Reason For Recent WWE NXT Call-Ups Revealed

Why Toni Storm, Shotzi and Nox were switched from NXT to SmackDown.

Shotzi Blackheart
WWE

File under: "Well, everybody did warn you."

Dave Meltzer has reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Toni Storm, Shotzi (Blackheart) and (Tegan) Nox were suddenly promoted to the main roster - throwing existing NXT storylines into disarray - because middling-to-modest advance ticket sales panicked him.

He was panicked into the realisation, per Meltzer, that there was nobody "new, fresh or exciting" on the roster.

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It's a stark and familiar tale. There are new, fresh and theoretically exciting stars on the roster; Rhea Ripley, for example, was only called up officially at the start of this year. If she does not resonate as new, fresh, or exciting, it is because WWE has positioned her as the next Charlotte Flair in the parameters of its own, bizarre fiction. Bianca Belair is hardly a main roster vet. Every bit as over as Ripley on NXT, she has suffered a similar fate by being scripted to sell for Bayley's profoundly obnoxious witch's cackle in yet another draining multi-match series.

All four women mentioned in the paragraph above are talented. This is not the issue.

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It rarely is.

Regardless, there's your explanation: the man who books the same matches on a weekly basis, treating a residency rather too literally, can't fathom why nobody feels fresh.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!