John Cena Subtly Hints at Why NXT Is Soaring Through the Roof Right Now

John Cena has spanned a career that has lasted more than two decades. During this time, he had reached new heights as the face of the promotion and has made a lot of friends and many in-ring rivals. Now, the star is familiar with the ins and outs of the industry and is an experienced veteran.

During his time at WWE, the promotion had started a new wing called NXT. The developmental brand which was started in 2010 has garnered a lot of love and support from the fans. The brand is known for grooming new talents so that they can make their way to the main roster. And John Cena believes he might know what could be the reason behind NXT’s success in recent times.

John Cena credits a veteran

Recently, while talking about the greatest matches of his career, the discussion went to one of his longest matches. On April 23, 2007, John Cena locked horns against Shawn Michaels on an episode of Raw. The match, which was held in the United Kingdom, lasted for almost an hour. He said that he was lucky enough to be with him in the ring, as HBK is one of a kind. According to him, “You just have to do what you are supposed to do. He takes care of everything else.”

The Leader of the Cenation also said that HBK knows how to take care of “all the nuanced stuff, all the loose ends.” He even said that the current Senior Vice President of NXT knows how to invest in the match and “athletic suspension” by creating wide storytelling and keeping the audience hooked on it. “Shawn is such a good storyteller,” said John Cena. Shawn Michaels has been known for his ability to sell anything. Even a veteran referee once admitted that HBK turned the course of a match with this unique trick of his.

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With such great skill, Michaels has been a part of many storylines, selling all the pitches thrown at him. And this might have helped him to save NXT.

Did Shawn Michaels save NXT?

The brand was started in 2010 and had many authoritative figures on it. NXT was originally known as the black and gold brand. It had garnered a significant fan following, as the audience loved to see the new and coming talents and much simpler storylines. But after losing to AEW in 2021, NXT was moved to Tuesdays from the original Wednesday broadcasting. It was renamed as NXT 2.0 and this is where all hell broke loose.

The audience was not able to click with the new NXT as it featured a lot of sexualized female wrestlers. It also had wrestlers who had larger-than-life personas which made them very absurd. Even though Shawn Micheals was the authority back then, he was following the orders of the boss man. Later, when McMahon took a brief exit from the promotion, things changed. Micheals got the reins of the brand and used his creative style to write a new story. NXT is now somewhere in between the old black and gold and the 2.0 style. But the ratings and popularity have significantly improved.

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Do you think Shawn Micheals is a good storyteller? Do you think he has impacted NXT in a positive way?