10 top Superstars to have graduated from NXT

#5 Shinsuke Nakamura

Nakamura’s second NXT Championship victory was clearly an emotional one for the man himself

Shinsuke Nakamura, for many years now, has been regarded as the most charismatic man in pro wrestling. His energetic performances over in NJPW had marked him out as a man the world would like to see a lot more of, and they got their wish in 2016 as Shinsuke was assigned to NXT.

Debuting against Sami Zayn in one of the best NXT matches ever, at TakeOver: Dallas, this performance instantly had Nakamura off and running.

Fans warmed to him straight away, and his rapid ascent to the top of NXT was complete by August of last year, when he defeated Samoa Joe to become NXT Champion for the first time. Before long, he was a two-time champion, and everybody was begging to see Nakamura on the main roster.

Finally, in April 2017, it happened; Nakamura made his Smackdown Live debut, and since then has looked like a genuine star in the making.

Admittedly, his first match against Dolph Ziggler at Backlash didn’t quite live up to expectations, but he’s still being pushed as one of the top guys on the blue brand. All of this was made possible by his explosive run in NXT, and it will be fascinating to see just how far Nakamura can go in the WWE.

All the signs are pointing towards him going a very long way.