Tegan Nox & 9 NXT Call-Ups Who Barely Did Anything On WWE's Main Roster Before Being Released

May 2024 · 7 minute read

The recent WWE cuts have added more fuel to the discussion of just how much good NXT has really done for careers. Sure, some NXT stars became hugely successful on the main roster, yet the failures seem to outweigh the successes. Yet there are cases of guys, despite not being used right, still had their moments. Aleister Black can boast a Wrestlemania victory, which is more than a lot of people can say. Bobby Roode, the Author of Pain, Viking Raiders and others at least had some title runs as well.

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Yet it's striking how some NXT stars did next to nothing on the main roster. Some were major stars in that brand, dominating and looked perfect for RAW or SmackDown. That never happened, whether by bad luck, injury, or sheer incompetence. While the list seems to grow every week, these are ten prominent NXT acts who did nearly nothing on the main roster before being released and adding to the woes of NXT.

10 Ember Moon

Demotions from the main roster to NXT are rare, but Ember Moon was a case of someone better off there. Moon's problem wasn't her talent, it was being one of those folks cursed to get injured at the worst time. After becoming NXT Women's champion, Moon joined RAW and then SmackDown, but a terrible ankle injury put her on the shelf for months.

She held the tag titles with Shotzi but was among the cuts in early November. Maybe Moon could have done better without those injuries, yet NXT seemed more home for her.

9 Lars Sullivan

His WWE tenure marked by controversy, Lars Sullivan sure had the good look of a main event star. With his burly build, surly demeanor and the look of a man ready to go off at any minute, Sullivan crushed his way through NXT before joining the main roster. However, some comments got him in hot water and off TV for a bit.

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He came back to attack Kurt Angle but then sank to feuding with Lucha House Party and a knee injury. Sullivan himself asked for his release to end a messy tenure yet still striking how little he accomplished.

8 Mia Yim & Mercedes Martinz

Linked together by how the same horrible gimmick managed to ruin both promising women in WWE. Mia Yim and Mercedes Martinez faced off a few times in NXT, Yim the wild daredevil, while Martinez was set as the arrogant heel. Either could have pushed the women's division up and then came...Retribution.

Putting them under masks in what was viewed as the worst angle of 2020 did major harm to both women's careers, with Martinez making a brief NXT return before being cut. Yim has now joined her and proved how one bad angle is enough to mess up multiple careers.

7 Sanity

Eric Young made an impressive turnaround from TNA goofball to leader of a pack of psychos. Sanity made a big impression in NXT, winning the tag team titles and epic feuds with the Undisputed Era. Young, Killian Dain, Alexander Wolfe, Sawyer Fulton and Nikki Cross made a wild bunch that could have been a force on the main roster.

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Unfortunately, most fans will barely remember they even appeared on RAW or SmackDown before they were split. Cross managed to survive to become a champion while the other four are gone, with their impact on the main roster not worth mentioning.

6 Hit Row

It can be argued that Hit Row was called up way too early. Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, Ashante "Thee" Adonis, Top Dolla and B-Fab had the potential to be a fun stable with Scott and Adonis showing promise as a good tag team. They were simply too raw and needed time to work out the kinks.

Taken from NXT to SmackDown just a few months after forming exposed their shortcomings and likely played a part in their release (along with Top Dolla's backstage heat). Maybe a little longer in NXT could have worked as Hit Row sadly flopped and pushed to the bigger stage far too soon.

5 Chelsea Green

Chelsea Green had some good stuff going for her with a great look and nice skills, breaking out as the nutty Laurel Van Ness in TNA. Her time in NXT included a partnership with Roger Stone and quickly a highlight of the pandemic-era fan-free shows. Paul Heyman had plans for her to be called up to RAW, but he left before they could be used.

Instead, Green popped up on SmackDown where she was to win a Survivor Series qualifying match, but legit broke her wrist. She was released from her contract in April of 2021 after being unseen in months to make another NXT talent suffering some bad breaks.

4 EC3

It's rare, but sometimes, TNA handles a guy so much better than WWE ever could. The arrogant heel was a terrific multiple champion for the company and looked ready to continue that in WWE. He had some promising stuff in NXT and his promotion to the main roster could have him becoming a strong midcard heel.

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But after a brief feud with Dean Ambrose, EC3 was relegated to jobber status. Sure, he had a couple of reigns as 24/7 champion, but who hasn't at this point? It's no wonder he seemed happy to go back to TNA who at least knew how to promote him properly.

3 The Ascension

In many ways, the Ascension set a sad tone for how the main roster would misuse NXT talents. To this day, Konnor and Viktor hold the record for the longest NXT tag title reign, nearly a solid year. They had an awesome look, a terrific aura and all that was needed was to go to the top fast….and they were beaten by the New Age Outlaws.

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From there, losses to lame teams continued, a brief partnership with Stardust, dumped in battle royals and never more than jobbers. It's still amazing how a tag team of the future became yesterday's news in no time flat.

2 Karrion Kross

Meet the new poster boy for "NXT star turned main roster flop." Karrion Kross made an instant impact joining NXT in 2020, rising up fast to win the title. Sadly, he had to give it right up due to an injury, but there was a lot of heat on him when he returned.

He regained the title, fought Finn Balor then, as champion, debuted on RAW...where Jeff Hardy pinned him in two minutes. After dropping the NXT title, Kross joined RAW in a ridiculous outfit that made him an instant joke before being cut with no warning. If anything speaks to how badly WWE handles NXTtalents now, Kross is it.

1 Tegan Nox

It's sad for Tegan Nox that a promising WWE career was cut short by numerous injuries. She suffered no less than three ACL tears in her time with the company amid other issues, putting her on the shelf for months at a time. That's likely a key factor in why WWE cut her loose just a few months after she joined SmackDown.

Nox's only time there was with Shotzi in a few tag team matches and then drafted to RAW but cut before ever showing up. Now going by her old name of Nixon Newell, Nox is hopefully getting time to recover before moving on from WWE.

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