Asuka: #3 in the Top 10 Wrestlers of 2016

116 matches. 0 losses.

In sheer dominance, no one holds a candle to the woman once known as Kana. She has dominated the women's division of NXT since the year began. Not even Bayley's road to glory could slow her down. She dominated Bayley, Nia Jax, Alexa Bliss and Mickie James over the course of the year. She handed multiple talents losses in under a minute.

Image credit: WWE.com.

And let's get this out of the way: Goldberg never looked this good as he dominated his way through WCW.

For while Asuka's win streak in NXT is impressive, perhaps it is her uncanny in ring acumen that should really get the most talk here. You can count on one hand the number of WWE talents as gifted as she is in striking and technical prowess. She can even pull out high flying moves when necessary although with her kicks and the Asuka Lock, she rarely needs to even think about the ropes.

At 35, she's older than almost every other woman on WWE's roster. (Only Tamina and the recently re-signed Mickie are older.) But though she's wrestling for over a decade, she's always worked a far more limited schedule than a regular WWE talent. Mixed with a style that looks aggressive but is built to limit much of the wear and tear a wrestler faces in the ring, she still has a lot of years ahead of her. With few injuries in her background, she seems built to be a dominant player in WWE well into her 40s.

Of course, when she arrives on the main roster will be anyone's guess. But in the mean time, expect her to be dominant on NXT until she's ready to be called up. And even if she loses the title, don't expect it to be by pinfall. WWE has triple threats and fatal four ways specifically to keep characters like Asuka dominant for many more months to come.

Bullet points: Week one of the brand extension

A few more bullet points, this time focused on the highlights of this week's Raw and Smackdown.

Finn Balor looked amazing while Roman Reigns' wellness policy
punishment streak got underway. Image credit this page: WWE.com.

• The Raw roster is infinitely deeper than the Smackdown roster. Even without the incoming cruiserweight division (I assume in September), the roster already feels bloated. The brand certainly doesn't need the influx of classic talent that the Smackdown roster is already getting.
• WWE has been wise so far in their additions from the past on Smackdown. Rhyno is a guy that

  

  Rhyno still has a lot he can give
  to the blue brand. 

  never got a real shot to shine in WWE for any significant period of time. He's got all the tools he needs to be a credible upper midcarder for years to come and hopefully he'll get that chance. Shelton Benjamin is honestly one of the most talented WWE stars to never be a World champion. While I don't see him ever getting to that plateau with his return, he should continue to bring great matches. And if WWE can lure Charlie Haas back even for a few weeks, American Alpha versus the World's Greatest Tag Team is a definite dream match.
• Nia Jax isn't ready for the main roster. Dana Brooke got a lot of flack when she was called up, but in my opinion, Nia is worse. She's going to get a huge push and she simply doesn't have the seasoning she needs for it to work. I could be proven wrong, but she has no place anywhere near Charlotte, Paige or new champion Sasha Banks yet.
• The Miz should have been in the battle royal, not sitting on the sidelines to get beat by Randy Orton. Ditto for American Alpha. I get you don't want them to debut in a battle royal they lose, but it makes no sense when the heads of the brand say "everyone has a chance" and three talents not booked for Summer Slam yet don't get a chance. 
• I'm excited to see new talents rise to the top of the rosters, but it very much feels like the writing is already on the wall about the placement of title matches on Summer Slam. Either Orton versus Lesnar or Styles versus Cena will almost certainly get the main event spot on the pay-per-view while Dolph Ziggler and Finn Balor get their chances farther down the card. 
• I really hope WWE uses a Dean Ambrose / Dolph Ziggler feud to turn Ziggler heel. In the perfect world, they would team Ziggler with his now respected rival Baron Corbin and let the two have a strong Michaels / Diesel style run with the title before the inevitable breakdown. 
• Enzo and Big Cass need to find a storyline quickly. The two Certified Gs are far too important to The New Era to have them beating up jobbers on Raw without any real purpose. 
• I expect next week's Smackdown will give us the start of at least one title tournament. I suspect we will see some kind of tag team title as well as a second women's belt (which I'm guessing will be called the Revolution title.) If the blue brand really is the show to go for solid wrestling, they would be foolhardy not to book solid tournaments as opposed to the fatal four way setup Raw gave on Monday night. 
• I'm personally more excited about WWE's weekly shows than I have been for months. I'm back to watching them regularly after over a year of pay-per-view only viewing. If they can keep up the quality, I can seriously see the brand extension pulling in a lot of new or lapsed viewers.

