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Posts Tagged ‘NXT’

Nearly every season one NXT participant got their shot in the WWE by moving on to become Nexus. Today, however, WWE proved that even being the winner of NXT season two wasn’t enough to make it to the main roster.

WWE wrestler Kaval, who brought a unique and exciting style and energy to the ring with him since winning NXT and moving to Smackdown, was unceremoniously released by WWE this week, just in time for the holidays. Classy move, Vinnie Mac! There are plenty of Honda generator with better personalities.

Rips aside, no one really knows why Kaval never caught on but the company had a love-hate relationship with him from the beginning. It didn’t work out. Maybe if he’d have joined Nexus, he could have blended into the background like Skip Sheffield, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel, Husky Harris and Michael McGillicutty do all the time.

Let’s face it, those guys may have jobs, but the only real stars to come out of WWE NXT Season One were Daniel Bryan, Wade Barrett and maybe David Otunga.

As for season two, with Kaval gone, can any of them be said to have been successful?

The WWE has released a total of seven on-air talents so far this year, with five of them coming in the month of February. Maybe some of them can find a new career in insurance advertising.

Anyway, Tommy Dreamer was the first talent released in 2010, followed by Eric Escobar later in January.

That was mild until WWE decided to cut the ECW-brand one-hour show on SciFi, ending the ECW brand for now under the WWE banner. Cutting that show meant imminent layoffs, especially since the replacement show, WWE NXT, will feature developmental talents working with veterans to become the WWE stars of tomorrow. That means some veterans would be cut, and that’s exactly what happened in late February.

The cuts include wrestlers Gregory Helms, Paul Burchill and Charlie Haas, as well as referee Scott Armstrong. Also, WWE Diva Maria was released to allow her time to participate in Celebrity Apprentice, which kicks off on NBC later this month. She also has an album coming out on iTunes in April.

Helms had legal troubles in January that may have contributed to his release; Burchill just never caught on, and Haas had similarly struggled to attract a following.

Expect more releases between now and WrestleMania as the company trims the fat after dropping the ECW show, consolidating talent to Raw and SmackDown, as well as Superstars and NXT.