Pro Wrestling

NXT’s International Flavor Could Change Trend In WWE

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By @sdmeyers1

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Although WWE stands for World Wrestling Entertainment, the WWE’s roster has been headlined almost exclusively by American-born competitors over the past few years. Nearly all of the top stars, including John Cena, Brock Lesnar, Seth Rollins, Randy Orton, Dean Ambrose, Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler, are U.S. natives.

The roster in NXT is in complete contrast, however, as the top six stars are all foreign-born. This list includes Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens and Tyler Breeze, all of whom hail from Canada, as well as Adrian Neville (England), Finn Balor (Ireland) and Hideo Itami (Japan). Add another Canadian in Tyson Kidd, who competed in an array of top matches over the past year in the promotion, and the NXT roster has perhaps the most diverse collection of international talent in wrestling history.

Over the past few years, Triple H has made a concerted effort to sign some of the best talent from around the globe to compete in NXT, with the ultimate goal for those competitors to reach the WWE.

So far, the influx of foreign talent has paid massive dividends, as both Neville and Zayn have held the NXT Heavyweight Championship and produced some of the top matches in 2014. Owens appears to be on a similar path as well as he could challenge for the title within his first three months on the roster. Likewise, Balor and Itami have formed a formidable duo, and Balor in particular appears destined for greatness. Breeze too has been a top talent, and has already headlined several marquee NXT events.

The big test will come if and when these superstars get the call to the main roster, however. Neville appears first in line for a promotion, and he could join the WWE as early as this month. Zayn also seems ready to make the jump, although he will likely remain in NXT as long as he’s the champion. Balor and Itami, proven stars in Japan, are also believed to be on the fast track to the main roster.

As recently as a couple of years ago, the WWE included an array of prominent international competitors. Former heavyweight champions including Edge, Chris Jericho, Christian, Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio and Rey Mysterio (although he’s technically U.S.-born) provided diverse looks and styles, and appealed strongly to the fans in their home countries. All of them are currently absent from WWE programming for a variety of reasons, and only Sheamus will likely make a significant impact going forward.

If NXT is an indication though, the next wave of international flavor could soon be on its way to the main roster. With the stale product WWE has provided in recent months, this trend could be the boost the company needs to return it to past glory.

Sean Meyers is a professional wrestling writer for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter and “Like” him on Facebook.

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