6 Ups And 8 Downs From WWE Elimination Chamber 2015
2. NXT = WWE
More will be written about the John Cena versus Kevin Owens match in a bit, but one important development that should not get lost in the shuffle here: The champion versus champion match did more than make Owens a star, it put NXT and its wrestlers on par with WWE and its superstars. That itself was a major victory Sunday. It would be easy to consider NXT second fiddle to WWE, the minor leagues to WWEs major leagues. And really, who could blame fans for thinking that? NXT has been described as WWEs developmental territory. Most of the wrestlers down there are still learning the trade. So why shouldnt a WWE superstar the caliber of Cena run over an NXT competitor? But having Owens blast Cena repeatedly with high-impact moves and put the 15-time world champion on his back showed casual fans that NXT is producing wrestlers who can hang with the big boys. (Couple this with Sami Zayn coming an eyelash away from beating Cena last month and Nevilles success since arriving, and the message is being reinforced.) This is important if WWE wants fans to look at NXT as more than just a developmental territory, but as a legitimate, separate brand. JBLs comparison of the old American Basketball Association and NBA and the talent from two different promotions magnified that point. If thats what WWE is going for, Sunday night was a huge step in that direction.
Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.
