5 stars who struggled in NXT but are soaring on the main roster

So, last week I posted a feature on the five NXT Superstars who have found themselves in a bit of a sticky patch on the main roster. I thought it would only be fair to look at the other end of the scale - the hidden gems unearthed from NXT who have exceeded all expectations since being brought to RAW or SmackDown in the W WE!

There's no doubt some Superstars have done it all, huge in NXT and translated perfectly to the main roster, even using the yellow brand to hone their craft and polish themselves before jumping up - like we've seen from the likes of Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Samoa Joe, Bobby Roode, Shinsuke Nakamura, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn.

But who has been, sorry Buddy Murphy, NXT's best-kept secret?

I'm going to give a rundown of five Superstars who shocked the world with their NXT call-ups, and have taken the ball and ran with it on the main roster.

I have one honourable mention in the form of Braun Strowman - while he did compete in NXT very briefly and has gone straight to the top of the main roster - I felt that I should stick to Superstars who had a run on NXT television rather than a handful of live events.

With that being said, here's to the five hidden gems!

#5 Rusev

Rusev hit a slight dip in form, but his main roster run has seen him soar on several occasions

So, while Rusev never quite hit the heights of the NXT Championship on the yellow brand, his run was by no means a disaster - hence only making the fifth spot on this list.

It should be said that Rusev actually had a pretty triumphant end to his NXT run, but in the early days, he seemed to be seen predominantly as a tag team wrestler, having been teamed with Scott Dawson for a short run after losing to Dolph Ziggler and in a battle royal won by Bo Dallas.

In a short run towards the end of his spell, Rusev actually defeated three main roster talents while still on NXT - Sin Cara, Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston. Rusev was one of those off ones who appeared on NXT even after his call-up and, while his NXT run wasn't by any means bad, he hit the ground running on the main roster.

Rusev went on a one-year undefeated streak with Lana by his side, won the United States Championship and even made his WrestleMania entrance in a tank in the culmination of a lengthy feud with John Cena. While he suffered a slight dip in form, Rusev has taken on a new form recently, being possibly the most over man on the entire WWE roster - a move no-one could have predicted during his time in NXT.

#4 Baron Corbin

Okay, this may be a controversial one, but hear me out.

Baron Corbin had a pretty decent spell on NXT, but never quite got to the top. He was one of the few stars where it was thought that another few months in NXT and maybe a run with the NXT Championship would have solidified 'The Lone Wolf' as a WWE Superstar.

After a pretty solid start in NXT, including Corbin ending Bull Dempsey's undefeated streak and defeating ECW legend Rhyno, things were looking up for Corbin - but he ended up a near man, submitting to both Sami Zayn and Samoa Joe with both their submission moves locked in simultaneously. Corbin never recovered from this and lost to Austin Aries after attacking him in frustration.

However, The Lone Wolf made up for it immediately on the main roster. Corbin debuted in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal and won it. He also won the Money In The Bank Ladder Match and, even though he was unsuccessful in cashing in for the World Championship, Corbin went on to win the United States Championship and is now in the main event of Fastlane for the World Championship.

Baron Corbin may not have looked like the monster he could have on the main roster, but things have definitely been much better for him than they were towards the end of his NXT run.

#3 Carmella

So, when Carmella arrived on the main roster, there were a lot of question marks over her head.

Although she did have her fair share of singles matches in NXT and even had a shot at the NXT Women's Championship, Carmella never quite reached the top and was often seen as just being the eye candy for Enzo Amore and Big Cass - so the WWE Universe was pretty shocked when Carmella was drafted to SmackDown when Enzo and Cass had been drafted to RAW.

If anything, though, Carmella has been the most successful of the three. While Enzo had his share of success, he's no longer with the company, and Cass is currently on the sidelines with an injury. Carmella looks better than ever before, though.

Carmella has established herself as one of SmackDown's top female talents, she currently holds the Money In The Bank briefcase and has proven she can hang with the likes of Nikki Bella in the ring, not to mention having a very entertaining run with a certain James Ellsworth.

In fact, The Princess of Staten Island could very well be the next SmackDown Women's Champion if she can cash in her contract successfully - in a move that would undoubtedly eclipse anything she achieved in her NXT career.

#2 Elias

So, this was a very, very close one. Given recent events, Elias could have easily been number one here.

Everyone remembers The Drifter from NXT, but can you remember him ever gaining any serious momentum? Elias, in fact, had a pretty monumental losing streak which saw him leave NXT after losing a Loser Leaves NXT Match to Kassius Ohno, before losing to Oney Lorcan when he tried to return as El Vagabundo.

Things could not be more different for Elias on the main roster, though. WWE dropped his surname and seemingly give The Drifter the spotlight, quite literally every week in the middle of the ring with his guitar.

Elias caught the eye in the ring during a match with Roman Reigns where he'd go on to lose, but he recently has pinfall victories over John Cena and, more recently, Seth Rollins in a night where Rollins pinned Cena and Reigns beforehand.

It looks like The Drifter has his sights set on WrestleMania, too, where a win at Elimination Chamber could see Elias strum his way to a Universal Championship Match with Brock Lesnar. If not, we're pretty sure he'll have a big part to play there anyway, and Elias' future looks brighter than ever.

#1 Alexa Bliss

No-one could have predicted Alexa Bliss' WWE career

Well, it was a close one, but there was only ever going to be one winner.

When Alexa Bliss was drafted to SmackDown Live at number 20, not even on the main show, who would have thought she would be where she is today?

Little Miss Bliss is one of only two women to have held both the RAW and SmackDown Women's Champions, and she's the first, beating Charlotte to the crown.

Bliss is currently the longest reigning RAW Women's Champion, too, and looks set to face Asuka at WrestleMania if she can keep hold of her championship in the first ever Women's Elimination Chamber Match.

Bliss had a fair few matches in NXT but was best known as the manager of Blake and Murphy, helping them win the NXT Tag Team Championships - prior to this, she had even worked as an unnamed ring announcer on the developmental brand.

Again, Alexa Bliss did have a handful of chances at the NXT Women's Championship but always seemed to fall short and never quite looked like the complete package. Since joining the main roster, the current RAW Women's Champion's rise has been meteoric - with her promo skills being hailed as some of the best in the business right now and her in-ring work is pretty solid too.

No matter what happens at Elimination Chamber, Bliss' first 18 months on the main roster have been pretty monumental - and there's no doubt for me that she's proven to be the true dark horse of NXT, not only stepping up when drafted to SmackDown but making a massive leap and becoming one of the most consistent talents on the main roster.