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NXT is WWE's developmental brand and their motto is that "the future is now". NXT has given us some of the best matches in WWE history, the most interesting storylines, and has some of the most complex and interesting superstars. This makes many fans wonder why many NXT superstars don't do well on the main roster.
Whether that be their gimmick not translating over well, not being given a proper push, backstage heat, or injuries, many NXT superstars and even former NXT champions are stuck in the main roster's mid-card.
The most coveted championship in WWE's incredible developmental brand is the NXT Championship. Although these superstars have won the NXT championship, not all of them have had success on the main roster.
Today we will be analyzing every former NXT champion's success on the main roster.
#12 Neville
It is disappointing to think of what could've been with the "man that gravity forgot". Neville started out his main roster run with multiple feuds with the likes of Bad News Barrett, Bo Dallas, and Stardust. However, Neville's time to shine came with Seth Rollins' open challenge on Raw in 2015, with Neville coming to answer the challenge and having one of the best matches of the year and almost winning the WWE Championship, if not for a rope break.
Despite having stellar matches in his debut year, as well as Slammy award, it was, to say the least, underwhelming as many of the WWE Universe knew Neville was capable of much more than he was being given. Unfortunately, all of Neville's momentum on the main roster came to a halt in 2016 when he suffered an ankle fracture, and would be out for 4 months and missing Wrestlemania 32.
Neville returned in July of that year but was pushed completely to the side and was given minimal TV time for the rest of his main roster run. Neville had a great run in the cruiserweight division, winning the cruiserweight championship twice, however his main roster run could've been much better than it ended up being.
#11 Sami Zayn
Sami Zayn had all the tools to succeed on the main roster: he was over with the audience, he had an amazing moveset and a great entrance. Unfortunately, on the main roster, Sami Zayn's feuds almost completely centred around his long-time rival Kevin Owens. Despite the fans initially being invested in the feud, the feud began to drag on and fans lost interest.
Instead of pushing Sami Zayn as a babyface, the writers decided to turn him heel at Hell in a Cell 2017, pairing him with Kevin Owens. While this initially worked, the pair were overused on Smackdown, with fans growing tired of them.
In 2018, the two were brought over to Raw in the hopes that this would make the fans re-invested in them as well as it is a change of scenery. However, their hopes were cut short when Sami Zayn underwent surgery for torn rotator cuffs. Currently, it does not look like there is much hope for a Sami Zayn push in the future and he still stands without a single main roster championship win.
#10 Bo Dallas
If not for a single championship win in the form of the Raw Tag Team Championships with current tag team partner Curtis Axel, Bo Dallas would be lower on this ranking. Bo Dallas started out in NXT as a face, with the writers turning him into a motivational speaker heel after fans literally starting turning their backs on him.
After his run in NXT, Bo Dallas was brought into the main roster with the same gimmick, which did not translate too well and he had trouble getting over with the fans and getting them to react. He was given a winning streak, yet that ultimately did not go anywhere for him as he quickly fell to being a wrestler rarely appearing on TV in 2015. In 2016, Bo Dallas was paired together with the Social Outcasts, a stable that also didn't go anywhere.
In 2017, Bo Dallas was a bodyguard for the Miz in the form of the Miztourage along with Curtis Axel, a role in which no one expected them to get a push if the Miztourage were to break up.
However, in 2018, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel won the Raw Tag Team Championships as the B-Team, where they then completely disappeared from Raw after losing the championships to Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler in September of 2018, only having a showing on the Survivor Series elimination tag team match as well as a number one contender's match on Raw in December of 2018.
Time will tell if the B-Team receives another push, but Dallas' main roster run thus far has been underwhelming and disappointing.
#9 Bobby Roode
Despite being one half of the current Raw Tag Team Champions with Chad Gable, as well as winning the United States Championship in January of 2018, Bobby Roode's main roster run has been very boring. His gimmick is one that can translate to the main roster well, the issue was that he was brought in as a face. While his face run was fine for the first few months of his main roster career, his short feud with Dolph Ziggler immediately showed how his gimmick was not fit for being a face.
Roode was brought over to Raw with little momentum behind him, coming off a fresh Wrestlemania 34 loss to Jinder Mahal in a fatal-4-way for the US Championship.
Despite this, he was still somewhat over with the audience, with them reacting less week by week. In late 2018, Roode was placed in a tag team with Chad Gable, another superstar traded to Raw in the 2018 Superstar Shakeup. Despite very good matches, it did not seem as if the team would receive any push for the tag team championships, despite being captains of Team Raw for the Survivor Series tag team elimination match.
Roode and Gable shockingly won the tag team championships from AOP in December of 2018. In the long term, it would be best for Roode to turn on Gable once they lose the championships, and go back to being "the Glorious One".
#8 Shinsuke Nakamura
Shinsuke Nakamura had some amazing matches in NXT with the likes of Samoa Joe and Finn Balor, winning the NXT championship twice. However, many of his fans worried he wasn't going to do well on the main roster due to his English speaking skills not being very strong and the main roster being very promo heavy compared to NXT.
Nakamura began his main roster career with a feud again Dolph Ziggler, which was mediocre at best and not the ideal feud for someone starting out on the main roster. Nakamura continued to participate in various other feuds in 2017 with 2 championship matches against Jinder Mahal.
However, Nakamura lost both of those matches and was pushed to the midcard following said feud with Mahal. Things began to look up for Nakamura after a Royal Rumble win leading to a match with AJ Styles at WrestleMania 34 where Nakamura shockingly turned heel after losing and began a feud with Styles.
Instead of letting the 2 superstars go all out, WWE quickly turned the feud into a joke and ruined what could've been a stellar feud for the WWE championship. Nakamura won the United States Championship against Jeff Hardy later that year, and held the title for 5 months in an extremely underwhelming reign in which Nakamura only had 2 pay per view matches defending the championship.
Despite these setbacks and having far from great feuds, Nakamura's heel turn did help him to be more in his element and made his character far more interesting than it was while he was a face. Hopefully WWE can give him a push as one of Smackdown's top heels in 2019.
#7 Andrade Cien Almas
Andrade "Cien" Almas had a surprising NXT run, in that he was floundering in 2016, struggling to find his balance, but regained it with his new manager Zelina Vega in 2017, winning the NXT Championship from Drew McIntyre at NXT Takeover: WarGames.
Almas began his main roster run with several wins on Smackdown Live over local talent, before beginning a short feud with Sin Cara, winning in both of their matches. Almas continued his undefeated streak until losing to then WWE Champion AJ Styles in July in what was a great match. Almas then started a feud with Rusev, with various pre-show and mixed tag team matches, with both sides trading wins over the course of their feud.
Recently, Almas had a match alongside Vega against the returning John Cena and Becky Lynch. Despite not having many meaningful feuds in his debut year, Almas has been putting on great matches on Smackdown Live and rumors report that he is in line for a big push as Vince McMahon himself is impressed with the "tranquilo" superstar's abilities, which is a good sign for Almas' future on the main roster.
#6 Finn Balor
Finn Balor had an incredible run in NXT, debuting the amazing Demon King character, having one of the most captivating WWE entrances, as well as becoming the longest-reigning NXT champion of all time, losing it eventually to Samoa Joe.
The Demon King's main roster career started out perfectly with a clean win over Roman Reigns and an interesting build-up to his Summerslam match with Seth Rollins where he won the Universal Championship. However, it all came crashing down for Balor with Balor suffering a shoulder injury and having to relinquish the Universal Championship.
Finn Balor returned to Raw in April of 2017 to much fanfare, showing he was still very over with the WWE Universe. Despite losing a number one contender's match at Extreme Rules of that year, Balor had an excellent showing. Over the next few months, WWE began teasing a feud between Balor and Bray Wyatt.
When the feud finally happened, it was disappointing as the matches were decent, yet the storylines and buildup to said matches were ridiculous. WWE used special effects to transform Bray Wyatt into Sister Abigail in the buildup to their TLC match, yet the match never occurred as Bray Wyatt suffered an illness.
As a replacement, Balor faced Styles in what was the match of the night and impressed the WWE Universe and left them wanting for more. In 2018, however, Balor quickly went back to being a midcarder despite winning matches, he never had any meaningful feuds.
However, Balor gave Drew McIntyre his second pinfall loss since his return to Raw at TLC 2018, as well as a triple threat match win involving the two as well as Dolph Ziggler, giving hope to a potential push for Balor in 2019.
#5 Samoa Joe
The "Samoan Submission Machine" Samoa Joe absolutely dominated in NXT, winning the NXT championship twice and having amazing matches again Kevin Owens, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Finn Balor. Joe has an amazing promo ability as well an intimidating look, both key factors in resulting in a main roster push.
When Joe finally debuted on the main roster, he blindsided Seth Rollins and attacked him, resulting in a feud between the two. Joe would later win a number 1 contender's match at Extreme Rules, where he would then face Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship.
Joe continued various championship pursuits throughout the rest of the debut year, looking dominant in all his matches. 2018 was when Samoa Joe truly began to shine when he was traded to Smackdown Live. Joe arrived in dominant fashion, obliterating Sin Cara in his Smackdown debut and defeating numerous other wrestlers.
Joe's biggest feud thus far was with AJ Styles, in which Joe won their first match via DQ, and Styles winning every other match. Despite not winning the WWE Championship from Styles, Joe was in the main event picture of Smackdown Live and one of its top heels. The feud, in particular, was one of WWE's more edgier storylines in recent years, creating more fan investment in the feud.
