SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
PWTorch has independently confirmed that Adam Cole has signed with WWE and will be debuting in NXT. PWInsider first reported Cole’s signing. According to PWInsider, Cole is set to report to the Performance Center this week.
According to sources, Cole is expected to get a good push in NXT, but WWE is planning on scaling back on the pushes wrestlers get coming out of the indies and ROH when they debut. As of now, the plan isn’t for Cole to be pushed as a top heel, as that slot is being reserved for another talent. Triple H reportedly has a large amount of homegrown talent that he feels are ready for NXT that are going to be given a shot on TV in the near future.
Radican’s Analysis: Cole’s signing has seemed inevitable for a long time now and it’s not a surprise that it has become official. He still has some indy dates to finish, as he recently won the Wrestle Circus Tag Team Championship with his girlfriend Brit Baker. Cole is an extremely talented performer with tons of charisma. He’s undeniable, so it’s a matter of when and not if he will be a top guy in NXT. Cole should also do quite well on the main roster once he gets there as well.
Sources in NXT have told me they are scaling back on how hard talent is pushed coming off runs in the indies and ROH. Drew McIntyre secured a good deal for himself before leaving the indies and going to NXT, but it seems like wrestlers that would have been hot had they been pushed hard out of the gate have been scaled back.
Other wrestlers such as Kassius Ohno have been an afterthought. Ohno, who was the MVP of the indies in 2016 and arguably one of the best wrestlers in the world, since reporting to NXT hasn’t even made a Takeover special yet and he hasn’t had anything close to a buzz-worthy program.
Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly recently made their NXT debuts and they each lost on separate occasions to Aleister Black on TV, which matches up with what sources have been telling people recently about how most ROH talent will be pushed in NXT going forward.
Why would Kassius Ohno be pushed? He’s fat. And not fat in a good way, but fat in a “i don’t care about staying in shape and i’ll just wear a shirt to cover it up” way.
Aside from that, NXT should push guys that have the talent, charisma and the potential, regardless of whether they came from the Indies or not. Does WWE want stars or don’t they? Maybe Vince doesn’t like the fact that indy stars he doesn’t really want to push get hot reactions from the crowd.