NXT Champion Finn Balor has named the superstar he would like to most see challenge for his coveted gold in the not too distant future.
At NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day on February 14, ‘The Prince’ successfully defended his NXT Championship against ‘The Bruiserweight’ Pete Dunne in a thriller. Following that bout, the champion was set-upon by Adam Cole who dropped him with a superkick before turning heel on Undisputed ERA partner Kyle O’Reilly.
However, though both Dunne and Cole still in the frame for an opportunity against the Irishman, Balor has another rising star in mind for a defence somewhere down the line.
Joining WWE’s After The Bell with Corey Graves, the star spoke about the length of the line to step-up to him while making a surprising admission of who he thinks is ready to take on the challenge:
“You could go to the usual suspects. Kyle is standing out, Adam Cole is standing out, Karrion Kross is standing out, someone in NXT is Noah who I feel is standing out and has a huge future ahead of him. We were all left a little confused as to how TakeOver went off the air, that’s something we’ve got to expect. Being in a unit or group or club in the past, there’s always those internal struggles, if there in front of the camera or behind the camera. I feel like those guys are going through that right now so they’ve got to figure that out by themselves.
Whether they stay together or whether they move on is kind of going back to what I was saying about my career in Europe and Japan, they’ve got to choose the right time to do that for them. If it’s now and they split, we’ll see it on NXT. If they feel it’s the right time to stay together and keep pushing forward I’m sure that’s what they’ll do too.”
While some may be confused as to the mention of ‘Noah’, it is the birth name of NXT Superstar Kona Reeves (Noah Gregory Kekoa Haaheo Pang-Potjes) who has not been seen on the black and gold brand since suffering a loss to Keith Lee all the way back on February 19, 2020, where he receiving a torn labrum in his shoulder.
At the conclusion of the February 17 edition of the black and gold brand, both Pete Dunne and Adam Cole threw their names into the hat for another crack at Finn Balor as the company enters WrestleMania season.
While Cole was seen standing over the Irishman’s fallen body with title aloft, it was Dunne who scored the pinfall on the champion to claim victory for his team seemingly – by professional wrestling rules – making himself the automatic number one contender.
Credit for the interview: WWE’s After the Bell
h/t for the transcription: Wrestling Inc.