NXT was raided in the 2016 WWE Draft, but Triple H made sure to protect at least one of the brand’s top stars.
In 2016, the WWE returned the brand split, which began with a draft in July. Raw and SmackDown Live selected their rosters, which consisted of superstars already on the roster and fresh faces from NXT.
Six (technically seven) superstars were taken from developmental: Finn Balor, American Alpha, Mojo Rawley, Alexa Bliss, Carmella, and Nia Jax. They’ve all made impacts on the main roster, whether it’s holding titles (Balor, American Alpha, Bliss), winning a major match (Rawley), holding Money in the Bank (Carmella) or finding out the Raw General Manager is coincidentally your father (Jason Jordan).
There were a few big names left in NXT when the draft was completed: Samoa Joe, Shinsuke Nakamura, Tye Dillinger, Bayley, and Asuka. Triple H recently spoke to For The Win about why he chose to keep the latter woman in NXT, making a specific request to Vince McMahon for her to not leave Full Sail University:
"“I would never want to limit someone’s growth or their opportunities, but when Vince brought it up to me, I said the one person who we can’t afford to lose is Asuka. You could take everybody else you want to take – and trust me, he did – but I need her as an anchor. If I lose her and everybody else, I’m doomed.”"
It looked like NXT was doomed at the time. The spark around the show didn’t seem like it was there as it was in 2015, which led to a mini-rebuild and a different look for NXT.
As for Asuka, she remains NXT Women’s Champion, but that could change on Saturday night, at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III. She’ll face Ember Moon.
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If the Empress of Tomorrow drops the belt, speculation will return about a call-up to the main roster. Bayley’s shoulder injury only helps that cause. So, keep your eyes peeled for TakeOver, as it could mark the beginning of the end and start of something else.