WWE NXT: Updated Prospect Rankings, Analysis, Predictions for Week of Sept. 29

We won't know what Hideo Itami can be until his looming battle with Austin Aries.

Is the kick-happy Superstar a WWE NXT headliner, a Cruiserweight Championship contender or something less impressive? Wednesday's NXT offered an inconclusive answer.

Itami again looked fired up and focused in his latest match, this one a win over Raw cruiserweight Lince Dorado. But something remains missing. It's not clear what tier he belongs on.

That will change when he takes on Aries, a former TNA world champion, in the bright lights of a TakeOver special with ample hype heading into the showdown. The collision with Aries will be an excellent gauge of his potential.

Wednesday night's action stirred up questions surrounding Itami's NXT peers, as well.

Is Angelo Dawkins a lost cause at this point? What will Rezar look like when he is asked to feast on an opponent for more than a few seconds? Is Mandy Rose the answer to the lack of depth in the women's division?

The following is a look at those uncertainties and where Itami, Dawkins and the rest of the NXT roster stack up against each other. The prospects' ring work, mic skills, gimmick, look and charisma determined the rankings.

Male Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height/Weight	Notes
1.	Shinsuke Nakamura	6'2", 229 lbs	Tremendous showman, elite ring worker, turns banal moments into electric ones.
2.	Samoa Joe	6'2", 279 lbs	Beastly presence, elite-level heel, excellent talker, strong ring work.
3.	Bobby Roode	6'0", 235 lbs	Charismatic, flourishing with current gimmick, experience in the ring shows.
4.	Scott Dawson	5'10", 224 lbs	Master of tag team psychology, skilled striker, growing as a talker, keeps adding to collection of big matches.
5.	Hideo Itami	5'9", 182 lbs	Skilled striker, good intensity, has yet to move into main-event territory.
6.	Johnny Gargano	5'10", 190 lbs	Compelling as a babyface, smooth offense, strong ring work, good connection with fans.
7.	Austin Aries	5'9", 202 lbs	Excellent technician, experienced, dependable, lacks elite "it" factor.
8.	Tye Dillinger	6'3", 223 lbs	Having great fun with gimmick, solid mat work, lots of potential.
9.	Tommaso Ciampa	5'11", 210 lbs	Aggressive, intense, excellent brawler, not magnetic on the mic.
10.	Andrade Almas	5'9", 222 lbs	Hasn't hit stride at NXT, highly athletic, graceful, gimmick still in progress.
11.	Dash Wilder	5'10", 222 lbs	Excellent tag team psychology, good striker, has improved as a talker.
12.	Shane Thorne	6'1", 200 lbs	Good showmanship, athletic, smooth, star quality.
13.	No Way Jose	6'3", 245 lbs	Lots of potential, not yet strong enough as an in-ring performer for the top tier, inconsistent, physically gifted.
14.	Rezar	6'4", 308 lbs	Intense, good acceleration, unproven in the ring.
15.	Buddy Murphy	5'11", 227 lbs	Lacks presence, explosive, impressive power, poor talker.
16.	Elias Samson	6'0", 217 lbs	Has shown flashes of compelling viciousness, lacking charisma, gimmick needs development.
17.	Steve Cutler	Not listed	Solid ring work, below-average presence, persona slowly developing.
18.	Oney Lorcan	6'1", 199 lbs	Intense, skilled striker, solid potential.
19.	Wesley Blake	6'1", 240 lbs	Underwhelming presence, solid all-around ring worker, doesn't stand out.
20.	Sawyer Fulton	6'8", 285 lbs	Raw, powerful, vicious, hasn't found ideal gimmick.

Prospects just outside the top 20: Alexander Wolfe, Akam, Riddick Moss

The Curse of Mediocrity

Dawkins fell to Tye Dillinger in a short bout on Wednesday. He has followed that same pattern for three years now.

He was showy, confident and displayed all the trimmings of his sports-themed gimmick. But that's where the entertainment ended. Dawkins was forgettable in defeat.

Credit: WWE.co

Prowrestling.net writer Zack Zimmerman wrote of the bout, "The match was nothing."

