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Shawn Michaels: More Surprises 'Coming Down the Pike' as NXT Keeps Gaining Momentum (Exclusive)

NXT debuts on the CW Network Tuesday 10/1 with CM Punk, the Miz and two huge NXT Title Matches and more!

Rick Ucchino

Shawn Michaels chats with The Takedown about NXT on CW, Giulia, Roxanne Perez and more!
Shawn Michaels chats with The Takedown about NXT on CW, Giulia, Roxanne Perez and more! / WWE

It's not quite the holiday season, but Christmas has come early for Shawn Michaels. The Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative for WWE is about to usher NXT into a new era when the Black and Gold Brand debuts on the CW Network this coming Tuesday night.

The Heartbreak Kid must have avoided the naughty list this year as he was recently gifted two of the most accomplished international women's performers on the open market.

Former World of Stardom Champion Giulia and former CMLL World Women's Champion Stephanie Vaquer both decided to bring their talents stateside and agreed to long-term contracts with WWE.

Finding out that both ladies were ready to put pen to paper had to give Michaels that 'kid on Christmas morning' feeling, as he was about to add even more depth to a division that he proudly boasts whenever the opportunity presents itself.

“The best stacked women's roster in all of the world, if you ask me," Michaels told The Takedown. "Roxanne Perez, Kelani Jordan, Jaida Parker, and then of course, two of the hottest free agents in all the world with Giulia and Stephanie Vaquer. And there are other big, big surprises coming down the pike. If you thought we were stacked before, you haven't seen anything yet. And that goes on both sides of the roster.”

Whether those surprises are new free agent signings, main roster stars paying a visit or another TNA wrestler looking to make an impact is hard to predict and that's part of what has made NXT programming can't miss in recent months.

Fans never know who could show up on a given night and it's a formula that has been incredibly successful as NXT prepares to make the jump to it's new home.

“NXT has had a great deal of momentum in the last year. Very proud to say that we're 15 percent up in those advertising demo viewers that everybody likes to throw around these days. We're still doing fantastic and the futures look even better as we launch on October 1st on the CW Network.”

Michaels is pulling no punches what-so-ever with these first episodes on the CW, which are not taking place in the normal NXT stomping grounds of Orlando, Florida. The show is instead hitting the road, stopping off in Chicago this week and then in St. Louis on October 8.

CM Punk, The Miz, WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill have all been booked for the CW debut this Tuesday, in addition to two major NXT Championship matches.

Ethan Page will defend his NXT Championship against Trick Williams with Chicago's favorite son CM Punk set to serve as the special guest referee. Michaels is also not wasting any time in putting his Women's Division on full display as Roxanne Perez and Giulia open the show in a battle for the NXT Women's Championship.

A win for the Beautiful Madness would make her the faster NXT Superstar to claim gold after their official debut. A record that has stood since... well... NXT Heatwave back in July when Ethan Page won his NXT Championship just 40 days after stepping foot in WWE.

It speaks volumes to how high of a ceiling Giulia has in WWE that they are willing to put her in this position right out of the gate, and while Michaels is in no hurry to lose any of his talent to the main roster, he can't help but look ahead to the not too distant future with anything other than excitement.

“Right now, whether it be Raw or SmackDown, there are some of the most talented women in all the world. You talk about Bayley, Charlotte Flair, IYO SKY and numerous others. And then you think about the possibility of adding a Giulia, Stephanie Vaquer, Jaida Parker, or a Roxanne Perez to that list. Absolutely unbelievable for the future of the WWE as a whole. We're very excited about the work that we're doing.”

How quickly Giulia or Stephanie Vaquer is able to ascend to the main roster is primarily going to hinge on how well they adapt to being a part of a live television production.

Coming into NXT with the in-ring talent and experience they possess is obviously a huge advantage over someone walking into the WWE Performance Center for the first time on an NIL deal, but Michaels says performing for broadcast television is a very different environment from what they've grown accustomed to elsewhere.

While the development process for those two ladies will be more production centric, other talent just need the time to really flush out every aspect of their character. Figure out who they are, who they want to be, and what they need to do merge those two individuals into the same person.

That's what Roxanne Perez has been able to accomplish in her second reign as the NXT Women's Champion. Everything has come together nicely for the Prodigy after she was able to shed the confines of her babyface persona and explore the more wicked corners of her personality.

“You wanna give people the opportunity to really let themselves go. And a lot of times for that to happen with young talent, being a bad guy is one of those things that is just more freeing," Michaels said. "It gives you an opportunity to, in your own mind, at least do things you might not do as a good guy. Even though they might translate later on down the road to be the perfect attribute for you to have as a good guy, you weren't able to find that until you walked on the dark side. If that makes any sense.”

It's the very same approach that Michaels says he and his coaches took with Bron Breakker, who has been able to burst onto the main roster scene since being drafted to Raw back in April.

Roxanne Perez was already an incredibly talented individual with huge upside, she didn't earn her nickname by accident, but helping her to become as well rounded a performer as possible was going to give her the best chance to thrive.

Saying that Perez is thriving right now as NXT Women's Champion would be an understatement. Her confidence and growth since the last time she held the gold are undeniable.

"Night and day," Michaels proclaimed as a fan of her first run as NXT Women's Champion. "The matches that she has had on the last several PLE’s have been arguably the best matches on the show. And that's because Roxanne Perez is in what they call the zone. She's confident in what she's doing. She feels comfortable and she's somebody that's focused and ready to go. I couldn't be more proud of her."

Tuesday night's opener has all the ingredients needed to make a special match, and regardless who comes out on top, Stephanie Vaquer has already made it very clear she intends to be next in line.

Give credit to Vic Joseph, who said it best at this past Tuesday. The best wrestlers in the world want the NXT Women's Championship and it's time to light a match because the entire roster is about to cook on the CW Network. It all starts this week in the Windy City.

“Chicago is one of the best wrestling towns in all of the world," Michaels said. They have a reputation known to all wrestling fans around the world. So, I think the biggest thing is how excited our talent is about going there and getting the opportunity to perform.”

NXT premieres on the CW Network this Tuesday, 10/1 at 8PM ET / 7PM CT, live from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.

You can follow Rick Ucchino on X and on Instagram: @RickUcchino

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Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino has been covering professional wrestling since 2019, but his broadcast career has spanned over 15 years. He can be heard every weekday morning on 700WLW radio in Cincinnati, OH. You can also read his work over on SI's Cincinnati Reds Talk. Follow Rick on X and Instagram: @RickUcchino

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