Finn Balor, 'Tough Enough' and Latest WWE NXT Developmental News

Finn Balor is set to make his "virtual" debut, while WWE NXT hopefuls working to do what Balor does for a living made progress of their own on Tough Enough.

WWE offered the latest sign that Balor isn't going to be at Full Sail University for long: He'll be representing NXT in an upcoming video game. The fact that the company chose him for this spot suggests that there will be a promotion in his future.

As for the Tough Enough contestants, they watched as a field of 40 contestants shrunk to 13. The next stage of the competition will begin soon.

In other developmental news, WWE continues to seek a working relationship with the World Wrestling Network, while the NXT family saluted Dusty Rhodes and two NXT alum lined up new gigs.

Finn Balor Announced as Part of WWE 2K16

The real-life version of Finn Balor vs. Dean Ambrose may be something fans don't get for a long time. As a consolation, though, the virtual version of that matchup will be possible just next year.

Balor will make his WWE video game debut as one of the playable wrestlers in WWE 2K16.

As noted on WWE.com, "2K announced the first six Superstars and Divas who will appear in WWE 2K16" at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Balor joins Ambrose, Paige, Daniel Bryan, Bad News Barrett and Seth Rollins as the game's first confirmed Superstars.

WWE posted a gallery of character art on its official website, including a shot of Balor in full paint.

Including Balor is either a sign of NXT's presence in the game or that WWE officials allowed 2K Games to go ahead and put him in because he's due for a call-up to the main roster. Either way, Balor's matches in WWE 2K16 will be the kind in which fans won't skip the entrances.

Update on Potential NXT-WWN Relationship

As previously noted, WWE is reportedly in talks with World Wrestling Network about creating a working relationship involving WWN's wrestling promotions.

According to PWInsider (h/t Wrestling Inc), WWE is interested in making a deal that would allow it to utilize talent from SHINE Wrestling. Overall, the proposed agreement would allow WWE to sign wrestlers from WWN promotions without having to deal with third-party rights and other issues.

The interest in SHINE is an encouraging sign for fans of women's wrestling. The promotion is home to some of the best female competitors working today.

The more NXT can funnel talent from that company to their own stage, the better. SHINE wrestler Leva Bates (known in NXT as Blue Pants) has already made several appearances for WWE's developmental brand.

Mia Yim, Evie and LuFisto are among the most notable names currently wrestling for SHINE.

'Tough Enough' Updates

After sorting through a flood of video submissions and hosting a three-day tryout, WWE has decided which 13 men and women it wants to be part of the reality series Tough Enough.

WWE announced the finalists on its official website:

• Alexander Frekey
• Amanda Saccomanno
• Daria Berenato 
• Diana Dahlgren
• Gabi Castrovinci
• Giorgia Piscina 
• Hank Avery, Jr
• Joshua Bredl
• Mada Abdelhamid
• Patrick Clark, Jr
• Sara Lee
• Tanner Saraceno
• Zamariah Loupe

Women are well-represented, making up six of the 13 contestants on the list. And while there are some fitness models in the mix, there is also an MMA fighter competing for the top spot.

Berenato comes to wrestling by way of MMA.

The group of finalists is diverse, featuring folks with a football background (Bredl, Avery and Loupe), an MMA fighter (Saraceno) and Clark, a young indy wrestler who started out with the Middle Atlantic Wrestling Association. Piscina hails from Australia; Abdelhamid was born in Egypt.

A Tough Enough special is now available on the WWE Network. It offers a look at the journey of these contestants and more, as officials trimmed down the group of 40 entrants at the Performance Center to the current 13.

NXT Pays Tribute to Dusty Rhodes

Considering how much work Dusty Rhodes did with NXT as a teacher and mentor, it's no surprise that he received such a large number of heartfelt tributes on Twitter and elsewhere from NXT wrestlers and alumni.

On June 11, the fans took part in showing love for The American Dream at an NXT house show in Pittsburgh. Triple H posted a video of fans chanting "Thank you, Dusty" that night.

The event began, much like Money in the Bank did, with a nod to The Dream. As noted on PWTorch, "William Regal opened the show with a 10-bell salute to Dusty Rhodes."

In addition, NXT's champions paid their respects to Rhodes by way of their ring gear.

Sasha Banks tweeted a shot of her polka-dotted nails. Kevin Owens honored The Dream with polka dots on his shirt; he shared a picture of his new attire on his Twitter account.

Other News, Notes

Tough Enough isn't the only path to NXT this year. Another shot is on its way for prospective developmental talents.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Wrestling Inc), the next WWE tryouts are set for September.

Aside from Kevin Owens' carrying around the NXT title at Money in the Bank, there was no NXT presence on WWE shows this week. No NXT wrestlers appeared at the WWE house shows this week. The same is true for the SmackDown and Main Event tapings. Usually, at least one or two prospects get some action in dark matches, but not this time around.

Former NXT trainer Bill DeMott is back to teaching. Superstar Seminars issued a press release (h/t Wrestle Zone) confirming that DeMott will lead a wrestling training camp. Mickie James and veteran referee Earl Hebner will assist at the camp.

DeMott's former student, Austin Matelson (aka Judas Devlin), one of the prospects who made allegations of abuse (h/t Washington Post) against the trainer, has something new on the horizon as well.

As CBS announced on its website, Matelson will be on the next season of Big Brother. TVLine published a photo gallery of the new cast members, complete with a shot of the former NXT competitor.