That's partly due to a lack of electricity on his end, but also a result of WWE's asking him to be the hapless foe each week. The company has pushed him to the absolute bottom of the food chain, and it's hard to do much of anything in those kinds of contests.

As a result, Dawkins hasn't produced anything memorable in all his years at NXT. Chances are, he'll be among the first prospects to whom WWE will show the door during the next round of cuts.

The Untested Monster

Rezar and Akam, The Authors of Pain, gobbled up another pair of jobbers this week. This time, they dispatched Jesus Yurnet and Jonathan Cruz in just over a minute.

Rezar continues to be the more compelling of the two. He clubbed his opponent in the back with a frightening level of ferocity. He lifted his foe above his head and flung him out of the ring to show off his power.

It's hard to evaluate these bruisers after such brief action, though.

As good as Rezar is at being an enraged beast, it won't be until he and Akam face stiffer competition that we will be able to get a better handle on The Authors of Pain's potential. As The Ascension can attest, beating up on no-name opposition doesn't necessarily lead to stardom.

Itami Worthy of the Marquee?

For the second week in a row, Itami toppled a competitor from the Cruiserweight Classic tournament. This time around, he pinned Dorado in NXT's final match of the night.

Itami was focused and nasty. He continues to look recharged after returning from his shoulder injury.

But while his win over Dorado was a quality match, it didn't feel like a true main event. Overall, Itami hasn't made it clear he belongs among NXT's elite.

James Caldwell of PWTorch wrote, "Itami was solid and impressive, but he has not become that leading man in an NXT setting like his contemporary Finn Balor became and like his fellow countryman Shinsuke Nakamura has become."

Itami's story is far from written, though. His rivalry with Aries continues to grow more intense, presumably setting up a major showdown between them soon. That will be a huge night for him, one that will help shed light on whether he's a career midcarder or a star in the making.

Female Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height	Notes
1.	Asuka	5'3"	Top-notch in-ring performer, excellent striker, great presence, limited English-language skills.
2.	Ember Moon	5'2"	Intense, athletic, experienced, gimmick has big potential.
3.	Peyton Royce	5'7"	Has developed her character, strong ring work, aggressive.
4.	Nikki Glencross	5'1"	Strong mat work, pit-bull energy, her experience shows in the ring.
5.	Aliyah	5'2"	Compelling energy, comfortable as a heel, improving in the ring, high ceiling.
6.	Mandy Rose	5'4"	Progressing in the ring, strong presence, has star quality.
7.	Billie Kay	5'8"	Good showmanship, has found groove with gimmick, wooden in the ring at times.
8.	Liv Morgan	5'4"	Solid presence, OK talker, good energy, raw in the ring.
9.	Daria Berenato	5'7"	Unique gimmick, strong strikes, good intensity.

Rose's Steady Climb

Rose held her own against Ember Moon. The Golden Goddess' minimal experience is clear, especially against a well-traveled grappler like Moon. But Rose didn't look lost out there like so many up-and-comers do in similar spots.

She has generally been more comfortable in the ring than one might expect at this stage in her development.

Against Moon, she was solid on the mat and boasted strong facial expressions. She will have to hold back on her striking power, though. She busted open Moon's lip with a forearm shot.  

This bout was likely designed to push Moon toward title contention. Rose looks as if she will get there at some point, too.

Some prospects run in place in the developmental system for years. Others, like Rose, get better each night.

Predictions

Shortly after Dillinger put away Dawkins, Booby Roode emerged to seek him out as a tag team partner. The two agreed to enter the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament together.

That partnership will elevate Dillinger in a major way.

Getting to learn from the veteran Roode from up close will be a big benefit. Some of Roode's popularity will carry over to him, too. Plus, should the duo implode at some point, Roode would make a career-changing rival for Dillinger.

That will move The Perfect 10 into NXT title contention in a hurry.

Asuka is going to be women's champ for a long, long time.

She's a safe bet to break the record as NXT's longest-reigning female titleholder. She is nearly a 100 days away from catching Paige's 274-day reign, per WWE.com.

But with so many NXT female stars already transferred to the main roster this year, WWE is likely to hold off on adding to the Raw and SmackDown women's divisions. The company will be busy trying to showcase Carmella, Nia Jax and the like, leaving Asuka to reign supreme for a historic stretch.