3 NXT Wrestlers Called Up In WWE Draft 2021 (Night Two)

A trio of NXT wrestlers found new homes as the 2021 WWE Draft concluded last night.

by Andy H Murray
Xia Li
WWE.com

NXT wrestlers Xia Li, Ridge Holland, and Mia Yim were assigned to main roster brands as the 2021 WWE Draft concluded last night.

Li and Holland were both moved to SmackDown in picks announced by authority figures Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville on Raw itself. Yim, meanwhile, was drafted to Raw in a supplemental pick confirmed on Raw Talk.

It's curious that WWE classed Yim as an NXT wrestler, given that she was on Raw as RETRIBUTION's Reckoning earlier this year and assigned to SmackDown shortly after the group split. WWE even concocted plans to have her debut through a feud with Carmella in May, though these were scrapped.

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Li is less surprising. The former Tian Sha member has worked multiple SmackDown dark matches over the past few months and was linked to a main roster call-up last week. In joining SmackDown, she becomes the first Chinese female to compete on a mainline WWE brand.

Holland, meanwhile, had been active on NXT television as part of a faction with Pete Dunne, Oney Lorcan, and Danny Burch, having returned from serious injury in July. He too has worked main roster dark matches in recent weeks.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.