Three men’s division NXT competitors to keep an eye on for the future

Recently, on Tuesday nights, there have been three WWE NXT men to keep an eye on if you are a fan of the show. These differ from the apparent names: your champions or workhorse superstars that put on high-energy classics at every special show and premium live event. Everyone knows to keep their eye on Bron Breakker or that Carmelo Hayes is one of the most talented champions. Fans are watching the future, not just the present of WWE wrestling. NXT has several stars a little lower on the card but has shown a genuine spark and a world of potential for future success in a wrestling ring.

Duke Hudson

Duke Hudson is an honors student of the wrestling school, Andre Chase University. Recently, he has been relegated to NXT LvL Up, but not long ago, he was a central part of the Chase U story against Schism. In that period, Hudson showed a glimmer of his true character range and displayed his athleticism in a featured angle. While Tyler Bate was seemingly brought in to help carry the feud, Hudson stole the spotlight.

It looked like Duke Hudson might turn, and at times, he looked like the staunchest proponent of what Chase U was capable of. In his bouts with Schism, he displayed power and speed, a significant contrast to everyone else involved in the feud. The rise of Andre Chase and his University faction has been a surprise in the NXT lore. When it eventually ends, and Duke Hudson kept it alive himself back in March, he may be the most likely to excel on his own in NXT. After the feud, there were glimpses of that competitor when he ran Chase U on his own.

Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo

One of the three NXT men to keep an eye on has been flying under the radar for a while now. He is the Don’s Capo, the right-hand man to Tony D’Angelo and NXT tag team champion Channing Lorenzo. Stacks, as he is often called, started as a henchman for D’Angelo, along with former NXT wrestler Troy “Two Dimes” Donovan. After Donovan left, the family stayed at just two, and he started to become more of his own man. He began to deliver in a big way when he got these moments.

His development has been so good that recently, he carried a story for the family almost entirely on his own. The trial of Tony D’Angelo left him out of action, but Stacks picked up the slack. Throughout that feud, Stacks fought alone while creating a scheme to free Tony from his stint in jail. As whacky as the story was, Channing Lorenzo got the fans to invest independently. As a mafioso, Tony D’Angelo needs a family, so it is possible that where he goes, so goes Stacks. If they don’t get called up together, Channing Lorenzo could capitalize on his seemingly innate ability to connect with the faithful and strike out on his own full-time.

Trick Williams

After his match with Ilja Dragunov, Trick Williams proved he was built for the main event. He has grown immensely as a performer in the ring and has already been involved in some high-profile angles thanks to his association with Carmelo Hayes. While Williams may have been the charismatic companion of NXT Champion when he started, Heatwave changed that perception for everyone.

Ilja Dragunov is one of the most technically sound in-ring performers in NXT. Since arriving on the show proper, he has been a one-person classic match machine. That could be a strike against Trick, but watching his loss at Heatwave, Williams gave as good as he got. Stepping up to Dragunov and delivering without Melo proves he has the goods to carry the torch when his time finally comes. His interaction with the champion on that show might indicate that time is soon.

Why Just Three NXT Men to Keep an Eye On?

NXT has more than three stars. Factually, there are better, more popular stars on the roster currently. The top guys of NXT are well-established in this current iteration of the show. Guys like Bron Breakker, The Creeds, Carmelo Hayes, Wes Lee, and Ilja Dragunov are all essentially destined for success on NXT and the main roster when they finally get the overdue call to Raw or Smackdown.