WWE had a massive day yesterday. New members were added to the TKO Board of Directors, the future of Monday Night RAW will lay with Netflix, and a former European Champion made his return to television.
The former champion in question is William Regal. Regal had been away from World Wrestling Entertainment programming despite returning to the company a year ago. This was likely due to a clause attached to his release from All Elite Wrestling. Regardless of the reason why he wasn't on screen, fans are thrilled to see him back.
The Gentleman Villain didn't come back just for a cameo, however, as he revealed some major news. Ava, formerly a member of The Schism who has been working closely with Shawn Michaels in recent months, has a new role in the company. Ava has officially been named the General Manager of NXT.
This news caught many in the NXT Universe completely off guard. It isn't quite clear why she was put into the position, but there are a few intriguing reasons that could explain the surprise decision. In this article, we will take a look at a handful of these possible explanations.
Below are four reasons why Ava was appointed WWE NXT General Manager.
#4. She has connections to The Rock and The Bloodline
Ava is part of the Anoa'i Family, arguably the most famous family in all of WWE and professional wrestling history. The likes of Roman Reigns, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Umaga, Rikishi, Yokozuna, Afa, and Sika all represent the legendary wrestling family.
More specifically, Ava is the daughter of The Rock, making her a fourth-generation performer. Notably, The Rock was added as a member of the TKO Board of Directors earlier, the very same day as Ava's promotion in WWE.
While it is unlikely that The Rock joined the board and immediately made Ava an authority figure, her family lineage does play a part nonetheless. Roman Reigns, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, and Solo Sikoa are all major parts of the company's programming. It only makes sense for Ava to be in a key role, too.
#3. Ava can represent a younger generation
Ava is still quite new to WWE. In under a year, she's only had six matches in total, three of which were on live events. Of the three televised bouts she had, only one was a singles match. She's extremely green.
Being green is certainly acceptable, given how new she is to wrestling. Ava is only 22 years old, although she'll turn 23 later in 2024. Regardless, she's extremely young and has a long time to improve.
Her age could be a deciding factor in putting her in this role, however. Additionally, being an authority figure at her age means that she can represent a different demographic. NXT's audience has notably begun to skew younger in recent years. It only makes sense for a young performer to have a major role as a result.
#2. She offers more female representation for WWE
Of course, her age isn't the only factor that would lead to the role. Representation is important, and that goes far beyond someone's age or the generation they represent. There's a chance that WWE promoted Ava to have a strong female presence in the company.
Ava had already begun moonlighting under Shawn Michaels for a while now, so the decision certainly wasn't made overnight. WWE likely wanted to groom her for the role and have someone completely different who could run the show and offer a unique and exciting perspective on things.
RAW is run by Adam Pearce, and Nick Aldis runs SmackDown. Triple H oversees the company, and NXT is handled by Shawn Michaels. While all four are legendary performers, they're all older men. Having more female representation in an authoritative role on-screen is a positive, especially given how female-heavy NXT can often be.
#1. Shawn Michaels may be settling into a bigger role
The last reason why Ava may have been promoted to be the General Manager of NXT has less to do with her specifically and instead more to do with Shawn Michaels. The Heartbreak Kid has been in the authority role for NXT essentially since William Regal left the position.
Notably, Shawn was never billed as the General Manager of NXT. Instead, he was an authority figure due to his real-life duties. Just as WWE brought back the position of General Manager for RAW and SmackDown, it makes sense they would also do it for NXT as well.
While it would be logical for Michaels to just be called the General Manager, the company may see bigger things for him. Just as Triple H oversees the RAW and SmackDown General Managers, Shawn could oversee NXT and any future brands, such as NXT Europe or even NXT Japan.
