10 Things That Prove January Is The Best Month For Wrestling

6. NXT UK Shines

The Rock John Cena
WWE.com

Not just the main NXT brand, but January has historically been a great month for the UK arm of NXT.

If you remember, January 2017 was when the two-day tournament took place to crown the first ever WWE United Kingdom Champion. Housed in Blackpool's beloved Empress Ballroom, those two days served as a global introduction to some of the greatest wrestlers that the UK had at its disposal.

It wouldn't be until August 2018 that NXT UK officially became its own brand with its own roster and its own weekly TV programming. And following that creation, January 2019 saw the first NXT UK TakeOver special take place.

Again taking place at the Empress Ballroom, NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool, the main event saw Pete Dunne retain the WWE UK Championship against Joe Coffey before having a stare-down with the debuting WALTER. As 2019 comes to a close, wrestling fans now have the prospect of WALTER vs. Coffey headlining NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool II on January 12th.

Even for those who don't make a habit of watching NXT UK on a weekly basis, the NXT UK TakeOver events provide the perfect opportunity to dip into the brand and check out some of its top stars. And these PPVs once more make January a great time to be a wrestling fan.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.