Ranking the 5 greatest WWE NXT Champions ever

#4 Kevin Owens

Sami couldn't continue, Kevin Owens the New NXT Champion! @FightOwensFight #NXTTakeoverRival pic.twitter.com/dQMFwyUNtI

— Wrestling Fan (@WrestlingBITW) February 12, 2015

In February 2015, Kevin Owens defeated his longtime friend Sami Zayn at TakeOver: Rival to become the NXT Champion for the first time in his career.

From there on, there was no looking back for the man who ensured that he made the title a part of who he was, and his character and attitude brought the NXT Championship the spotlight it deserved in WWE.

Kevin Owens was the daredevil WWE NXT needed

#OnThisDay in 2015: NXT Champion Kevin Owens, makes his WWE MR TV debut as a challenger in the John Cena United States Open Challenge. pic.twitter.com/LcyEB7RPmz

— Allan (@allan_cheapshot) May 18, 2017

Adrian Neville, Finn Balor, and Sami Zayn all had great rivalries with the Prizefighter for the NXT Championship. But it was the rivalry he had with then-United States titleholder John Cena that made him a true Champion and enhanced his reputation as one of the most well-known NXT Superstars at the time.

Owens defeated Cena at Elimination Chamber 2015 to prove a point to the entire WWE Universe in the best match of the event and helped put NXT on the path to greatness.

The Prizefighter played a heel throughout his reign that lasted over four months and gave us some memorable moments long before NXT made it big in the wrestling industry.

Will we be lucky enough to watch KO return to NXT sometime soon and have another great run as the Champ?