Joe is currently feuding with Jeff Hardy and continues to dominate Smackdown Live. I predict a great future for Joe on the main roster.
#4 Drew McIntyre
Drew McIntyre's initial 7 years with WWE were rough. Despite winning 2 championships, he did not get over with the fans at all and he was released in 2014. However, the ever-ambitious McIntyre completely reinvented himself on the independent circuit and returned to WWE to compete on NXT.
McIntyre completely impressed the NXT Universe with how much he had changed since his initial run in the WWE, and he won the NXT Championship from Bobby Roode a mere 4 months after his return. Despite only holding the championship for 3 months and getting injured, McIntyre's time in NXT was a success.
On the main roster, fans were predicting McIntyre to be involved with Dolph Ziggler in a feud. While he was involved with Ziggler, WWE instead made them a tag team, resulting in instant success. The team quickly rose to the top of Raw's tag team division and won the Raw Tag Team Championships in September of 2018.
All the while, McIntyre had not been pinned a single time since returning to Raw and was truly a force to fear as even Lashley backed down from him. Ultimately, McIntyre truly was getting an incredible push that felt organic and also helped to get his partner Ziggler back into his element.
McIntyre eventually suffered his first 2 pins in December, to Ziggler and Balor respectively, yet they were not clean pins as both Ziggler and Balor interfered in each other's matches. This tremendous push for McIntyre is indicative that he will be a future world champion in the WWE, as many WWE legends have touted.
#3 Big E
Big E impressed many fans in his NXT run as he was booked to be strong and dominant and won the NXT Championship from the "Kingslayer" himself, Seth Rollins.
When Big E arrived on the main roster, he was Dolph Ziggler's enforcer. Big E quickly broke away from Ziggler and won the Intercontinental Championship from Curtis Axel in November of 2013. Despite his long reign as Intercontinental Champion, Big E had trouble truly getting over with the fans.
However, the New Day completely elevated Big E to the next level. Big E was truly able to shine in being a member of the New Day and won the Smackdown and Raw Tag Team Championships over 5 times, as well as being the longest reigning Raw Tag Team Champions over the course of their 5-year history.
With the New Day, Big E has completely transformed into a charismatic babyface who has the potential to become a great singles superstar in the WWE. Whether that is with the New Day still being intact, or Big E splitting away from the group, he will find success as a singles star.
#2 Kevin Owens
Kevin Owens came bursting into the NXT scene as a face on his first night, however turning heel the same night on Sami Zayn. KO quickly won NXT Championship from Zayn and continued to run roughshod over the NXT roster for his 143 days as NXT Champion.
When Kevin Owens debuted on the main roster, he answered John Cena's challenge by powerbombing him and making his presence known on the main roster. He quickly defeated Cena in his first main roster match and won the Intercontinental Championship twice in the same year.
However, KO's biggest moment on the main roster thus far came in August of 2016, when Triple H turned on Seth Rollins and aided KO in winning the Universal Champion.
Despite losing the Universal Championship to a transitional champion, Goldberg, which hurt his momentum, as well as heavily relying on Chris Jericho throughout his title reign, KO became the third NXT champion to win a world championship on the main roster.
After winning the United States Championship twice in 2017, KO came to Raw along with his "best friend", Sami Zayn. However, it never worked out for the pair as they both underwent surgeries in 2018 and were out for the remainder of the year. Both have had promos promoting their return in 2019, yet we will have to see whether that return will be accompanied by a push.
#1 Seth Rollins
Despite spending a minimal amount of time in NXT, Seth Rollins was the first NXT champion. The majority of the years Seth Rollins spent in WWE developmental was in NXT's predecessor, FCW.
Seth Rollins and his former Shield teammates Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose took the main roster by storm in 2012 by powerbombing Ryback and declaring themselves to be "the Hounds of Justice". The Shield quickly won the Raw Tag Team Championship and the U.S. Championship in 2013.
However, what propelled Rollins into a momentous push was breaking away from the Shield in 2014, where he then won Money in the Bank and historically cashed it in on Wrestlemania 35, winning the WWE Championship, and holding it for 221 days.
The "Kingslayer" continued to win championships in the forms of the U.S. Championship and the WWE Championship a second time. However, in 2017, many fans were wondering if the Architect had already peaked in his career in 2015. Despite winning the Raw Tag Team Championship with Ambrose and Jason Jordan, fans were not as invested in Rollins as before.
The "Architect" quickly turned it all around at Wrestlemania 34, where he won the Intercontinental Championship and became a Grand Slam Champion. The WWE Universe could tell that the passion and fire had returned in Seth Rollins and today he is one of the biggest WWE main roster superstars and will continue to win accolades and championships and "Burn It Down".
