10 Shocking Wrestler Ages That Will Blow Your Mind

2. Basically 75% Of The NXT Roster

Earthquake Hulk Hogan
WWE

When Edge made a visit to the Capitol Wrestling Center to intimate that he might challenge for the NXT Championship at WrestleMania 37, what happened here, when you take a step back and assess the situation, is quite mental:

A predominantly 50+ audience watched a 47 year-old man allude to wrestling a 39 year-old for a developmental title that was first conceived to crown a potential future face of WWE. Edge probably knows where the hard camera is located at this stage of his career.

NXT is and isn't developmental.

It's developmental when they want it to be, when its ratings are challenged, and it's a brand in its own right when they want those ratings to be higher. It's also developmental because they trust hardly anybody to star on the main roster without first being developed. But the talents signed to developmental often don't need to be developed. It's patronising. It's a philosophical mess.

NXT is considered to be developmental internally because virtually every WWE act debuts on NXT. It's quite as simple as that.

And yet, look at the ages and experience levels of so many name acts: Finn Bálor (39), Tommaso Ciampa (35), KUSHIDA (37), Johnny Gargano (33), Dexter Lumis (37), Karrion Kross (35).

And if it's a brand that concentrates on the second 'W' of WWE, why are there serial killers and 1,000 year-old women on it?

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!