WWE NXT: 5 wrestlers with massive breakout potential
4) James Drake
A former NXT UK Tag Team Champion, one could argue Drake already hit his breakout. I would argue against that notion. Why?
He hasn’t yet had his breakout as a singles competitor.
Drake intrigued me during the first NXT UK Championship tournament even though he looks like a longer-haired, British version of Seth Green. He moved fluidly and swiftly, and incorporated moves that belied his appearance. Even though he lost his first match in the tournament, you could see something there.
However, he floundered until forming Grrriiiizzzzled Young Veterans with Zack Gibson (one of the best heels in the business). Both wrestlers flourished as a team, becoming the inaugural NXT UK Tag Team Champion.
After losing the championship seven months later, they began competing stateside with matches against The Forgotten Sons, Undisputed Era, and the reunited Time Splitters in the first round of the 2020 Dusty Classic.
Any match with Drake is going to involve a few things that make you pull a Ron Simmons (in the best way). Like I said with Li (and applies to all wrestlers on this list), he is a bump machine and takes them skillfully.
He is a quintessentially British wrestler…well, was as he discussed in the video above. This does mean that he is a great technical wrestler as the British style focuses heavily on technique and holds. If you want a technical, mat-based match (maybe with a Drew Gulak?), Drake is your man.
What if you want a more aerial, high-flying match? Drake is your man, too. Remember how I said he does things that belies his appearance? Well, Drake has a very fluid 450 splash, even when he leaps off of a ladder.
Perfect takeoff, perfect rotation, perfect splash. He doesn’t over-rotate like a certain NXT Champion on their moonsault (*cough* Charlotte Flair *cough*), nor does he land with his knees or legs across his opponent. Again, a ladder set between a different ladder’s rung and the top rope of a wrestling ring is about as stable a slack line, yet Drake performs the move with aplomb.
It would be nice to hear more from Drake on the mic. One slightly concerning thing is he tends to mouth along the promo with Gibson, which can look a little weird. Still, Drake has the potential to be a big player in NXT whether stateside or in the UK.