WWE NXT Big Board: Updated Prospect Rankings and Analysis for December 10

One jaw-rattling kick at a time, Asuka is charging toward the top of WWE NXT, looking to knock Bayley off of her throne.

Her limited English remains her weakness, but she's been busy speaking with glares, devilish grins and the heels of her wrestling boots. On Wednesday's NXT, Asuka made the discussion about who reigns in the women's division more difficult.

Suddenly, that's one of NXT's deepest parts of the roster with Nia Jax shining, Alexa Bliss mastering the art of heeldom and women such as Peyton Royce making great strides.

Not every prospect is trending upward, though. Mojo Rawley continues to flounder.

Every week, he seems to become worse at his weak points. Wednesday night was no different. He was a gyrating jester during his bout.

The following is a look at how those wrestlers and their peers stack up in the NXT prospect rankings. Which talents are most ready to head to the main roster? Which would make the biggest impact once making that leap.

Gimmick, look, size, ring acumen, mic work and charisma all factor into the answers to those key questions.

Male Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height/Weight	Notes
1.	Samoa Joe	6'2'', 279 lbs	Elite presence, off-the-charts intensity, excellent talker, thrives as heel or face.
2.	Finn Balor	5'11'', 190 lbs	Excellent showman, highly marketable, "it" factor aplenty, top-notch athlete.
3.	Sami Zayn	6'1'', 205 lbs	Superb showman, fun move set, great crowd connection, inconsistent talker.
4.	Apollo Crews	6'1'', 240 lbs	Showing impressive fire, stunning athleticism, promo skills slowly improving.
5.	Baron Corbin	6'8'', 275 lbs	Slowly improving as talker, expanding move set, great size/look.
6.	Colin Cassady	6'10'', 276 lbs	Impressive intensity, solid mic work, larger-than-life aura.
7.	Jason Jordan	6'3'', 245 lbs	Stellar athlete, adding to move set, impressive power.
8.	Hideo Itami	5'9'', 182 lbs	Showing more charisma, making progress as mic worker, electric in the ring.
9.	James Storm	6'0'', 230 lbs	Excellent presence, skilled brawler, has lost a step since his prime.
10.	Chad Gable	5'8'', 187 lbs	Making mat wrestling fun, great energy, OK comic timing.
11.	Scott Dawson	5'10'', 224 lbs	Skilled striker, excellent tag team psychology, mic work is serviceable.
12.	Enzo Amore	5'11'', 200 lbs	Underwhelming/inconsistent in the ring, top-notch talker, great charisma.
13.	Simon Gotch	6'1'', 221 lbs	Fun move set, strong character work, good charisma.
14.	Tye Dillinger	6'3'', 223 lbs	Found ideal gimmick, works crowd well, average mat worker.
15.	Dash Wilder	5'10'', 222 lbs	Thriving in tag team role, good striker, below-average on promos.
16.	Aiden English	6'3'', 215 lbs	Solid all around, struggling to stand out.
17.	Bull Dempsey	6'2'', 300 lbs	Languishing as comedy act, strong bruiser when allowed to be, surprising athleticism.
18.	Sawyer Fulton	6'8'', 285 lbs	Aggressive, good size, needs to find right gimmick.
19.	Blake	6'1'', 240 lbs	Lacks presence, solid ring work, good aggression at times.
20.	Murphy	5'11'', 227 lbs	Impressive athlete, subpar presence, weak mic work.

Prospects just outside the top 20: Elias Samson, Mojo Rawley, Steve Cutler.

Mojo Rawley's Stock Sinking

Rawley remains the most frustrating wrestler to watch on NXT. With all his athletic ability and potential, one would expect him to be one of the best the developmental brand has to offer.

But he appears incapable of reaching those heights, though, because he simply hasn't grown.

Credit: WWE.com

He's still a bleating bro with a microphone in hand. He's still a one-note performer come bell time. And rather than add intensity or real emotion to his matches, he just turns up the volume on the silly side of himself.

