Ranking All 11 WWE NXT Champions
11 men have had the honor of holding NXT's most prestigious prize. Who's the greatest?
Shortly after NXT was revamped as WWE's go-to developmental territory in June 2012, a tournament was held to crown the inaugural NXT champion. On the 29 August edition of NXT TV, a promising prospect by the name of Seth Rollins outlasted seven other men and beat Jinder Mahal in the finals to capture the championship, and thus an incredible lineage was born.
Unlike on the main roster, the NXT Championship doesn't bounce around easily. In fact, only two men have ever held the belt twice in their careers: Samoa Joe and Shinsuke Nakamura. Most of the men who have reigned as NXT champion in the past five years had a stranglehold on the strap, proving that officials have faith in them to carry the black-and-yellow brand to new heights.
A case can be made that despite being the top title in WWE's feeder system for talent, the NXT Championship just might be one of the most prestigious titles in WWE at the moment. It is frequently defended, has never been made to feel worthless, and has been at stake in some of the best bouts in the brand's history.
As we celebrate five years of the NXT Championship, let's look back at everyone who has reigned as champion since 2012 and rank them from worst to best.
11. Drew McIntyre
As of this writing, Drew McIntyre is fewer than three weeks into his run as NXT champion, so by default, he ranks as last on the list.
That isn't to say he can't have a great championship reign, though, as he is already off to a strong start as the face of NXT. At TakeOver: Brooklyn III, he knocked off the undefeated Bobby Roode in impressive fashion to score his first taste of WWE gold in nearly seven years, and he already has a slew of stars stepping up to challenge him from Roderick Strong to Adam Cole (baybay).
In his time away from WWE, McIntyre became a much more aggressive in-ring competitor and developed his mic skills as well. He returned to NXT with plenty of pomp and circumstance earlier this year and immediately established himself as a threat to the title. With wins over the likes of Roode, Killian Dain, and Andrade "Cien" Almas, McIntyre has quickly proven he is worthy of holding the gold and has big plans for NXT going forward.