for several major titles in NXT, including the NXT North American Championship and the NXT Cruiserweight Championship.
However, he has failed to win any title in WWE up to now, and he’ll look to turn things around in 2021. KUSHIDA partnered up with Leon Ruff on NXT not too long ago, and fans saw some tension between Johnny Gargano and the Japanese Superstar.
NXT is famous for structuring some iconic matches, and these two men are more than capable of putting up some stellar ones. The NXT North American Championship is one of the most prestigious titles in WWE, and having these two men compete for it will be incredible.
KUSHIDA needs some major opportunities to get ahead in NXT, and he is seen as one of the bigger babyfaces on the brand. The WWE Universe can expect him to be one of the initial challengers to The Rebel Heart’s title if WWE is looking to build the value of the title further.