5 Reasons why Johnny Gargano should be the next NXT Champion

#4 Fan Favorite

Few superstars have been more beloved by the NXT Universe than Johnny Wrestling

"Johnny Wrestling!" clap, clap, clap clap clap. It is a fan chant that breaks out whenever Johnny Gargano competes in the ring, and a sign of the tremendous fanfare he has garnered in NXT. Fans loved his matches in the cruiserweight classic, tag team division, and his recent singles run. It has been said that true faces and heels no longer exist in WWE, but Gargano is a superstar that you can make the face of your company.

While the position of "Face of WWE" has been earmarked for Roman Reigns for quite some time, Gargano may very well be the face of NXT. Almas might be the champion, be he is far from the face of the brand as stars like Aleister Black, Adam Cole, Gargano himself, and former champion Drew McIntyre remain bigger stars than Almas. That is not a knock on the champ as he has been given the ball and is running with it, but although the NXT universe enjoys his work they still gravitate more towards the men previously mentioned.

It is hard for fans not to gravitate to Johnny Gargano as he is easily identifiable. With an everyman's name like "Johnny" and a cool nickname (i.e. Johnny Wrestling) based of former Cleveland quarterback Johnny Manziel (i.e. Johnny Football), Gargano also has the distinction of being a little man in a big man's game.

While wrestling has evolved over the years, shifting from physically imposing muscle-heads like Hulk Hogan, to smaller in-ring technicians such as Bret Hart, to well-rounded jack-of-all-trades like Daniel Bryan. Wrestling is now run by charismatic high-flying superstars who can utilize submissions, strong style strikes, and storytelling techniques in the ring.

Despite the evolution of the prototypical wrestler, Gargano is still a 5'11" 205 lbs underdog trying to fight his way out of Triple H's underground pin and into Vince McMahon's yard.