11 NXT Call-Ups Who Are No Longer With WWE
3. Hideo Itami
You would have thought NXT had hired WWE's next big star based off how huge Hideo Itami's arrival was made out to be. Hulk Hogan attended his WWE contract signing in Japan, so it was clear the company saw big things in him.
The first year of Itami's NXT run was practically flawless as he forged a friendship with Finn Bálor, feuded with Tyler Breeze and even competed on the grand stage of WrestleMania 31 in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Before he could contend for the NXT Championship in his native Japan, he went down with a serious shoulder injury that put him out of action for over a year.
Just as he was picking up steam when he returned in the summer of 2016, Itami got injured again and spent another six months on the shelf. Virtually nothing he did after that mattered, because any momentum he had prior to taking time off was completely gone.
In late 2017, he was called up to WWE's main roster, but not because he was primed for a push. Rather, NXT was getting too overcrowded with talent. 205 Live seemed like a fine home for him - that was until he accidentally injured The Brian Kendrick with his patented Go to Sleep finisher and WWE banned the move.
Itami looked like he was simply going through the motions after that, so him asking for his release last month so he could return to Japan was hardly a surprise.