10 Most Successful TNA To WWE Transitions

5. Samoa Joe

Consequences Creed Xavier Woods
impactwrestling.com

Samoa Joe finds himself as both one of the most successful TNA transplants in WWE and also one of the many wrestlers Vince McMahon undoubtedly dropped the ball with. In a decade for TNA, The Samoan Submission Machine was one of the top stars in the company, one of only five men to win the "TNA Grand Slam" of Championships.

Samoa Joe followed the same path many of NXT’s biggest acquisitions did. Arriving as a major star in the company, Joe ran through many of the top wrestlers on Wednesday nights en route to dethroning Finn Balor and being the first to defeat The Demon. Fans were given glimpses of the star Joe can be in his rivalries with Jeff Hardy and Brock Lesnar, but unfortunately injuries marred his time on Raw and SmackDown leading to his release.

A return to NXT saw William Regal’s enforcer win the NXT Championship a third time, but was never able to defend it due to another injury forcing Joe to relinquish the title before once again being released. While Joe's time in WWE is far from an abject failure, it is not hard to imagine what could have been for one of the best wrestlers in the world.

Contributor
Contributor

Ryan Berglund, known to many as KendoStickMan on social media, was born in the bright lights of New York City. Being introduced to wrestling at a young age at Nassau Colliseum and Madison Square Garden, wrestling soon became a passion. You can find Ryan on Tik Tok, as well as every other social media platform @KendoStickMan