8 Things WWE Want You To Ignore About NXT

WWE states that “NXT features the next generation of Superstars battling to make an impact,” but it no longer specifies what that means.

In its reality show format, it was about uprising rookies. And early into its current format, the roster was mainly comprised of fresher faces, many whom still had long careers ahead of them. NXT is also considered to be part of WWE’s developmental territories, as it derived from Florida Championship Wrestling and often shows new talents training at the Performance Center.

While indy darlings such as Daniel Bryan joined NXT early on, wrestlers well-established outside of WWE started to pour in such as Kevin Owens and Samoa Joe. Although such arrivals excited fans, it also limited the number of spots available in the main event scene during their stay. For some of these wrestlers, NXT wasn’t so much about establishing themselves as it was getting used to the WWE style before transitioning to the main roster.

Recently, Velveteen Dream spoke out about the number of “indy guys” coming in to “take up spots” in NXT. Most likely the “shoot” was a way of working over fans, as it opened the door for those same guys to challenge him, but his comments did echo rumored sentiments about the NXT locker room.