Chris Hero Returns to NXT Under His Old NXT Name

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Last night’s NXT taping at Full Sail University in Orlando ended with the first surprise debut of 2017. At the end of the night, as champion Shinsuke Nakamura celebrated a tag team victory in the main event, Chris Hero made a shocking return, silently issuing a challenge for Nakamura’s NXT Championship. He may not be called Chris Hero in his second NXT run, though—he came out to the same entrance video he used when he worked for the promotion in 2012 and 2013 under the name Kassius Ohno, and that’s what WWE.com is calling him on its post about the matter.

Whatever he’s called, this is another huge addition for WWE. Chris Hero has been one of the best wrestlers in the world the last few years, traveling the globe and putting on tremendous matches with a variety of opponents since leaving WWE’s developmental brand near the end of 2013. He’s an instant main eventer in NXT, and will be an invaluable addition to either main roster show, if he’s ever promoted. With his age and versatility, it’s entirely possible his job will be partially that of a coach or trainer, helping the younger talent at NXT learn how to work; with his Swiss Army knife-style skillset, that’s a role Hero will surely play whenever his in-ring career winds down.

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Still, for some his return is a surprise. His previous NXT departure might not have been entirely amicable, so even as WWE broadened its definition of what a pro wrestler can look like over the last few years, highlighting wrestlers like Kevin Owens and AJ Styles who don’t fit the typical tall bodybuilder look they’ve historically prioritized, it was easy to imagine Hero wouldn’t be on the company’s radar.

Perhaps more than at any other point in WWE history, though, talent has a way of rising to its level. It might be surprising that Hero would return to NXT, but it’s not as surprising as the fact that AJ Styles was able to completely skip developmental and wind up with a long WWE Championship reign his first year in the company. It’s not as surprising as WWE bringing Shinsuke Nakamura in under his real name and pushing him as a top star (albeit in NXT and not on the main stage so far). It’s not as surprising as WWE running a tournament partially built around stars without contracts like Kota Ibushi and Zack Sabre Jr. From a talent development and recruitment perspective, the last year has been anything but business as usual at WWE, and Chris Hero’s return, no matter what they call him or how they use him, is another sign of that.

You can watch video of Hero’s return from WWE’s YouTube page below.