Roderick Strong is one of the most talked about professional wrestlers in America in the last few years, and may make a big impact on the biggest stage of them all.
The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is set to take place in the rings of NXT, with matches already having taken place on NXT tv. The tournament is an opportunity for WWE to put together some new tag teams (No Way Jose and Rich Swann, Hideo Itami and Kota Ibushi), put a rocket under a team they’re trying to establish (Authors of Pain) or to build the legacy of one of your star teams (The Revival).
This year’s tournament may also see one of the biggest stars on the indy wrestling circuit make his WWE/NXT debut. We may be about to see Roderick Strong make a dramatic debut in the biggest wrestling company in the world.
As part of the tournament, Austin Aries has entered, albeit with a “Mystery Partner”. It’s widely expected that the other half of that team will be Roderick Strong. The two men are former Ring of Honor Tag Team Champions, Strong also held the ROH TV title as well as the ROH World Championship. On top of that, he has held the PWG Tag Team titles as well as the PWG World Championship. Having wrestled around the world, Strong has held gold almost everywhere he has called home.
Strong said his farewells to the ROH crowd earlier in the summer, as well as signing off in PWG not long after. Having made his debut in the year 2000, Roderick Strong has wrestled everywhere, been a massive star around the world and is now set to make his mark in WWE.
The arrival of Strong in NXT is a massive coup for the WWE. During his 13 years in ROH, he became known as “Mr. ROH” but left the company after allegedly becoming disillusioned by the lack of ideas for him in ROH. A man who became the heart and should of the company, he saw men like CM Punk, Bryan Danielson, and AJ Styles use ROH as a route to the promised land of WWE. But Strong has the potential to be just as important in NXT as those three men have become in WWE.
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At a time when NXT is somewhat lacking in big name, main event stars, Roderick Strong could become the next main event standout for the company. Teaming with Aries is a fantastic way to bring him into the company. Having them go right to the final, and a potential match with The Revival could be a great way to build Strong as a big star in the company, in only a few matches.
With a probable rematch between NXT Champion Shinsuke Nakamura and Samoa Joe, at NXT TakeOver:Toronto over Survivor Series weekend, it looks like we’ll need a new challenger going forward. Strong could be a great opponent for Nakamura in the NXT Title picture. He’s held the top titles in two of the best indy promotions (if you can really count ROH as and Indy promotion) and is a standard bearer between those ropes. There’s no doubt he would raise his game to the next level inside a WWE branded ring.
Having made a brief appearance in WWE over a decade ago, in the “Kurt Angle Invitational” on SmackDown, Strong looks set to have more of an impact on the company this time round.
Strong has a style that would fit well in the main event scene of any company in the world. He has a hard-hitting style, utilising some fantastic technical wrestling, with what seems like a million backbreaker variations, something that saw him nicknamed “The Messiah of the Back Breaker”.
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If you want a man to instantly fill a spot in your main event, then Roderick Strong is your man. He’s travelled the world, honed his craft for over 15 years, and will be one of your new favourite wrestlers, when he makes his NXT debut alongside Austin Aries in the next few weeks.