The Great Eight: The Top 8 NXT North American Champions

Since its debut in 2018, the North American Championship has become a stepping stone for NXT wrestlers. Many have gone on to win the NXT Championship, some while still champion. Others have debuted on the main roster while still holding the title.

And like the Intercontinental Championship used to be, it’s become a bit of a workhorse title. With many former champions among the best wrestlers in NXT. Since that first ladder match at Takeover: New Orleans, up to Ethan Page’s current reign, there have been a lot of incredible matches for the belt.

So, let’s look back at some of the best to hold the title in the last eight years!

Fun Facts:

So far, there have been 26 reigns with 22 champions. Trick Williams has the shortest reign at three days. Velveteen Dream was the youngest champion, winning the title at 23, while Shawn Spears is the oldest, winning it at 44. When writing this list, Keith Lee moved up two spots from my original rankings.

Ranking Explanation:

The ranking is based on longevity, body of work, and how the wrestlers used it to propel themselves up the card.

Plugs

I don’t use social media, but you can follow me on Spotify, where you’ll find playlists covering every decade from the 1950s to the 2000s. As well as several genre-specific playlists.

Disclaimer:

This is my list; if you don’t like it or have a different list, awesome! Please share your own list and opinions in the comments section. I welcome open discourse about this wacky art we all love. It is an art form, so it is subjective; we all have our opinions on it, and all of them are valid. So, if you want to share your thoughts and opinions, don’t insult others for their opinion. There is already enough negativity in the world; let’s not add to it. And with that, on to the list!

The List

Honorable Mentions

Cameron Grimes, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, and Roderick Strong

8: Ricochet

Ricochet debuted in NXT in January of 2018 at NXT Takeover: Philadelphia. He would have his first match at Takeover: New Orleans, in the Ladder match to crown the first North American Champion. After a feud with Velveteen Dream, Ricochet would beat Adam Cole for the title at Takeover: Brooklyn IV.

His first defense would be against Pete Dunne, in a match where the United Kingdom Championship was also on the line. He would then have several defenses on house shows, defending against Shane Thorne, Harper, Tyler Breeze, and Fabian Aichner.

He would defend the title on TV twice, in a Triple-Threat match against Adam Cole and Pete Dunne, and against Tyler Breeze. At Takeover: Phoenix, he would drop the title to Johnny Gargano.

While Ricochet didn’t have many televised defenses, he used the title to propel himself over the NXT Championship and straight to the main roster. In less than a year with the company, he would be on the main roster.

Ricochet makes the list because of the quality of his work. Even when he wasn’t defending the title, he was putting on great matches and representing the title. His lack of defenses puts him at the bottom of the list, but he does come in at number eight on the longest reigns as North American Champion.

7: Wes Lee

After Solo Sikoa vacated the title, NXT held a Five-Man Ladder match to crown a new champion. Wes Lee was the man to win that match, beating out Carmelo Hayes, Von Wagner, Nathan Frazier, and Oro Mensah.

Wes Lee currently has the second-longest single reign and the third total combined days as North American Champion. I say currently, because Ethan Page is going to pass that mark in a couple of weeks.

And looking at the matches he had while champion, there is no question as to why he held it for so long. Putting on great matches with Hayes, Axiom, Frazier, and Dijak. The Fatal-Five Way at Stand & Deliver 2023 had some of the best male wrestlers that NXT had to offer at the time.

At Great American Bash 2023, Lee would lose the title to Dominik Mysterio in a Triple-Threat that also had Mustafa Ali.

Lee went out and gave us everything he had, every defense proving why he was champion. If Lee had been able to do more after his run, he would be higher on the list. As it stands, he gave us 269 days of excellent matches, and that’s enough for the number 7 spot on the list.

6: Adam Cole

The inaugural North American Champion, Adam Cole, set the precedent of the title being a workhorse championship. A Six-Man Ladder match at Takeover: New Orleans was held to determine the first champion. Minus the weird inclusion of Lars Sullivan (man, am I glad his run never got out of the gate. The guy was destined to be another in a long line of failed big men.) The match set the stage for what was to come.

For 132 days, Adam Cole set out to establish not only the belt but himself as well. He had great defenses against Oney Lorcan, Ricochet, Tozawa, and WALTER (in a dark match at EVOLVE 107). Before finally dropping the title to Ricochet at Takeover: Brooklyn 4.

He sits right in the middle of the pack for the longest reign at number 12. And while he didn’t have the longest reign or the most reigns. This is due more to the fact that after he finished his reign, he was bound for the NXT Championship, and he never looked back.

