The Wrestling Prospectus (NXT 5-1)

Caleb Carnes
Jul 20, 2017
4 min read

Welcome to the top 5 of the NXT edition of the Prospectus. I’ve received a lot of feedback and enjoyed your thoughts. As you can expect with wrestling fans, the response has been exceedingly passionate. Wrestling fans are rarely subtle and maybe one day I’ll do a mail bag.

And so we begin.

5. Roderick Strong

Roddy is a great babyface. I’ve seen him be a fantastic heel but with the “family man” gimmick that he’s convincingly running with. He looks the part and can execute it in the ring. If you look across the board, Roddy doesn’t have any major weaknesses, other than his size. He is also a versatile performer that can weave into tags, the cruiserweight division and eventually move into a heel like he was in PWG.

Although I love the “family man” gimmick Roddy, the shelf life on that isn’t too long. Hopefully this is a good introduction and he is able to divert into other parts of his personality. I also worry about his lack of size but there is nothing he can legally do about that. Roddy is a good-looking guy so it’s not like his look is bad.

Regardless of limitations, I can see Roddy moving into multiple spots. His versatility is his greatest weapon and hopefully he isn’t held into the family man role past its expiration date. Roddy is a high floor, low ceiling prospect who is going to make an impact. It just might not be in the main event.

Projection: Multi-Time Cruiserweight Champion/Upper Mid Card Ring General

4. Nikki Cross

This might surprise some, but it shouldn’t. Nikki has SO much potential. As with many in my top 5, she has a well-defined character that many can understand. She’s a psychotic, wild and unpredictable. Her in ring work is beginning to match the character and that can only mean better things are to come. For me, she is my favorite part of Sanity and it’s not even close. My hope is that she stays in the stable and ousts Eric Young.

Nikki is only going to get better. Her match with Asuka is just the tip of the iceberg. There has been talk of women main-eventing Wrestlemania and I think it is entirely possible. Charlotte, Bayley, Sasha Banks and Asuka are the front runners for that honor. For me, the dark horse is Nikki Cross. She has to tighten up her game some and find the hard camera some more for her character work. But these negatives will come with time.

Projection: Solid Hand in the Ring/Possible Main Eventer

3. Bobby Roode

No one in NXT is main roster ready like Bobby Roode. The Gimmick is top notch and Bobby is more than capable in the ring. I know I can’t wait for the entrance at Wrestlemania and hearing 75,000 people singing “Glorious”.

The main issue I see with Bobby is his age. The fact is he’s 40. In the modern wrestling world with high impact matches, you should wonder how many bumps are left on his bumb card. Bobby will still be successful, but for how long?

Either way, Roode will be successful and can easily hold many titles.

Projection: Mid Carder/Occasional Main Eventer

2. Aleister Black

I’ll give it to you straight. I’m a mark for this guy. The first time I saw him was when he was Tommy End and he faced another favorite of mine Tommasso Ciampa in AAW outside of Chicago. The match was hard hitting, believable and built steadily for close to 30 minutes. What’s making Black stand out so much is the presentation. He has a character that is believable and unique. Anytime a mystical, other worldly character is presented and believed (Undertaker, Kane, Bray Wyatt) you can smell money. When I look at the current men’s roster, he has the best chance to main event.

The negatives are less obvious then Asuka’s but they are still noticeable. Although his English is noticeably better than Asuka’s, he may struggle with longer promo’s. We’ve yet to see him pull off long scripted promo’s and that could be the one thing that holds him back from reaching the level’s his in ring and character can reach. Also, Black has wrestled some physical matches on the Indy scene. At 32, he may not have many major injuries, but his bump card has taken several hits.

Regardless of the negatives, Black will succeed if he wants to in the WWE. And he could be a major player if he improves on the mic and stays away from major injuries.

Projection: Upper Mid Card/Main Eventer

1. Asuka

My top prospect in the WWE system is someone you may not expect. But, when looking at the roster, the women’s division has the greatest number of openings. The WWE is looking for depth in the women’s division and I would argue that no one in developmental, or on the main roster, is on Asuka’s level. Her strikes are incredible, he in ring psychology is excellent and her look is unique due to her colorful attire and attractive features. Another thing to note is her ability to work comfortably as a face or heel. Some may call her a tweener (which is fine) but when you look at how she wrestles a match, she can do both exceptionally.

Her weakness is obvious as well. English is her second language and that is holding her back when developing a character. Asuka is relying on the announce team to communicate her wants as a character. For now, it works. But going forward, she will have to improve so she can connect with fans.

Asuka has a bright future on the main roster. Dream matches with Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Alexa Bliss have the potential to be main event quality. And as a prospect, Asuka is that level of a prospect.

Projections: She’ll be WWE Women's Champion. The only question is how many times?

I believe the dream match to make is Asuka vs. Charlotte as a WrestleMania main event in 2019 or 2020

This caps off our NXT edition of The Wrestling Prospectus! We love getting comments, discussions and other friendly banter from passionate wrestling fans! Feel free to leave comments and start a discussion below, or on any of our Young Lion Wrestling articles throughout the site! With so many incredible wrestlers all around the world, look for future editions of The Wrestling Prospectus where we dive into NJPW, ROH and independent wrestling promotions across the globe.