Ahead of their next major event, NXT boss Shawn Michaels may have revealed why star free agents Giulia and Stephanie Vaquer were sent to him first instead of going to the WWE main roster.
Under the guidance of WWE icon Shawn Michaels, NXT has seen a notable resurgence over the last year. It took some time to rid them of the stink from the NXT 2.0 rebrand. But the home of the company’s future is starting to look a lot like the classic black-and-gold version of NXT that fans adored.
Related: Rumored NXT Event Going Head-To-Head With AEW Dynamite In November To Have Heavy ECW Influence
A key reason why the brand has been able to recapture its previous brilliance is by bringing in experienced free agents. In 2024 specifically, NXT added two of the biggest international free agents on the market, Stephanie Vaquer and Giulia.
Following their WWE signings, some in the wrestling fanbase felt that both were deserving of going straight to the main roster. The pair of talents are viewed as two of the best female wrestlers in the world. And have reached the top of two of the biggest non-WWE promotions in the world, NJPW, and CMLL. Instead they are now members of the NXT roster.
Why Stephanie Vaquer and Giulia went to NXT first revealed
During an appearance on Busted Open Radio to promote this weekend’s Halloween Havoc event, Shawn Michaels spoke about the addition of Giulia and Stephanie Vaquer to the NXT roster. And in doing so he likely gave the reason why they didn’t go straight to the main roster.
“The most challenging thing is the communication aspect and making sure they are understanding what you’re conveying,” Michael said [h/t Fightful]. “Sometimes words mean different things in other languages. Making sure that I choose my words carefully with the two of them has been the biggest challenge from my standpoint. From a coaching standpoint, the response has been fantastic. They’re both very talented ladies.
“When it comes to helping them accentuate that presence that they already have and help them with that presentation, that’s where, for me, it’s most challenging. We’re also taking it very slow because of that language barrier. We’re being patient. They’re unbelievably understanding. And they’re doing their best to try and find better ways to communicate with us. And ways to allow us to help them with things they feel they need to work with.” A lot of that is asking them and getting their feedback and finding areas we can help them the most.”
Vaquer is a native of Chile while Giulia was raised in Japan. Both speak solid English, but it certainly needs to be improved if they are to reach their full potential. It is a smart move by the company. Because other foreign performers in the past have struggled greatly on the main roster due to language barriers.
Related: Goldberg Urged To Work In NXT Before Potential Gunther Match
