Every year, NXT releases a set of awards that fans can vote for to show the best that NXT has to offer. On last night’s episode of NXT, WWE released this year’s set of awards, including the following categories: NXT TakeOver of the Year, NXT Male/Female Competitor of the Year, Overall NXT Competitor of the Year, Tag Team of the Year, Match of the Year, Rivalry of the Year, Breakout Star of the Year, and Future Star of NXT.
Voting for the awards takes place on Twitter, using the hashtag for both the category and the nominees. Only one award can be voted for per tweet, so expect to tweet a lot for these awards. We have the complete list of nominees with their appropriate hashtags as well as who we think should take home each award.
NXT TakeOver of the Year (#NXTAwardTakeOver)
- #SanAntonio
- #Orlando
- #BrooklynIII
- #Chicago
- #WarGames
Our Pick:
Every TakeOver had at least one great-to-phenomenal match, but the only one that had a solid card all around was TakeOver: War Games. Every match exceeded expectations and nothing felt thrown together, a common problem in previous events.
NXT Female Competitor of the Year (#NXTAwardFemale)
- #Asuka
- #EmberMoon
- #NikkiCross
- #RubyRiott
- #IconicDuo – Billie Kay & Peyton Royce
Our Pick:
It is hard to vote against the only woman that hasn’t lost in her entire NXT career. Asuka remained the undefeated NXT Women’s Champion until August, where she relinquished the title before moving up to the main roster.
NXT Male Competitor of the Year (#NXTAwardMale)
- #BobbyRoode
- #DrewMcIntyre
- #AleisterBlack
- #AndradeAlmas
- #RoderickStrong
Our Pick:
Three out of the five men on this list have held the NXT Championship this year, but none of them is our pick. Aleister Black should win this award because he consistently delivered strong performances ever since he debuted. Andrade Almas came into his own as the year went on, but as a whole, Black was the MVP of NXT.
Overall NXT Competitor of the Year (#NXTAwardOverall)
Nominees are the previous two categories combined.
Our Pick:
Just like with the women’s category, who can vote against Asuka? She never lost and only got better throughout her NXT tenure.
NXT Tag Team of the Year (#NXTAwardTagTeam)
- #AuthorsOfPain
- #SAnitY
- #TheRevival
- #DIY
- #UndisputedERA – Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly
Our Pick:
There has only been one consistent tag team throughout 2017 for NXT: SAnitY. They won the NXT Tag Team Championships, always connected with the fans, and were the only team outside of AoP to be in NXT for the entire year.
NXT Breakout Star of the Year (#NXTAwardBreakoutStar)
- #AleisterBlack
- #AndradeAlmasZelinaVega
- #UndisputedERA
- #SonyaDeville
- #RubyRiott
- #VelveteenDream
- #LarsSullivan
Our Pick:
It seems weird to not pick Aleister Black again, but we’re going with Andrade “Cien” Almas and Zelina Vega. In terms of being “breakout stars,” pairing them together led to instant success. Almas seemed like someone who might fade away in the WWE system but with Vega on his side, he could be a mega star.
Future Star of NXT (#NXTAwardFutureStar)
- #StreetProfits
- #HeavyMachinery
- #ShaynaBaszler
- #KairiSane
- #FabianAichner
- #CezarBononi
- #LioRush
- #BiancaBelair
- #LaceyEvans
Our Pick:
This might not be the most obvious pick, but Bianca Belair could easily be a huge star in NXT. She has her character down already and showed how quickly she picks up the in-ring work when she was in the Mae Young Classic. With only room for improvement, there are big things ahead for Belair.
NXT Match of the Year (#NXTAwardMatch)
- #GarganoVsAlmas – TakeOver: Brooklyn III
- #AsukaVsMoon – TakeOver: Brooklyn III (Women’s Championship)
- #DIYVsRevivalVsAOP – TakeOver: Orlando (Tag Team Championships)
- #BateVsDunne – TakeOver: Chicago (United Kingdom Championship)
- #WarGamesMatch – TakeOver: War Games
- #AsukaVsCross – NXT TV, 6.28.17 (Women’s Championship)
- #DIYVsAOP – TakeOver: Chicago (Tag Team Championships)
- #StrongVsRoode – NXT TV, 7.5.17 (NXT Championship)
- #WomensBattleRoyal – NXT TV, 10.25.17
- #BlackVsDream – TakeOver: War Games
- #GarganoVsOhno – NXT TV, 12.6.17
Our Pick:
Tyler Bate vs. Pete Dunne for the United Kingdom Championship at NXT TakeOver: Chicago. It is not just NXT’s Match of the Year, but it just might be the best match overall in 2017.
NXT Rivalry of the Year (#NXTAwardRivalry)
- #NakamuraRoode
- #MoonAsuka
- #BateDunne
- #SAnitYUndisputed
- #BlackDream
- #OhnoItami
- #DIYAOP
Our Pick:
NXT had a ton of great action last year, but only one rivalry was truly great among them all: Aleister Black vs. Velveteen Dream. The simplistic clash of two opposite individuals played out perfectly in and out of the ring, which is what a great rivalry is all about.
Voting for the NXT 2017 Year-End Awards will be open until Saturday, January 27, the night of TakeOver: Philadelphia. The awards will also be announced that same night.
