WWE NXT Rankings & Evaluation
By George Chiverton, PWTorch specialist

Episode - April 25 - Week 60

Wrestler: Tyson Kidd
In-Ring Performance: 9 (9)
Out of Ring Performance: - (-)
Last Week's Rank: -
Rank: #1

Comment: He's Tyson Kidd. Where else would I put him? Kidd is an exceptional talent as I'm sure you are aware, but in terms of his future, I can see him being a ROH World Champion before a WWE Champion. He needs to win over a writer or someone backstage and soon. He's clearly being overlooked if he's not on a main roster with his talent.

***

Wrestler: Jonny Curtis
In-Ring Performance: 9 (9)
Out of Ring Performance: 8 (8)
Last Week's Rank: -
Rank: #2

Comment: Man of the Match, MVP, however you want to say it, he was awesome this week. Just awesome. He's a genuinely funny guy on commentary. In the ring, his taunts and stalling tactics had me chuckling. With a few more performances of this caliber, someone at WWE HQ must notice. Specifics are many, but his chemistry with Kidd, and the clean execution in his match made for a really good performance. He also suprised and impressed me with his agility, which I hadn't really seen as of yet. He could prove one to watch.

***

Wrestler: Derrick Bateman
In-Ring Performance: 8 (8)
Out of Ring Performance: - (6.5)
Last Week's Rank: #1
Rank: #3

Comments: Bateman was absolutely great. His match with JTG had the crowd truly wrapped up to the extent that a "Let's Go Bateman" chant broke out. Considering that no more than three people would have known his name before the match, to get that sort of a reaction is impressive. His intensity was perhaps his best asset with Bateman hitting a huge dropkick straight off the bell. It set the tone for a very enjoyable match, which concluded with a great sell by JTG on Bateman's finisher. Brilliant week.

***

Wrestler: Maxine
In-Ring Performance: 5 (5)
Out of Ring Performance: 8 (8)
Last Week's Rank: -
Rank: #4

Comments: I love Maxine, but she was a tad botchy in her match. Her chemistry with Tamina left a lot to be desired, but she remains superb in backstage bits. I think all five of us who watch NXT believe she is one of the top Divas in WWE and certainly deserving to be on a larger show. Maxine and Castagnoli would make a great pairing if WWE were to go in that direction, but she's already well-paired with Curtis, who has benefited from having her around.

***

Wrestler: Kaitlyn
In-Ring Performance: No Match (8)
Out of Ring Performance: 5 (6.5)
Last Week's Rank:-
Rank: #5

Comments: I love Kaitlyn's act, as I have stated on a number of occasions, and her in-ring work was perfectly serviceable this week. An inexplicable X-Factor is still slightly missing, though.

***

Wrestler: JTG
In-Ring Performance: 7 (7)
Out of Ring Performance: - (-)
Last Week's Rank: -
Rank: #5.01 (6th seemed harsh)

Comments: He's clearly been working very hard over his break and came back with a much-better performance than he's shown in the past. He performed well with Bateman.

***

Wrestler: Percy Watson
In-Ring Performance: - (-)
Out of Ring Performance: - (-)
Last Week's Rank: -
Rank: -

Comments: Almost had a match, then didn't. Yup.

***

Wrestler: Michael McGillicutty
In-Ring Performance: No Match (-)
Out of Ring Performance: 3 (3)
Last Week's Rank: -
Rank: Less than Percy.

Comments: Michael shouldn't be allowed near commentary. He was dull, talked in cliches, and, although he was meant to be a heel, never really garnered much of a response for me beyond please be quiet.

***

Other Comments: A much fuller column for NXT, which will hopefully give you a much rounder view of the show. I cannot emphasize enough what a brilliant match Curtis-Kidd was and I hope this feud may develop after Kidd finished with McGillicutty. Really great.

Otherwise in WWE, Punk-Bryan has me so excited. Great move by WWE. With Bryan proving a popular Superstar amongst the writers's nightmare "vocal male" minority within the WWE Universe, pairing him against former indie super-face Punk may be the best way to set Bryan up as a heel. If that's where WWE wants Bryan's character, then it's a very good move.

On the topic of DB, how awesome is the No Way Out poster? I love it. I must own it.

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