The NXT Year-End Awards were announced and handed out Saturday night during the Kickoff Show at Takeover: San Antonio. The awards up for grabs were Breakout Star of the Year, Tag Team of the Year, Match of the Year, Female Competitor of the Year, Male Competitor of the Year, and Overall Competitor of the Year.
Breakout Star of the Year: Billie Kay and Peyton Royce
These two besties beat out some big names while winning the award for Breakout Stars in NXT. SAniTY, No Way Jose, Ember Moon, and Andrade “Cien” Almas were the other nominees for the award and all were arguably equally deserving.
However, it was the duo from Down Under who walked away with the award Saturday night. They then proceeded to put on a heck of a show, even in defeat, during their Fatal 4 Way match with Asuka and Nikki Cross later that night.
2017 started off in a big way for Royce and Kay, who are best friends on and off screen, and we expect nothing different moving forward from the Aussies.
Tag Team of the Year: The Revival
The Revival are the NXT Tag Team of the Year for 2016....and it’s not even close.
The “Top Guys” of NXT have put on stellar match after stellar match in the past year, so it’s absolutely no surprise to see them walk away with the award here. Their feuds with Enzo and Cass, American Alpha, and #DIY have been some of the best work in the brand throughout 2016, and their matches “stole the show” at several different Takeovers.
Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder were left off the Takeover: San Antonio card, leading to speculation that these two are main roster bound. After the year they had in NXT, The Revival have made a strong case that they are not only the top team in NXT but maybe the entire company.
Match of the Year: The Revival vs. #DIY at Takeover: Toronto
2016 was a heck of a year for tag team wrestling in NXT. No match summed up the tag divisions success more than the 2 out of 3 Falls match between The Revival and #DIY at NXT Takeover: Toronto.
The match beat out several other matches for the award, including several marquee main event matches. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Samoa Joe at Toronto, Sami Zayn vs. Nakamura at Takeover: Dallas, Joe vs. Finn Balor at Takeover: The End, and The Revival’s clashes with American Alpha at several Takeovers were all nominees for the prestigious award, but it was the 2 out of 3 Falls match that took the award on Saturday night.
Not only did this match win the award for MOTY in NXT, WWE.com also voted it the best match of the year in the entire company.
Female Competitor Of The Year: Asuka
This one isn’t shocking at all.
Asuka has absolutely dominated NXT since arriving late in 2015, and 2016 was the year of “The Empress of Tomorrow”. It’s not like Asuka didn’t have any competition for the award, either. Asuka beat out Nia Jax and Bayley, last year’s winner of this award, to earn the title of NXT Female Competitor of the Year.
2017 started off on the same note that 2016 ended for Asuka, as she retained her title in a Fatal 4 Way match at Takeover: San Antonio this weekend, defeating Peyton Royce, Billie Kay, and Nikki Cross.
Speaking of Royce and Kay, because Asuka wasn’t able to accept her award on the Kickoff Show Saturday night, the Aussie duo accepted the award in her place. Needless to say, that was probably feul better left off the fire.
Male Competitor of the Year
Shinsuke Nakamura has become not only the most popular Superstar in NXT but arguably the most popular Superstar in the wrestling world. Beating out three men he’s feuded with for most of 2016, Nakamura became the second different Superstar to win NXT Male Competitor of the Year.
Last year’s winner, Finn Balor, was also up for the award, along with Samoa Joe, a man that Nakamura feuded with furiously throughout 2016, and Bobby Roode, the man he lost his NXT Title to at Takeover: San Antonio this past weekend. From his insanely over-with-the-crowd entrance to his unbelievable charisma in the ring, Nakamura has become one of the top guys in the WWE.
While usually losing the NXT Title at a Takeover could mean a call-up to the main roster is imminent, we believe Nakamura will stay in NXT at least until after the Takeover during Wrestlemania weekend. The King of Strong Style has some unfinished business with the Glorious new NXT Champ.
Overall Competitor of the Year
The Overall Competitor of the Year came down to the winners of the Male and Female Competitors of the Year. Therefore, this award came down to arguably the two most dominant Superstars NXT has ever seen.
Nakamura edged out Asuka for the award, although both were deserving, for his second win of the night. While many people want Nakamura on the main roster ASAP, he has made quite a name for himself in NXT.
It would be crazy for WWE not to cash in on the popularity of the Japanese superstar by moving him to the main roster eventually, it seems he’s still got a little more time left in NXT before being moved up.
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