Motor City Machine Guns Should Move to NXT Instead of Main Roster, Says Veteran

The tag team of huge repute, comprising Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin, the Motor City Machine Guns, has sent ripples across the wrestling scene. Both interested in style and chemistry, they have managed to strike a chord with a huge chunk of fan support besides respect from various peers and veterans. A wrestling veteran recently insinuated that perhaps the Motor City Machine Guns should consider moving to WWE’s NXT brand instead of joining the main roster. In the following article, the origin of the Motor City Machine Guns will be explored and an attempt will be made to rightly point out why the veteran recommended them and all while gazing at potential implications for WWE, NXT, and the tag team division on the whole.

The Motor City Machine Guns: A Dynamic Duo

Formation and Early Success

It is a tag team that features Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin out of Detroit, Michigan. They formed in 2006 with a high-paced infused high energy-based style. Both these wrestlers were a mix of technical wrestling and high-flying moves. It was their innovative offense and seamless teamwork that set them apart in the tag team division.

Indeed, early success came in ROH, TNA—now IMPACT Wrestling—where they captured multiple Tag Team Championships. The Motor City Machine Guns became synonymous for their numerous outstanding tag team matches that won over the crowd and critics’ hearts.

Accomplishments and Contributions
Over the life of their career, the Motor City Machine Guns sparked many different sorts of accolades. Within IMPACT Wrestling, they can be denoted as one of the most decorated tag teams in that promotion. Undisputedly, their influence upon what tag team wrestling has become in this era has continued to mentor a new generation of grapplers with their innovative style.

Theirs is a legacy that epitomizes something much bigger than winning championships. In fact, the Motor City Machine Guns have been a part of some truly memorable matches and rivalries in the history of tag team wrestling. It is their contributions to the industry that would entrench their legacy among the all-time great tag teams.

The Perspective of a Veteran

Experience and Intuition

This assumes, of course, that the wrestling veteran in question — who suggested the Motor City Machine Guns move to NXT re the main roster — knows a thing or two about the matter. Experience and insight galore into the debate, if nothing else. As someone who just watched a little bit of how it evolved between WWE and NXT, he simply thinks, at this point in the two’s’ careers, the latter is a better fit for Shelley and Sabin.

The veteran’s perspective on this is that he is deeply knowledgeable about the wrestling business and the particular intersections of its goings-on through the WWE and, more specifically, NXT. The knowledge gathered gives great context for understanding both possible benefits and struggles of each brand.

The Case for NXT
The veteran thinks it would be a more suitable platform for the Motor City Machine Guns, driven by in-ring performance and character development, which would help them. That’s a great fit for Shelley and Sabin—strengths in the environment of NXT, where wrestling quality and storytelling are top priorities.

NXT clearly holds a focus on talent development as well as great storytelling—both being areas in which the Motor City Machine Guns have shined. The brand’s refocused emphasis on excellence in wrestling quality and character-driven storylines gives Shelley and Sabin a great base.

Steer Clear of Main-Roster Pit

The pitfalls the veteran also pointed out in going straight to the main roster: WWE’s main roster can be pretty unforgiving with the schedule, and it does have some ridiculously spotty booking with tag teams. For example, Motor City Machine Guns might get lost in the shuffle — underutilization that wouldn’t be fair to their talents or legend.

The fast-moving, unscripted environment of the main roster will be a challenge to any performer with even the most seasoned-in contrast to the Motor City Machine Guns, whose established reputation and unique style might find it difficult without proper creative direction within the rigors of the main roster.

Benefits of Joining NXT

Put it all on Document
One of the many benefits to joining NXT is their wrestling-oriented approach. NXT has established tradition for quality matches and showcases an extremely broad number of wrestling styles so the Motor City Machine Guns would be afforded the platform to have great quality matches, further enhancing NXT.

The high quality of wrestling at NXT fits well with what the Motor City Machine Guns bring to the table. Shelley’s and Sabin’s innovative offense and technical ability among the surroundings that lean toward in-ring performance would see them well spotlighted.

Character Development

NXT will still give them more room to develop character and invest in storytelling than the main roster, though; in NXT, they can continue building their characters to communicate on a deeper level with the audience.

Worth comment: character development, an integral part of pro wrestling, which NXT avails of, provides for the creative ability of wrestlers to get different and new. The Motor City Machine Guns could explore new dimensions of their characters and create compelling storylines that resonate with fans.

Opportunities for rivalries
Nxt has very strong Tag-Team divisions, comprising teams resembling The Undisputed Era, Grizzled Young Veterans, and Imperium. The Motor City Machine Guns would get an opportunity to have fresh and exciting rivalries, thus providing more room to push those tag-team divisions to new heights and build a fond memory of matches.

On a larger scale, having veteran and up-and-coming tag teams at NXT is going to open more doors for great feuds. The Motor City Machine Guns can finally contribute to making that division better by executing numerous high-stake matches.

Potential Challenges

Adapting to the WWE way.

Whereas NXT has been posited as the pinnacle of wrestling quality, it’s still WWE with their particular style and way of presentation. The Motor City Machine Guns would have to tone themselves down significantly stylistically and adjust their style of working in ring, along with getting used to a complete difference in production values and storytelling ways from what they may be used to in WWE.

Understanding WWE’s production technique, its storytelling methods, and audience expectations will help in adapting their wrestling to a WWE type. How Shelley and Sabin can thread their type of wrestling with the WWE style will go a long way in establishing them as successful stars within the company.