Could Becky Lynch be the face of a new title on Smackdown?

Both shows looked solid and if this is truly the beginning of a New Era of dual brands, WWE is off to a great start. Hopefully the momentum can continue in the weeks ahead as both shows prepare their matches for the four hour Summer Slam spectacle.

The draft... happened: a few underwhelmed thoughts

I know I am certainly not the only person that found the WWE Draft a bit underwhelming. While far stronger than the version we got from WWE way back in 2002 or the random lottery of later years, the order of so many of the picks were so random. Midcard champions not going until the sixteenth and seventeenth overall pick is certainly insane, while the number one contenders to those titles are treated like also-rans drafted on the secondary show.

Despite much ballyhoo about WWE trying to make Smackdown as strong as Raw, the action of the night really didn't bring that out. Raw seemed programmed to the future with Zayn, Cesaro, Owens and Balor all in strong places while Smackdown feels like it will have to be built around Ambrose, Styles, Wyatt and Cena simply because the roster isn't very deep beyond them. Orton could be a wildcard but he likely will be looking few live events, similar to Cena's new schedule. That especially makes Smackdown an incredibly weak touring brand.

The NXT signings were mostly underwhelming. Balor went high and should get a massive main roster push. American Alpha should be the focus of the Smackdown tag division going ahead, although if that comes with no title belts who knows how important that will really feel. Nia Jax feels way too soon. Alexa Bliss, Carmella and Mojo Rawley could all work on the main roster, but none really feel like they've accomplished enough in NXT to make the call-ups sensible. Other NXT veterans like Tye Dillinger would be more sensible, while Austin Aries, Samoa Joe and Bobby Roode have already showed they can be main event players. However one shimmer of sunlight: it does seem likely we will see the Hype Bros finally start a strong run on Smackdown, though whatthey can accomplish is anyone's guess.

Of course, the real question of the future will be built around the writers. Raw continues with the same writer it has had for quite some time, a man without a real good sign of knowing how to freshen things up. Smackdown looks to be in the charge of Ryan Ward, former NXT head writer, which could mean a stronger simpler booking method for the show. More storylines built around strong athletic competition seems sensible, but without so many of the superstar NXT alum like the aforementioned Zayn, Cesaro, Owens and Balor, it feels more like rehabilitation for older stars (Dolph Ziggler) and continued Ward pet projects (Baron Corbin and Apollo Crews.)

Next week, we will see with the beginning of a new era for the two brands. Here's hoping they give us the future WWE deserves with the talent it now possesses.

The NXT Top 10 for May 2016

It is that time again. It was December when the talents of NXT last appeared in a Top 10 list, and since that time four names on the list moved up to the main roster. With six new slots open, NXT talent have a chance to make a big debut on this month's list!

Alexa makes her debut in the NXT Top 10 this month. Image credit: WWE.com.

