NXT Champion Samoa Joe has relinquished his title due to injury in a recent Twitter post.

Joe revealed that WWE’s medical staff has forced him to take some time off after he sustained a yet to be disclosed injury ahead of NXT’s rebrand this week.

This puts Joe’s potential feuds with NXT mainstays like Pete Dunne and Johnny Gargano on the sideline for the time being.

Here are some names that could be crowned NXT champion.

Johnny Gargano

Gargano has been one of NXT’s standout performers since entering the promotion in 2015 alongside tag team partner-turned-rival Tommaso Ciampa.

Known for his heated rivalries and outstanding matches with Ciampa, Adam Cole and Andrade “Cien” Almas, he became one of the cornerstones of NXT and continues to do so with his faction “The Way.”

Giving Gargano his second NXT Championship reign in Joe’s absence would make a ton of sense for the brand as he is a familiar face to audiences and he rarely produces a bad match.

Tommaso Ciampa

Ciampa became the brand’s hottest heel when he turned on Gargano after their match with the Authors of Pain at NXT TakeOver: Chicago.

He would go on to have massive success in the brand after standout performances against Gargano and Cole, the latter of which he defeated in a WarGames match at NXT TakeOver: WarGames in 2019.

Reuniting Ciampa with “Goldie,” his nickname for the NXT Title, would work wonders for the brand.

Moreover, turning him heel in the process would further cement his status as one of the greatest performers NXT has ever seen.

Dexter Lumis

The “Tortured Artist” of NXT has been featured heavily in the brand throughout his two-year run.

Lumis became an NXT staple after feuding with Cameron Grimes through much of 2020, leading to an angle with “The Way” that started in January.

He would feud with the group for some time but would bury the hatchet after being married to on-screen partner, Indi Hartwell.

Yet to win a singles title in NXT, being crowned as the NXT Champion would be a step in the right direction for the stoic-faced Lumis.

Kyle O’Reilly

The likeliest of names on this list to win the title is Kyle O’Reilly. His singles career in NXT has been nothing short of amazing, and the brand has been building him up since the early part of 2021.

O’Reilly has shown that he has the potential to be a top draw, thanks to his insane work rate and move set that makes him easy to watch and root for.

He faced off with the likes of Finn Balor, Karrion Kross and former stablemate Cole in singles matches, proving to everyone that he can hang with the best that NXT had to offer.

Becoming NXT Champion is the next logical step in his career, and WWE management will need to recognize that they have the brand's next big star on their hands.