WWE NXT: Ranking the 10 best wrestlers in the Black and Gold brand’s history

8. Bayley

In WWE NXT, Bayley was regarded as one of the best babyfaces in all of professional wrestling, and it’s remarkable comparing her current heel character with her babyface work in NXT. The two are polar opposites, yet they are both elite in their execution.

Bayley’s rivalry with Sasha Banks is easily the greatest rivalry in NXT history, but what blows my mind is how much we take that statement for granted. Like, we repeat “Sasha vs. Bayley was the best” so often without much argument that I sometimes lose sight of how remarkable that is. This brand has produced so many amazing rivalries, yet Sasha vs. Bayley is unequivocally the best.

And it is. Bayley’s title triumph at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn was the definition of show-stealing. Hell, it stole the whole year in professional wrestling and is still brought up as one of the greatest moments in WWE history. History!

Their second TakeOver match at TakeOver: Respect was just as good, too. Both matches could potentially be No. 1 and 2 on a person’s list of the greatest matches in NXT history.

While praising the matches with Sasha, don’t forget to praise her other rivalries. Bayley produced strong work with Carmella, Alexa Bliss, and Nia Jax, working with wrestlers who would eventually become key parts of Raw and SmackDown in the coming years.

And on her way out, she put over the most dominant champion in the entire brand’s history, Asuka. Bayley and Banks had the greatest rivalry in NXT history, but Asuka vs. Bayley is also on that shortlist. Their final match at TakeOver: Brooklyn II is another one of the great matches.