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What's the story?
WWE is always looking to expand the depth of the NXT roster as the WWE Performance Center continues to be the workshop for WWE Superstars of tomorrow. But the future is now, depending on who you ask, and NXT is seeing great things happen already. Now it appears they have another addition to the extraordinary graduate program of pro wrestling in Florida from the MMA world.
Nicolai Salchow might not be a name you know much about unless you follow MMA very closely, but he's bringing his 6-1 record to NXT and the plan is for him to start in January.
In case you didn't know...
Vince McMahon has always had an idea of what a WWE Superstar should look like. He's customarily liked them to be big, tough, and able to withstand the gruelling travel schedule pro wrestling demands.
At 205 pounds, Salchow might not seem like the ideal Superstar, but the company's evolution has also changed the idea of what a WWE Superstar should look like. It might have also altered who McMahon thought could take the road schedule as he typically didn't think MMA fighters could handle the busy schedule of constantly making towns.
The heart of the matter
It's interesting to see who WWE picks to bring into their Performance Center because at this point they have the right to be choosy. But Nicolai Salchow not only has a great look, but he's also incredibly intimidating for a man his size.
Salchow is also 33-year-old which might have worked against him in a previous era as well. But it seems so many WWE Superstars are still in their prime at a later age nowadays due to many different reasons including the quality of health care to top-class conditioning.
It looks like Salchow's made it no secret that he's moving to Orlando either so it could be only a matter of time before fans of NXT get to see what this 33-year-old German fighter can do in the squared circle.
What's next?
Signing Nicolai Salchow to NXT could be exciting. His language barrier might present a problem, but WWE has worked around those problems before.
Only time will tell how big of an impression the 205 pound MMA fighter will have. But the main roster has a special place for guys his size, therefore 205 Live could be getting a rather brutal addition soon enough.
Author's take
It's always exciting to see what happens when WWE takes an athlete from another sport and moulds them into a WWE Superstar. Braun Strowman was a strongman, Alexa Bliss was a bodybuilder, and Roman Reigns came from a football background (although he had wrestling in his blood).
Therefore, it might be a good idea to keep a close eye on Nicolai Salchow to see what he can do as well.