Emphasizing the challenge
Another big challenge was how to keep the momentum and relevance in a very competitive environment. There existed a lot of talented performers at developmental, and for one to be noted, one needed to remain consistent with high-level performances and engaging storylines released weekly. The Motor City Machine Guns would need to continue being prescribed as a “focus of the division.”.

It all takes strategic booking and consistency inside the ring. The Motor City Machine Guns need to feed off any and every opportunity given to them, be as exciting as possible within the ring, and keep interacting with the audience if they want to remain buddies within NXT’s competitive landscape.

Engaging New Potential Fans

Though the work of the Motor City Machine Guns is popular with a devoted fan base, they would have to develop a new fanbase within the WWE Universe. The audience of NXT may know them as workers, but it’s crucial to create stronger ties with the WWE fan base if they are to create longevity.

That says new fan base, but connects back to the diverse audience of WWE and their congruence with the WWE and its fans at large. Their ability to connect with the fans and create those ‘moments’ will be what stakes them in NXT.

General WWE and NXT Implications

Building Up the Tag Team Division within NXT

The Motor City Machine Guns coming into NXT would pretty obviously fix the tag team division. This level of performance and innovation in the division and would yield a few cool new developments in match-ups and storylines.

If Motor City Machine Guns headed into NXT, the quality of the tag team division therein would have no choice but to be great. Their potential epic matches and exciting rivalries would help maintain NXT’s standing among the world’s best wrestling promotions.

Enhancing the Nxt Appeal

One thing about having a legendary team in the Motor City Machine Guns is that they would make a deeper appeal to NXT, from which Shelley and Sabin fans would get attracted, giving more viewership and interest in the brand.

The fan base and image of the Motor City Machine Guns would reel in new support for the NXT product, thus increasing its marketability and exposure. It will strengthen the NXT line-up with a definite branding, which will not go unnoticed by fans and industry pundits.

Creating New Storylines

This would open up so many chances and interactions for the authors in penning new, exciting storylines. There is so much to be drawn on for those interesting stories from their past, style, and charismatic performances.

Running new storylines with the Motor City Machine Guns featuring threads of legacy, competition, and innovation, their partnering with other teams and wrestlers within NXT, both of which would forge new, dynamic narratives between all members of the roster that cross traditional matches, would give continuous ground for fans to interact with the show.

Influence in WWE Main Roster

While the Motor City Machine Guns may come into NXT first, their influence can spread straight through to the main roster of WWE. If past history is anything to go by through, if what one does while they are in NXT does earn their respect to move into the main roster such as Raw and SmackDown, both Shelly and Sabin are people that can make real waves in the tag team division.

What will now break the iceberg is if the Motor City Machine Guns do succeed in NXT; not only that, their recent reputation and performance in this very brand may just make their debut on either Monday Night Raw or Friday Night Smackdown quite episodic.

Scoring as NXT Success: Historic Context

Finn Bálor
The best example of a great success in transition would be that of Finn Bálor on his return to NXT from the main roster. Bálor, although he put on some main-roster runs, reshaped his career and composition with that of the top-grade matches of the pivotal stars in NXT when he settled in. He showed how he really can reset the level of the brand and achieve the turnaround of a former central figure now streaming back into NXT. Success such as that of Bálor’s in NXT is at least indicative of the potential that typically well-constructed and well-operated fan environments potentially offer for established stars. All his successful matches and storyline-defining parties provide examples of opportunities that could be availed within NXT.

Samoa Joe
The main arc of Samoa Joe’s period in NXT was filled with dominating performances. Meanwhile, the wrestler has held the position of the NXT champion a couple of times. Through his run in NXT, Joe was given an opportunity to fight and assert his skills and name as one of the top workers before heading to the main roster. Joe’s influence, even just in the context of another NXT run, makes a compelling case all its own about the need for utility boxes like him in the larger NXT canvas.

Undisputed Era
And then came, possibly, the best faction in NXT history—featuring Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish, and Roderick Strong—a list of names that ushered in an era. Their immediate, sustained success within the tag team and singles ranks has reaffirmed that strong booking for a cohesive unit returning visible benefits is not only Something That Works™ but also, in actuality, Something That Can Work Great™ within NXT. Their success shows that cohesive teams and factional rules can bring out huge potential—so much so that in NXT, units deliver great matches and engage with storyline infrastructure, providing multitude opportunities available for the Motor City Machine Guns or any such teams.

Conclusion
This argues that, instead of being moved to the main roster, the Motor City Machine Guns should be moved to NXT because it’s a better environment for their strengths and career goals. By working on the noted features within the identity of NXT—feature in quality wrestling, character development, and innovative storytelling—shows that this brand can offer a better platform for Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin to show their ragout and be a part of the legacy. Joining NXT would allow for an array of fresh rivalries, excellent new matches, and maybe even some brand-new dimensions of the Motor City Machine Guns.

While there may be some evident complications, such as adapting to the WWE style and keeping that momentum, the upside is big. As a result, the Motor City Machine Guns in NXT would forcefully solidify the department of tag teams and make that brand even more exciting. This might as well spur some new storylines and be very entertaining, and with their far-reaching effect, even directly relate to the way things happen on the main roster of WWE. It would give room for very strong debuts, shaping the present tag team roster. The WWE Universe will be watching to see just how much the Motor City Machine Guns do together in the future; and with proper planning, backing, and creative guidance, Shelley and Sabin are sure to tear it up in NXT, making memories and redefining everything that lies in front of them for the history books.