Unlike some people before him, Daniel Bryan has been using his creative influence to elevate younger stars.
Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the former WWE Champion has been pushing for more NXT talent to be brought up to SmackDown. However, he has been met with opposition.
Bryan has received pushback from this idea due to the poor track record of wrestlers brought up from NXT to the main roster over the last two years. It all comes down to Vince McMahon losing interest in call-ups soon after they debut as well as several main roster talent who don’t currently have a role on TV.
We know that Damien Priest and Rhea Ripley are two NXT stars that WWE plans to call up from NXT in the near future. Priest was set to be called up to SmackDown and align with Kevin Owens. However, this plan was shelved when WWE did not come up with a storyline that worked.
Rhea Ripley is also headed to the main roster soon following her loss to Raquel Gonzalez at NXT New Year’s Evil. It is believed Ripley will resume her feud with Charlotte Flair, which was put on hold after their match at WrestleMania 36 last April.