WWE Moved Fast to Make Grayson Waller the “Current Face” of NXT

WWE didn’t waste much time deciding Grayson Waller was going to run NXT once his move back to the brand was locked in.

Waller captured the NXT Championship at Heatwave on August 30, defeating Tony D’Angelo, Cruz Montana and Zilla Fatu in a Fatal Four-Way Match. Ringside News covered Waller stealing the victory after throwing Montana out of the ring and pinning D’Angelo to take the title.

Now it turns out WWE’s decision to put Waller on top came together extremely fast. During WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select, Joey Votes revealed that once Shawn Michaels received clearance that Waller would be working in NXT for the foreseeable future, the championship became part of the plan almost immediately.

“Following his NXT Championship win, we were told the decision to get the title on Grayson Waller came together pretty quickly once the call was made to move him from Raw back to NXT. We’re told that once Shawn Michaels got clearance from Creative that Waller would be working in NXT for the foreseeable future, the idea was almost immediately to get the championship on him as soon as possible.”

There was also a specific reason WWE wanted Waller holding the championship. WrestleVotes said there are people inside the company who see major upside in Waller as a heel because he doesn’t have to work very hard to get people against him.

“One of the reasons for that, we’re told, is that there are a number of people internally who see a lot of upside in Waller as a top heel with his ability to generate natural heat.”

The company has gone even further with its commitment to Waller. According to WrestleVotes, WWE has made the decision to position him as the “current face” of NXT.

“Additionally, on the flip side, while the decision has been made to make Waller the, quote, current face of the show, we’re told that’s not an indictment of Tony D’Angelo whatsoever.”

Waller has also pushed back against the idea that returning to NXT was some kind of demotion, making it clear that his move back to Tuesday nights was something much different.

That puts Waller in a much different spot than he was in on the WWE main roster. He didn’t just return to NXT looking for another opportunity—WWE quickly handed him the biggest championship on the brand and now views him as the man at the center of the show. Waller has the title, the heat and WWE’s backing as NXT enters its next chapter. The real test now is how far the company is willing to take him as the brand’s top heel.

This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.