Opinion: Why WWE NXT needs Triple H more than Vince McMahon

With news that WWE NXT will air on USA Network beginning on Wednesday, September 18th, 2019, proving to be competition for All Elite Wrestling's (AEW) weekly show, the feeling among fans is that they want Triple H to continue running the show instead of Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn as previously rumored.

In my opinion, Triple H needs to continue to run WWE NXT instead of McMahon and Dunn and here's why.

Remember the time back in 2010 when WWE NXT was a hybrid wrestling/reality show while WWE's developmental territory was Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW)? At that time, FCW was a lot more about sports entertainment, much like RAW and SmackDown were back in the day.

This was when most of the male Superstars were former bodybuilders and football players while most of the female Superstars (known as the WWE Divas at the time) were former fitness and swimsuit models who used FCW and WWE as a stepping stone to their showbiz aspirations.

In fact, former independent wrestlers were few far and between (notable exceptions for Daniel Bryan, Natalya, A.J. Lee, Evan Bourne, Sheamus, Seth Rollins, Paige and Cesaro, among others). That's because John Laurinaitis was in charge of hiring WWE Superstars at that time as the emphasis was on the so-called 'WWE Look' instead of wrestling ability and numerous talented independent wrestlers, no matter how hard they tried, did not have the 'WWE Look' and therefore were not signed.

At the same time, WWE NXT was a show where each rookie, a developmental wrestler from FCW, was paired with a pro - a Superstar from the main roster - and would tackle challenges such as a wheelbarrow race, a bull-riding contest and even a kissing contest.

The winning rookie would either get a championship title shot of his choosing or a main roster spot while the other rookies would be sent back to FCW. Among the most notable contestants during that period were Wade Barrett, Daniel Bryan, David Otunga, Skip Sheffield (who would make a comeback as Ryback), A.J. Lee, Naomi, Titus O'Neil and Kaitlyn as well as forgotten contestants such as Lucky Cannon, Michael Tarver, Eli Cottonwood, Jamie Keyes, Jacob Novak and others.

In addition, the heel stable known as The Nexus was formed by the WWE NXT season one contestants, who made life miserable for the RAW (and to a lesser extent, the SmackDown) roster, particularly John Cena.

However things started to change for FCW as Triple H took over for Laurinaitis as WWE's Head of Talent relations. Triple H would rebranded FCW into WWE NXT and would move the territory from Tampa to Full Sail University in suburban Orlando.

The FCW championship belts would be retired, including the infamous Queen of FCW title, and new belts would be introduced. In addition, Triple H would also change the hiring process by hiring more independent wrestlers as well as former TNA, Ring of Honor and Shimmer talents.

In addition, he also changed the landscape of women's wrestling there by hiring Sara Amato to train the female talents. It was Amato, who would train the women the same way as the men by having them wrestle real wrestling matches instead of the hair-pulling and slaps that became a symbol of the Divas Era.

Many of today's main roster talents came from WWE NXT which includes the likes of Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks, Charlotte Flair, Bayley, Asuka, Shinsuke Nakamura, Kevin Owens and many others. By having McMahon run WWE NXT, they would in turn revert to the dreaded FCW days and the fans certainly would not want that.