During The Hype Bros' match against Blake and Murphy, Rawley spent a good amount of time flopping around like a fish on a boat. It's not funny or endearing; it's just awful.

While a guy such as Bull Dempsey is handcuffed by WWE trying to turn him into a goofball, Rawley is putting the shackles on himself.

Colin Cassady the Powder Keg

Wednesday's NXT allowed a peek at what Cassady would look like as a monster heel, and it was tremendous.

Long the happy-go-lucky crowd-pleaser alongside Enzo Amore, Cassady showed a far more intense side of himself when he and Amore walloped a pair of jobbers.

After the match, he played the vengeful, roaring beast, intent on taking down Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder for trying to break his leg. Shaking with rage, he compelled the entire time. His fury was believable; his presence was undeniable.

WWE has to be thrilled that a guy who has been so good at being a babyface flashed such a powerful heel aura.

Other Notes

Blake is becoming more of flamboyant character, rolling with the "Let's go Barbie!" chants he's received thanks to his hair. He wore a torn sweater that Adrian Street would wear. That's a smart place for him to take his gimmick.

Amore was surprisingly intense in his matchup alongside Cassady. He absolutely blasted his foe with a shoulder tackle that belied his size.

He needs to show more of that.

Elias Samson continues to slowly reveal himself to the NXT fanbase via vignette.

It's great to see him get some airtime, but these videos haven't told us much about him yet. His character is going to need more depth beyond the fact that he plays the guitar. 

Female Wrestlers

Rank	Wrestler	Height	Notes
1.	Bayley	5'6''	Elite in-ring storyteller, great connection with crowd, fun energy, inconsistent on the mic.
2.	Asuka	5'1''	Compelling presence, great striker, intimidating, unique.
3.	Emma	5'5''	Growing more believable on the mic, excellent in the ring, good intensity.
4.	Alexa Bliss	5'1''	One of the best talkers in the division, convincing heel, improving as striker, excellent viciousness.
5.	Nia Jax	6'0''	Strong presence, fierce, not as intimidating as she should be.
6.	Carmella	5'5''	Decent in the ring, strong charisma, good facial expressions.
7.	Dana Brooke	5'1''	Working to lessen overacting, excellent athlete, making progress overall.
8.	Eva Marie	5'8''	Outright hated by NXT fans, star look, miles to go in the ring.
9.	Peyton Royce	5'7''	Improving presence, better sense of character, good aggression.
10.	Billie Kay	5'8''	Good power, intensity needs work, OK presence.
11.	Liv Morgan	5'4''	Strong showmanship, smooth in the ring, underwhelming presence as of now.

Learning Who Peyton Royce Is

Royce took on Bayley in her best performance at NXT to date.

Beyond the ring work, she was just more interesting and stood out more than she has thus far. Royce came off as cocky, indignant and sassy.

The Wrestling Inc Twitter account pointed out her steady improvement:

The same goes for a number of components to her game. She hit Bayley with a number of good strikes. Royce was aggressive and exuded attitude. Her best moment of the match was an easy one to miss. Upset with the referee, she stared him down with a mix of disgust and anger.

That's more personality than we had seen from her up to that point. The more she can tap into those elements, the higher she will climb.

Asuka Inspires Awe

With each performance, Asuka makes it clear that she has an NXT women's title run is in her future and that she would elevate the women's division on the main roster in a big way. 

It wasn't that her match against NXT guest Deonna Purrazzo was great by any stretch. She just played the part of predator to a tee. Whether she was cranking Purrazzo's arm backward and toying with her with slaps, she made it hard to look away.

And when Emma and Dana Brooke tried to distract her, she nailed Purrazzo with a convincing shot to the head.

Her intensity and presence elevated that moment. It's easy to believe in her as an ass-kicker. She's a savage and a spark plug with a sky-high ceiling. She and Emma promise to have a stellar match in London next week.

That bout will be a showcase of both women, a proving ground where Asuka is sure to thrive.