Tommorow, February 23rd will be the 1 year anniversary of the debut of the greatest show in the history of pro wrestling. WWE NXT. Eight men all looking to fulfill a dream. A dream that would see them gaining a WWE contract and a shot at a title in the future. I would like to look back and analyze where the last year has lead these eight competitors.
Michael Tarver: From the first time we saw Michael Tarver he was spouting how he could knock out any man in just 1.9 seconds. When his time on the show had ended, he knocked out nobody and only had one victory under his belt (final record of 1-9). Over time he voluntarily withdrew from many challenges and at the end his elimination was due to him saying he should be the one to go. As all eight guys did, when the show ended, he made an impact by attacking John Cena, CM Punk, Justin Roberts, Jerry Lawler, security, etc. But it was during this attack in which he did what he had proclaimed he could do for 4 months prior. He knocked out John Cena. It was after several other men attacked him but still, he proved he could do it. He was the third man eliminated from Nexus. This was due to a leg injury, he returned to TV in early 2011 but has done nothing more than appear in backstage segments. When Tarver first got eliminated off NXT, I along with many others seemed to believe that he would become a bodyguard for Ted Dibiase, a new Virgil. He had spoken when he first began the show about how he had six children and had lived in a car for several years, so many put two and two together (Tarver needs money, Dibiase has it) and made the connection. Looking back on what has happened since then, it was definitely more beneficial for Tarver to be in Nexus, going with Dibiase would not have gotten him very far. Dibiase spent most of the summer feuding with R-Truth and then with Goldust, while Tarver was in the main event of Summerslam and a main part of RAW for several months. His injury came at a bad time. I would like to think that if he didn't get injured he would have been the one to get a tag title reign with John Cena, when instead it went to David Otunga. The longer Tarver is on TV without actually doing anything, I don't see him being able to regain his position on the show. I had assumed that he would be the man who attacked Teddy Long in early January 2011 but instead it just seemed to be the beginning of his new "hanging out backstage" hobby.
Daniel Bryan: Daniel Bryan was the star of the first few weeks. The very first main event of the show featured him 1 on 1 against Chris Jericho. World Heavyweight Champion Chris Jericho. During that match, he got rag-dolled into the announce table. Something that left him with intense bruises on his back and led to his loss that week. The next week he lost to Wade Barrett. Someone who is larger than him. I wrote this loss off as him still feeling the effects of the table incident. 8 losses later he was winless and it went from him having a reason each time that he lost, to him looking completely inept. He was a great wrestler but couldn't win. When the first elimination came, much like Michael Tarver did, Daniel Bryan said he should be the one to go. Unlike Tarver's reasoning that it was in the best interest of the other competitors for him to go, Bryan pointed out that he was winless and he did not deserve to stay on the show. After he was eliminated he did an interview in which he seemed to imply that he was throwing the matches and said "Daniel Bryan" may be done and the future is for "Bryan Danielson". In the past 9 months, that is the only time that name has been mentioned. He started a brief feud with Michael Cole over Cole referring to him as a nerd, but it was an attack on another announcer that set things in waves for him. During the Nexus attack, Daniel Bryan choked ring announcer Justin Roberts with a tie. This got him fired from the company later that week. Eventually he returned at Summerslam as the surprise 7th man of Team WWE. In the time since that match, Daniel Bryan became the only member of NXT to win singles gold and is currently the longest reigning champion in the WWE. In completing all of that , it kind of destroys the myth that winning NXT matters. His more memorable NXT moments may be from his mentoring Derrick Bateman on Season 4.
Skip Sheffield: Sheffield was the first man who was eliminated in the traditional "pro vote" sense. He was very popular with the fans due to his happy go lucky cowboy persona, but after he got eliminated, he refocused himself and became more intense. His role in Nexus was as a silent monster. His clothesline with a tree-trunk of an arm devastated people. He has the look of someone who can and will do big things in the wrestling industry. Former WWE Writer John Piermarini claimed in his blog that WWE power players see him as a #2 face in the future. Nexus got him back on the TV, but I believe it held him back from potentially becoming something huge. As part of a unit, he stood out less than he could have. He suffered an injury over the fall that has kept him out since. He is supposed to be back right around Mania so I feel that he could be the big post mania return. I think Sheffield has the potential to be the next Brock Lesnar (barring the UFC transition)
Darren Young: Apparently when the season ended, Darren Young had the best overall record. I don't know how that happened and since then it has once again reassured the myth that NXT matters. Out of the 8 guys from the show, he has accomplished the least. He hasn't been injured, hasn't been fired but still he has done basically nothing of note. It seemed like he was gonna be placed in a main role as the opposition to Nexus but after his singular appearance in the main event of RAW, he hasn't done anything of note in that aspect. He wasn't in the Royal Rumble despite being advertised. The moral of the story is "Everything Success is, Darren Young isn't"
Heath Slater: Heath Slater was the final member of NXT to be defeated. He pinned the World Heavyweight Champion on NXT. Everything seemed to be going Slater's way. Unlike Skip Sheffield, Heath Slater more than benefited from Nexus. He doesn't have the unique standout look that Skip Sheffield does, he isn't very big. Nexus was his only real shot to get back onto tv. Had it not been for the group, he would have been forgotten about. Right now he is holding tag team gold with Justin Gabriel. As much as I like Slater, I fear that when that team ends, Gabriel will be the one to get the push and Slater will go to the wayside. Heath needs to be associated with someone to remain where he is. He has reached his plateau and I don't think he will go much higher than that.
Justin Gabriel: Gabriel's involvement in the Nexus attacks were quite possibly the most memorable. His 450 splash is popular. During the whole run of the show, he was one of my least favorite competitors, I can't put my finger on why. His involvement in the attacks changed that for me. His 450 splash finalized each attack. Then as the attacks continued, the sadistic look on his face changed to become a regretful one. If it were my choice, Gabriel would have been the one to be in the Darren Young position. He could have been great opposition for Nexus. The Tag Title reigns he has had with Heath Slater seem to be holding him back from bigger things.
I think people want to cheer him and I am sure that if given a chance he could become a strong contender for the IC or US title. I believe he could be a mainstream star. He is the first African superstar the company has had (Akeem and Kofi aren't gonna be counted) and I think his looks will draw in the female fans.
David Otunga: Otunga is the guy the WWE wanted to be the star. He is the one who got the mainstream attention. His relationship with Oscar Winner Jennifer Hudson made him a focus and I thought he was gonna be the one that won the show because of it. Over the process of the show it, he became somewhat of a joke and during the season 1 finale, Wade Barrett verbally massacred him. Otunga eventually won the tag team titles with John Cena but it was a short reign. He hasn't done much since then. Just a sidekick for CM Punk right now. He was just a sidekick for Wade Barrett for a few months. David Otunga, as Barrett said in the finale, has no quality the WWE can use, other than being married to someone famous.
Wade Barrett: The Winner of NXT Season 1. He feuded with the top man in the company for close to 6 months. He was the focus of the main show of the company for all that time. However, at the end of his feud with Cena, he didn't seem special anymore. I think he still has potential for a great future but he is placed with other guys. I thought his move to Smackdown was gonna lead to him breaking out on his own instead he got a new Nexus style group. Nexus hurt him. He had the contract already but his loyalty to the other 7 men caused him to bring them along. It made him seem like he couldn't hang on his own. There is still some question as to whether he can, if he was good enough to win the show, why isn't he good enough to go at it on his own? I once was a big Barrett fan, at the beginning of the NXT show, I supported him. During Nexus, I still supported him but over the past few weeks I have gotten tired of him.
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