Draping The Undisputed Era in gold is a very smart business decision on the part of Triple H to begin NXT’S new frontier on USA, which is sure to grow in the future. As a new audience on USA gets more and more accustomed to the format of the show, they will want more, and this will ultimately lead to the second hour of NXT also being included on USA.
But back to The Undisputed – they have proven to be massive draws for NXT and fans love them despite the fact that they are heels. Roderick Strong, the last member to join the group, took down Velveteen Dream and completed the prophecy by winning the American Championship. It only took The Undisputed Era about two years to make their predictions come true.
The addition of Mauro Ranallo to the commentary table back in 2017 had to be a major factor in NXT being able to make a successful jump to the USA Network. Ranallo was with the main roster on SmackDown Live for a short time back in 2016 and 2017, but it just wasn’t meant to work out. A few months later, he got the position as the play-by-play announcer for NXT and has since become a cornerstone of the brand (“Mamma Mia”).
It is absolutely fantastic to see a new superstar in Candice LeRae getting an opportunity for the NXT Women’s Championship against Shayna Baszler, as she has proven she deserves it. The NXT universe is firmly behind her and can sense her charisma. It also can’t hurt that she is the wife of the heart and soul of NXT, Johnny Gargano.
It’s also very encouraging to see Lio Rush return after a lengthy hiatus from WWE to become the no. 1 contender for the Cruiserweight Championship. He should be able to put on a barnburner with Drew Gulak.