1. Alexa Bliss: Though her allies Blake and Murphy seem to have no luck whatsoever, over the last few months Alexa has become a true veteran of the women's division. Outside the three other women on the list, she's also one of the few signed talents to regularly be featured now that Emma and Dana have moved to the main roster. Her chances at another title shot right now seems slim, but she could have a great match with the new Women's Champion. (U/1)
2. Austin Aries: Aries made a splash in Dallas, but still hasn't really done anything of huge significance on the roster. Until that happens, he will remain a solid midcard player. I wouldn't be surprised to see a heel turn for him in the near future, hopefully as a move towards a feud with the top star on this list. (U/1)
3. The Revival: The former tag team champions are still on a tear as they seek to regain their former titles. Dash and Dawson are strong enough talents for the main roster already, but I suspect they will have a continued path on NXT for the next several months as they help cement a strong tag division without Enzo, Cass and The Vaudevillains. (6/2)
4. Nia Jax: Nia has mostly been the star of squash matches since she lost to Bayley in December. But even with one loss under her belt, she has been a major player in the women's division. Though she still is far from the strongest female star on the roster, the slow brewing feud between her and Asuka promises a huge match in the future of NXT. (U/1)
5. American Alpha: Jason Jordan and Chad Gable may be the most over stars on the NXT roster if it wasn't for a major signing that has electrified the company. Jordan and Gable have the potential to be huge stars either as a team or, eventually, singles stars. A long tag team reign is the perfect role for them now as they continue to electrify the roster with stellar match after stellar match. (7/3)
6. Bayley: The former women's champion took a large hit to her push when she passed out to Asuka in Dallas, but she really embodies Sami Zayn's old moniker: the heart and soul of NXT. While her future with WWE's secondary brand seems limited, she still stands as one of the developmental brand's biggest talents ever. Wherever she goes, she has a bright future with WWE. (3/2)
7. Finn Balor: Last time around, Finn was the number one man on the list. The loss of his NXT title at a house show hurt his standings, but his greatest problem right now is his failure to connect with NXT's audience as strongly as other faces on the roster. Arguably Bayley and American Alpha get more cheers than Balor, but they aren't as highly featured. Still the number four position is as high as Balor honestly can be featured here. (1/3)
8. Asuka: The #3 and #2 spot were hard to judge, but the lack of regular appearances by Asuka since her big title win in Dallas dropped her to the three spot. Asuka is an unstoppable beast on the NXT roster and hugely over with the live audience. She gets tons of cheers (at least outside of matches with Bayley) and her dominant run in the women's division marks her as a star to watch in the future of NXT and WWE. (4/3)
9. Samoa Joe: The new NXT champion lacks a strong storyline right now, with only the continuation of his feud with Finn Balor keeping his story going. While the unexpected debut of Eric Young (still not a signed NXT talent) changed things up a bit, Joe still needs a few more strong victories and new foes before he really starts to look like the champion and main event player we all know he can be. (2/3)
10. Shinsuke Nakamura: "Fight forever." Nakamura instantly electrified the NXT audience with his debut match against Sami Zayn. Subsequent beat downs of Tye Dillinger, Alex Riley and Elias Samson have kept that streak going. He easily gets more cheers than any other talent on the roster. A major player if he should stick around NXT, WWE already has him signed to the Hawaii Bash at the Beach show with the main roster. While we won't see him reignite his NJPW feud with Brock Lesnar in NXT, the match between the two could easily jet Nakamura to the main roster quickly. Right now, it will be hard to top him as the new most beloved star of NXT. (U/1)

The former IWGP Heavyweight and IC champion made a huge debut in NXT.
Image credit: NJPW.

NXT Advent Calendar Day 17: Takeover London review

Takeover London closed out NXT's special event schedule for 2015 with five explosive matches. And while the show lacked for surprises or big reveals, it did bring two full hours of solid wrestling action from top to bottom.

Image credit: WWE.com.

The show opened with an impressive fifteen minute battle between Emma and Asuka. While Emma and compatriot Dana Brooke tried to pull out every shady tactic they could to pick up the win, including a chain and a distraction during the Asuka Lock, but Asuka continued her streak of dominance in NXT with a win after an explosive kick.

NXT Advent Calendar Day 15: Takeover London preview

Takeover London finishes up the NXT event calendar for 2015, but much like R Evolution last December, it looks to send out the WWE's top brand with a huge end of the year event.

Image credit: WWE.com.

The card is shorter than most recent Takeover cards, shortened from the usual six matches to five despite a longer showtime of 2 hours 30 minutes. This could mean an added match or it could mean an extended Sami Zayn return segment or it could really mean just about anything. But with only five scheduled matches, I would expect each of the announced contests to get at least ten minutes of in ring time, certainly up from a lot of match times at recent NXT supercards.

Is Nia Jax the second coming of Kharma?

Kharma was a failed experiment by WWE, mostly due to a lot of unwanted media attention in the aftermath of her failed pregnancy. But most fans agree that Awesome Kong could have been great in the WWE Divas division, maybe even giving the current "Divas Revolution" a jumpstart years ahead of time. But it wasn't to be.

Image credit: WWE.com.

Last night on NXT, Nia Jax made her in ring debut in a brutal takedown of Shimmer regular Evie. It was a great match with the much smaller and more seasoned Evie selling like a million bucks for the massive new Samoan star. In all the right ways, Nia reminded long time viewers of the dominance of Awesome Kong in the early days of the TNA Knockouts. She looked like a monster, which was a smart way to book her first onscreen match.