One of the more exciting things about this year’s post-WrestleMania Raw was the debuting of NXT talent. Even better, Kalisto and Neville were treated like stars and really given the chance to shine. No JBL screaming about what insolent punks they are. No “they made it in NXT, but this is the BIG LEAGUES” comments from Michael Cole. No Charlotte getting rolled up by Natalya. What changed?
Vince McMahon finally watched NXT, that’s what. While Vince has to have seen tapes, he’d never attended NXT live until last week’s live show in San Jose. Vince was there along with Stephanie McMahon and Shawn Michaels, and he apparently enjoyed the show, liking the action and the hot crowd of nearly 5,000 in attendance. The show went an hour longer than it was supposed to, and speculation is that it was Vince’s call.
Vince is said to be particularly high on two talents, and they’re both women. Vince was very into Charlotte and decided that he wanted her to be a major focus of their upcoming Tapout ad campaigns. He’s also reportedly a fan of Sasha Banks’ personality and work.
Could it really be this simple? Could Vince actually watching NXT and realizing that it kicks ass be the missing part of the puzzle? Could NXT stars being called up be a less scary prospect all of a sudden? Hey, Neville didn’t show up with Mighty Mouse ears on Raw, so things may be looking up.
