5 Things WWE Fans Need to Know About Neville

Adrian Neville has been one of the best performers in NXT since he first arrived on the scene, and now WWE fans will get to experience his signature brand of exciting offense.

Neville was called up the night after WrestleMania 31. His debut wasn't hyped for weeks in advance, but he definitely made a great first impression in his match against Curtis Axel.

Anyone who has been watching NXT knows that he is capable of doing some incredible things in the ring, and at 29 years old, he still has a lot of room to grow and refine his skills.

Being able to do some of the most insane high-flying moves will definitely get him over with a lot of people, but he is also an accomplished technical wrestler, which means even the most critical fan will enjoy watching him perform.

His absence will definitely leave a hole in the NXT roster, but his presence on the main roster will only make things more entertaining for the entire WWE Universe.

This slideshow will look at five things every WWE fan should now about this future world champion. This is not a ranked list, so the slides are in no particular order.

He Adds to the Long List of Great European Wrestlers

The WWE roster is very diverse right now. It contains Superstars from several different countries made up of different races and backgrounds. Europeans have been well represented throughout the years. 

The roster currently has Sheamus, Wade Barrett, Cesaro and Paige, and now it can add Neville to the list of great European wrestlers. We haven't heard him speak on the main roster yet, but those who watch NXT are very familiar with his English heritage.

It's hard to say why talent from across the Atlantic Ocean is so good. Maybe it's because the European style of wrestling is so much stiffer than what we usually see in the U.S.

Whatever it is they are doing over there, it's working. Sheamus, Barrett and Cesaro are all powerhouses who have shown they have the ability to put on great matches. Paige has shown more talent in the year since she's joined the main roster than most Divas could dream of having.

Neville is a little different from the rest. He has plenty of power, but he relies more on his high-flying skills to excite the crowd.

European veterans should be happy to have someone like Neville representing their homeland because he is as talented as they come.

He Was the Longest Reigning NXT Champion

Seth Rollins was the first NXT champion, but Neville held the belt longer than any other wrestler. He even held the title longer than anyone who possessed the FCW Championship before the promotion was ditched in favor of WWE putting together its own developmental brand.

As champion, Neville produced some amazing matches against the likes of Sami Zayn and Tyler Breeze. These bouts were often better than the main events featured on pay-per-views.

His 287-day reign was ended by Sami Zayn at Takeover: R Evolution in what could be described as an instant classic. If you have the WWE Network, you are robbing yourself of a great experience by not seeing this bout.

Now that he is on the main roster, it seems like he will only continue to climb the ladder. He might not be someone the uninformed fan sees as a major prospect for world champion, but rest assured, he is good enough to get there.

He Has a Long History with Sami Zayn

Before they were renamed Sami Zayn and Adrian Neville by WWE officials, Rami Sebei and Benjamin Satterly were respectively known as El Generico and Pac.

Together they produced some of the best non-WWE matches you will ever see for numerous companies across the last decade.

They locked horns in such promotions as Dragon Gate, wXw, IPW, AAPW, PWG and American Wrestling Rampage before arriving in NXT.

Having that kind of history is what allowed them to build the chemistry that led to these two amazing talents putting on matches that outshined anything put on by the main roster.

When Sami Zayn eventually gets called up, it will be very interesting to see if WWE makes references to the long history these two share.

They have used footage from other promotions for Daniel Bryan, which seems to indicate that they are loosening their policy of never acknowledging someone's past outside of WWE, so anything is possible.

Do yourself a favor and go search "Pac vs. El Generico" on YouTube. You can thank me later.

He Is the Only Person to Hold the NXT Title and the NXT Tag Team Titles

Neville holds a special record in NXT as the only man to hold both the NXT tag titles and the NXT Championship during his run in the developmental system.

His time as NXT champion was great, but his first taste of gold came as a tag team wrestler. He first won the belts with Oliver Grey as British Ambition, and then again with current WWE announcer Corey Graves.

WWE management obviously sees something in the 29-year-old grappler or they wouldn't have put any championship around his waist, let alone three before coming up to the main roster.

Neville spent a total of 462 days with a title in NXT across three separate reigns. He also holds the distinction of being part of the first team to hold the NXT Tag Team Championships. For someone who just got called up to the big leagues, he sure has built an impressive resume.

Title	No. of Days Held
NXT Tag Titles w/ Oliver Grey	91
NXT Tag Titles w/ Corey Graves	84
NXT Championship	287

He Is an Indy Wrestling God

Before arriving in NXT in 2012, Neville spent eight years honing his craft working for just about every big promotion around the globe.

TNA, New Japan, Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla and Dragon Gate are just some of the companies that got to showcase the incredible talent of this young man.

Before being renamed Adrian Neville, he was known as Pac. During his time traveling around the globe, he faced just about every recognizable name in the business, many of whom are now part of the WWE roster.

If you go on YouTube and search "Pac vs.", you will find a plethora of fun, entertaining matches against people who are both famous and unknown to the average fan.

His ability to do things that seem impossible may be what made him popular, but it's his passion for the sport that made him a great all-around wrestler.

He has held titles in several different promotions. If WWE is smart, it won't be long before he gets his first taste of gold on the main roster.

If you are familiar with his work in NXT, share your thoughts about what's in store for Neville in the comments section. For those of you who were just introduced to him after WrestleMania, share your first impressions of this highly skilled wrestler below.

Thanks for reading, and follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor.