David Otunga Reveals Five WWE Evolve Stars He'd Pick For A New Version Of Nexus

Following their outings on season one of "WWE NXT," several rookie wrestlers banded together to antagonize the figures on WWE's main roster, beginning with a chaotic attack on John Cena, CM Punk, and other personnel on "WWE Raw." With their uniform yellow and black t-shirts, the group then famously revealed themselves as The Nexus, a heel stable led by Wade Barrett, and later, Punk himself.

In a recent YouTube video, former Nexus member David Otunga pondered what a new version of the group might look like if placed in WWE's present-day structure. Currently, the "WWE Raw" and "WWE SmackDown" brands remain at the top of WWE's hierarchy, while "NXT" has been transformed into a legitimate developmental show, rather than a competition. Right below "NXT" is "WWE Evolve," which features a mix of stars with "NXT" experience and those signed to developmental and WWE ID deals. The WWE ID program is considered a pathway for independent wrestlers to get WWE's eyes directly on them and potentially level up to an official developmental contract with the company.

While drafting a modern-day Nexus group, Otunga specifically envisioned the members originating from "Evolve," then taking over "NXT" programming. And instead of seven members like the initial iteration, Otunga locked in five candidates: a woman, a tag team, an enforcer, and a future world champion.

In assessing the active "Evolve" roster, Otunga found himself impressed by the physique and in-ring work of former United States Olympian Tyra Mae Steele. Once he discovered former Evolve Women's Champion Kali Armstrong, though, his choice for a female Nexus member was clear.

"I saw one promo from Kali Armstrong and I said, 'Hm, who's this?' Then on the next episode, I got another promo from Kali Armstrong. Still no match, but I was interested," Otunga said. "Basically, at this point, this was Tyra Steele's position to lose. Then I put on Kali Armstrong match. The entrance, immediately I'm feeling this. Charisma. Comes out, great entrance, great presentation. Gets in the ring. I only had to see about a minute, and I said that's her, this is the girl I want. This is the woman. So Kali Armstrong was it. I think she has the best package right now for main event level star. I think she could go right into NXT and become Women's Champion immediately. I think she's ready. The promos were great. The look, the entrance, the ring work, this woman's got it all."

Regarding the brand new Nexus' potential enforcer, Otunga selected one of the brand's most dominant figures, Keanu Carver. Initially wooed by Carver's back and shoulder muscles, Otunga was further convinced by the way he carried and backed himself up in the ring.

According to Otunga, Carver even reminded him of his original Nexus stablemate Michael Tarver, who had a similar menacing look. Carver, a 2023 "NXT" Men's Breakout Tournament competitor, received a promotion to the "NXT" roster in January 2026.

On his search for a Nexus tag team, Otunga came across two more large men who've worked as singles stars in "Evolve." If put together, however, Otunga believes they could be unstoppable

"They're not a tag team, but I went with Drake Morreaux and Sam Holloway," Otunga said. "In fact, I saw them have a match against each other, believe it or not. These are two big dudes. Both of them appealed to me. I like Morreaux, but also, that's a big guy. I think he's six-seven, something like that. And then you get Sam Holloway who's six-nine. He's different. I like the stuff he was doing. Even how he gets in the ring, it's like he starts to step over and does like this little springboard hop that was unexpected. But I like both of their styles and just the confidence they carried themselves with."

For his future world champion, Otunga landed on former "WWE LFG" star Kam Hendrix (real name Anthony Luke), whom he describes as a talent with real "presence." Otunga further praised Hendrix for his promo skills, charisma, and look, which stands at six-foot-four inches tall.

"If you have the rest of these people behind him, this is the team right here," Otunga said. "This is a dominant faction."

Should Armstrong, Carver, Morreaux, Holloway, and Hendrix join forces, Otunga believes they could unleash an "NXT" takeover so big that they'd hold all of the brand's gold within six months. Armstrong could carry the NXT Women's Championship, while Morreaux and Holloway seize the brand's tag titles. Elsewhere, Carver would claim the NXT North American Championship, while Hendrix captures the top prize, the NXT Championship.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit David Otunga with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.