5 WWE Superstars who were champions just months before their release

#4. Former WWE NXT North American Champion Leon Ruff

Leon Ruff has won the NXT North American Championship #WWENXT pic.twitter.com/p99WS7LlUo

— HeelByNature.com (@HeelByNatureYT) November 12, 2020

Leon Ruff was once seen as one of the stars who could be the future of WWE. Ruff was able to win the North American Championship in his first official match on the black and yellow brand.

He went on to lose the title back to Gargano a few months later at NXT Takeover: War Games, before becoming part of WWE's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic alongside Kushida. The two stars were knocked out of the tournament at the quarter-finals stage when they lost to The Grizzled Young Veterans.

He was a regular face on the NXT brand throughout his short time under contract and feuded with a number of superstars including Isaiah "Swerve" Scott and Pete Dunne. Regardless, Ruff was one of a number of NXT Superstars who were released from their contract on August 6th.

This means that Ruff joins an elite list of WWE Superstars who were part of the company for less than a year, but were still able to win a Championship.