Everyone has their expectations for 2021 to be a much better year than the mess we had in 2020. People set New Year’s resolutions (which we’ve already covered) and personal goals all the time, especially in pro wrestling.
Inevitably, one of the things you hear about from WWE superstars is that they hope at some point in the year, they’ll win a championship. Sometimes, it’s a specific belt in mind (ie, “I want to be world champion”) while others just want to take a step up in their careers with more gold to their names.
We don’t have access to control WWE Creative, nor can we influence any particular performer’s pros and cons, but we as fans can at least set our own expectations and hopes for these people in comparison. That’s what I’ll be doing here.
Instead of an article predicting who I think might win championships in 2021, I decided I’d switch it up a bit and open the floodgates. Let’s talk about who we WANT to win championships this year.
Since I’ve already talked about this similar topic for the main roster on B/R, I wanted to write a companion piece here that focuses on the stars from NXT and NXT UK. I invite you all to do the same with your own lists in the comments below!
Without further ado, let’s just start naming some superstars.
Josh Briggs – North American Championship
Admittedly, I’ve only seen a few matches of Josh Briggs’, but from what I did see, I was a fan. He seems like the type of guy who could come into NXT with a bit of a name already attached to him, rather than some totally random entity that has to be molded from nothingness.
I say give him a push straight to the midcard title. Allow just enough time for him to get his bearings with a starter feud and then move him into the title picture.
Look. If Leon Ruff can call himself a former NXT North American champion, why can’t Briggs? He’s a bigger athlete, so it’s easier to see him beating someone rather than having to do a fluke thing like with Ruff. But it’s also not too far up the card where he’s destined to fail from being pushed too fast. He still has room to grow.
I could see Briggs being a good foil for Cameron Grimes, maybe a heel Bronson Reed (more on him later) and others, including this next guy…
Austin Theory – Triple Crown
I feel like Austin Theory is the type of guy you can give a Randy Orton type of push toward, where we know he’s rock solid already and can be trusted with a lot early on.
For my money, make him a tag team champion alongside Johnny Gargano. Eventually, when Gargano drops the North American Championship, Theory could be one of the next in line, if not the next person to win the title from Gargano or from the person who beats Gargano.
Then, if there’s still time in the year and it makes sense, I could see him being NXT champion, too. A triple crown in one year would be something very noteworthy for his future as he could always tout “In my first year, I wrestled at WrestleMania. In my second year, I became a triple crown champion in NXT.” That’s monumental.
Noam Dar – NXT UK Heritage Cup +/ Cruiserweight Championship
For being as good as he is, Noam Dar continually gets overshadowed. I’m surprised he never won the Cruiserweight Championship back when 205 Live was less of an afterthought (a shame that happened).
Let’s rectify that. I’d rather have him as champion right now than Jordan Devlin. Not only do I prefer to watch Dar cut a promo, I think he’s arguably better in the ring (although that’s a tougher contest) and it wouldn’t hurt Dar to get a boost to his credibility so when he’s being so cocky, he has something to back it up.
But let’s assume the cruiserweight title doesn’t stay in NXT UK forever and it sticks with the current interim champion, Santos Escobar, instead. That would be my ideal scenario, by the way, even more than Dar winning the cruiserweight belt.
Instead, the other option would be for him to win the Heritage Cup. I think he should have been the winner from the very start, mind you, rather than A-Kid. I don’t get much out of watching A-Kid that I feel needed to be given the stamp of approval for the future with that honor, so I’m fine with him losing it soon enough to someone like Dar.
That is effectively the midcard title of NXT UK and since Dar isn’t going to beat WALTER any time soon, this is the next best option.
NXT Women’s Championship
Let’s lump all these superstars together, as I have basically the same thoughts about each one.
Dakota Kai’s been on the sidelines long enough. I don’t think I’d have her be the one who beats Io Shirai, but I’d like to see her win the title at some point instead of just never reaching the top. However, I’ll also shout out an idea that she and Raquel Gonzalez become women’s tag team champions. That would do, too. But in an ideal world, Kai could win the title and drop it to Tegan Nox to see the end of that storyline culminate in the nicest way possible. That’s likely never, ever going to happen, though.
Mercedes Martinez is someone I imagine will never win the belt, but I’m hoping I’ll be proven wrong. She’s too good not to, but she’s older than WWE tends to focus on. My guess is she’s brought on to work with everyone else and stay just strong enough that it matters when she’s fighting someone, but never actually reach the top. I think if she were to win the title, even for a short reign, being a former champion would help her in that mission to put over younger talent while being a nice feather in her cap.
Let’s also give the belt to Toni Storm—who should beat Io Shirai—and then Shotzi Blackheart (Breakout Star of the Year award winner) should be the one who beats Storm. If need be, that’s your year, with Storm holding it until the summer and Blackheart winning it then and carrying it into 2022.
Imperium – Heritage Cup & NXT UK Tag Team Championship
If WALTER is going to hold the NXT UK Championship forever (which I’m not even entirely opposed to), maybe it’d be nice to see the rest of Imperium hold titles, too.
Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner as tag team champions while Alexander Wolfe holds the Heritage Cup makes sense. That’s the dynamic of the group’s makeup, after all.
I’m not as sold on this one as some of the other things on this list, though. Frankly, it doesn’t need to happen. They’re already a credible faction without this. However, at the very least, I’d like for Barthel and Aichner to win the NXT UK Tag Team Championship. They’re more than worthy of those belts.
Damian Priest – NXT Championship
To be honest, I’m on the fence about this, too. It’s not a shot at Damian Priest, either. I think he’s more than capable of being NXT champion, as he’s impressed me a lot this year and I feel like he’s grown immensely as a performer.
