Finn Balor was a major star even before he made his way to WWE. In NXT, Balor quickly became the No. 1 contender for the NXT Championship and kicked off a feud with Kevin Owens for the title. At The Beast In The East event in Tokyo, Japan, Balor faced Owens and won the belt.
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Finn Balor was also the inaugural Universal Champion, defeating Seth Rollins for the title before a shoulder injury forced him to vacate it. Balor's WWE career has come full circle, as he's the current NXT Champion in his second reign with the belt.
#8 Samoa Joe (April 21, 2016)
Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe was one of the most dangerous entities in all of NXT, back in 2016. Fans knew that it was only a matter of time before he captured the top belt on the brand. At an NXT live event, Joe defeated Finn Balor to win the NXT title. He would go on to have another reign with the belt as well.
His NXT success didn't lead to a fruitful main roster career though, as his injuries kept hampering his run on RAW/SmackDown. Samoa Joe is currently doing commentary on WWE RAW, after replacing WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler behind the desk.
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About the author
Abhilash Mendhe
Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.
Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.
He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.
Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.
When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.