His work to establish what the title was all about is what gets him a spot on this list at number 6. I can’t think of anyone else from that time who could have been a better choice for the first champion.

5: Johnny Gargano

The only man to hold the North American Championship three times (though his second reign could have just been longer if they didn’t do the random Leon Ruff switch in the middle). Gargano helped to hold down the end of the Black and Gold era.

While Gargano’s first reign was more of a transition from Ricochet to Dream. It’s his second and third runs that allowed Johnny Wrestling to add to the legacy of the North American Championship. After beating Damian Priest in a Devil’s Playground match at Halloween Havoc, Gargano would lose the title two weeks later to Leon Ruff. He would win it back at Takeover: Wargames in December, in a Triple-Threat also involving Damian Priest.

After regaining the title, Gargano would defend the title against Ruff, Kushida, and Bronson Reed. He would finally lose the title to Bronson Read in May in a Steel Cage match.

Gargano’s in-ring abilities will also let him place high on any list; the fact that he is also the only three-time champion helps get him to number five. But the shortness of his first two reigns keeps him out of the top 4.

4: Keith Lee

Man, talk about What Ifs? Lee was so talented both in the ring and on the mic, but COVID and injuries seem to have robbed him of his career. But we can still look back at his run in NXT and remember how great he was.

He beat Roderick Strong for the title in January and would go on to defend the title for 175 days before vacating it to focus on his newly won NXT Championship. That’s how great Lee was; no one else has won the NXT Championship while still holding the NXT North American Championship.

He put on bangers with Damien Priest, Cameron Grimes, Johnny Gargano, and Dominik Dijakovic. Even after beating Adam Cole for the NXT Championship, he would defend both titles against Dijakovic before vacating the North American Championship.

 

3: Ethan Page

Page is just a couple of weeks away from passing Lee’s record for a single run. And about a month away from passing both Femi’s single reign record as well as Femi’s and Hayes’s combined days as champion as well.

Since May of 2025, Page has gone above and beyond to prove he has what it takes to carry any division he is in. He has always been good on the mic, but his in-ring work has improved greatly in his run as North American Champion.

His feud with El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. was an excellent contrast of styles and also gave him a second title in the AAA Mixed Tag Team Championships. His work with Tavion Heights is underrated as well. I am excited to see how far he goes with the title. I don’t think he will surpass Asuka’s 522 days, but I could see him getting a full year before finally dropping it.

With him so close to being the longest reigning and most combined days as champion, plus his work in the ring and on the mic are more than enough to nab him the number three spot on the list.

2: Carmelo Hayes

Hayes is just barely edged out of the top spot. Which really comes down to the fact that his two runs are broken up by a 63-day run by Cameron Grimes. If he had held the title the whole time, he would be the longest reigning champion at 336 days.

But he did have that loss to Grimes, and so he is in spot number two. Hayes’s in-ring work speaks for itself. And I am so glad he is finally getting a chance to show that on the main roster. But not only is he a fantastic in-ring talent, but he also has charisma in spades.

Hayes was also a bright spot in the transition from the Black & Gold era to 2.0; he stood out as being head-and-shoulders above a lot of the wrestlers around him. And he used that talent to help lift everyone else around him.

He put on great matches with Dunne, Grimes, Tony D’Angelo, Nathan Frazer, Grayson Waller, and several others. And like many before him, he used his North American Championship run as a catapult to the top. Just four months after losing the title, he would beat Bron Breakker to win the NXT Championship.

Hayes is a can’t-miss talent, and hopefully, he can continue his momentum to get into the WWE Championship division sooner rather than later.

1: Oba Femi

From one can’t-miss talent to another. Before he spent most of 2025 as NXT Champion, he spent most of 2024 as North American Champion. He would cash in his Breakout Tournament contract to beat Dragon Lee for the title in January, and he would go on to hold the title for the longest single reign at 272 days.

He would defend the title in wars against Dragon Lee, Brooks Jenson, Dijak, Josh Briggs, Joe Coffey, Wes Lee, Otis, and Tony D’Angelo. It would be Tony D’Angelo who would finally beat Femi for the title in October.

Femi’s absolute dominance in the ring and growth as a performer while champion is what gets him in this spot. Femi was a megastar from the moment he showed up, and he continues to show he is the next big thing every time he shows up. His volume of work while champion speaks for itself, and while he is soon to be moved to the number two slot of longest reigns, it will be a while before someone replaces him at the top of this list.

Preview:

Per Aaron’s suggestion in the comments of last week’s column. Next week, we will cover the Great Eight NXT Black & Gold Era Tag Teams.