I think it might be past the point where he should win it, though. Priest is already ready enough for the main roster, in my opinion. Why bother waiting any longer before moving him up to Raw or SmackDown, if that’s the case?
If Priest were to win the NXT Championship, he’d have to stay on the brand the majority of 2021. He definitely wouldn’t be winning it any time soon. It’ll go from Balor to Kross and then, Priest might be the guy to take him down. That’s pushing it until at least the summer, if not fall, which is a bit too long.
If that’s not the trajectory, though, I say give him the belt. He should either win that or go to Raw/SmackDown, rather than linger around in the midcard of NXT fighting for the North American Championship. There are plenty other superstars who can vie for that title instead while he’s off doing something above that.
Jake Atlas – Cruiserweight Championship
Simple. I think the guy’s talented enough that he should be the one who beats Santos Escobar or at least wins this title somewhere down the line.
There’s not much more to it than that.
Pete Dunne – North American or NXT Championship
Pete Dunne is great, isn’t he? The guy’s got this weird charisma on the mic despite how most people with that delivery would be a total bore. He’s phenomenal in the ring, too, and looks better than ever.
Give him the belt. Any belt. All the belts. He proved himself with his super long NXT UK Championship reign and how much fun he was alongside Matt Riddle as tag team champions The BroserWeights.
If you don’t want Dunne getting too involved in the NXT Championship (assuming that goes to Kross after Balor, rather than Dunne being the guy to beat Balor), then the North American Championship would be taken care of in his possession.
However, I’ll go one step further to say Dunne maybe should just go to the main roster, too. Depending on his travel interests, if he’s down for that, I say put him on Raw or SmackDown and give him the United States or, preferably, Intercontinental Championship.
Set up Dunne vs. Daniel Bryan for that Intercontinental Championship and I guarantee you it will be one of the Match of the Year candidates.
Bronson Reed – North American Championship
The colossal Bronson Reed is just begging for a heel turn. I can feel it. Once he does that, I think he’d make for a great midcard champion.
He’s not ready for the NXT Championship itself. Even if he stayed babyface, I’m assuming Finn Balor drops it to Karrion Kross. Then, Reed would be sacrificed to make Kross look stronger by beating someone so large.
Being fed to Kross would still be a step up, as he’d be fighting for that title. But I’d rather him be the secondary monster on the brand that people have to overcome. Maybe he’s the guy who someone like Josh Briggs beats to win the title.
Backtracking a bit, here’s a projection I’d like to see: Gargano drops it to Reed, who drops it to Theory, who drops it to Briggs, who can feud at some point with a heel Reed but not necessarily drop it back.
Mansoor – Something with NXT India
When Mansoor first came onto the scene, it seemed like WWE was just pandering to Saudi Arabia. They hire some guys, tout that they’ll be the future, then slowly release them over time.
However, Mansoor’s actually pretty damn good! He seems dedicated, passionate and all-in on being a WWE superstar, and I’ve legitimately enjoyed most of his performances enough to endorse him to win a title this year.
If he were to stay stateside, I think the only realistic title for him would be the cruiserweight belt. However, with NXT India supposedly in the works, that could present a bigger opportunity for him.
Assuming NXT India does happen and it includes wrestlers from Saudi Arabia, Mansoor could be the best choice for the first NXT India champion. He plays the babyface part well and I could see fans getting seriously behind him being their guy they put on a pedestal and watch grow over time, too. Maybe, just for the sake of it, he can beat Jinder Mahal in the final of the tournament so it feels like he accomplished something even better because he defeated a former WWE champion.
Drake Maverick – Cruiserweight Championship
One of my favorite things from 2020 was seeing Drake Maverick sign an NXT contract and get to keep his job. In a year with such little joy and hope, that was a standout moment of things turning around for the better.
I really wanted him to win that cruiserweight title, too. In the end, he got something better, but I want to come back around to this.
I don’t think there’s much of a chance he wins the NXT, North American or even tag team titles. However, I do think he could make for a great cruiserweight champion if WWE ever decides to give him the ball.
He could be the type of guy who wins the belt multiple times because he doesn’t retain it super long, but he just keeps coming back into the picture. Imagine him similar to The Miz winning the Intercontinental Championship so many times—except, of course, Maverick wouldn’t play that sort of A-lister d-bag character. Then again, he could probably pull that off in his own unique way, too.
At the very least, one reign where he can officially say he was a champion in WWE would probably mean the world to him and I think he deserves that sort of happiness.
Piper Niven – NXT UK Women’s Championship
By now, the ship has mostly sailed for Piper Niven. She’s had numerous attempts to beat Kay Lee Ray and failed each time. If she won it any time soon from KLR, it would feel like a misstep.
But if she doesn’t win it at all, how can WWE keep her credible? She’s the biggest woman on the roster and she’s failed to win any big matches. It’s already turning her into the female equivalent of Dave Mastiff, who looks like he should be a tough threat, but people 1/4 his size manage to take him out.
Niven is on the threshold of “shit or get off the pot” with her as someone to invest in. A few more losses and she’s dwindled her value to the point where I can’t imagine anyone getting hyped for her next challenge. With a few wins, though, maybe she can get back into the title hunt and finally pull it off.
I’m not holding out hope, to be honest. If they would have wanted her as champion, they would have pulled the trigger already, likely. But I’d hate to see someone get so close so many times only to ultimately never achieve that goal.
Which NXT stars do you want to see win championships this year? Tell us your thoughts and predictions in the comments below!
