A new report has claimed that WWE’s developmental policy is set for more change with NXT talents given a timeline to prove they’re “good enough” to make it.
It has been quite the year for WWE’s developmental brand. After the show was completely relaunched as NXT 2.0 in September 2021, it appears that at least to some degree things have now gone full circle.
On the show celebrating the one-year anniversary of relaunch, a new logo was debuted and the “2.0” aspect of the name seemingly dropped. This has led to speculation that the show will be returning to something with a closer resemblance to the ‘Black and Gold Era’ rather than being fully developmental.
Writing in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer commented on the changes, and confirmed that there are more on the way. Meltzer noted that new signees will now have two years to prove that they are good enough to make it on television. Furthermore, there are a “lot of people” whose time is seemingly running out.
“NXT has officially dropped the 2.0 out of the name of the show as of this week’s television show. There is also a doctrine in NXT, it was said to be a new rule but he may be a strong recommendation as opposed to being a hard-and-fast rule, that everyone who is signed from this point forward, as well as those who have started out, has two years to become “good enough” to make NXT television or they will be cut. It was noted that a lot of people right now are “on the clock.”
WWE’s signing policy has shifted dramatically in recent years with the company moving away from signing wrestlers from the independent scene, instead favouring recruiting college athletes.
In the run up to SummerSlam WWE held one of their bigger try-out events with this policy in mind. However, it was noted that the time that the try-outs were a “disaster” to the extent that recruitment may shift once again.