Welcome To The Club, Kevin Owens

A victory over John Cena? That’s rare.

A clean victory over John Cena? Even more rare.

A clean victory in a non-gimmick, one-on-one match on pay-per-view? Well, that's like the Halley's Comet of professional wrestling.

The Mid-Week War Correspondent (6/4/15)

Subscribe to the Mid-Week War podcast on iTunes, or go to WrestlingMayhemShow.com. You can also get my random thoughts on the wide world of professional wrestling by following me on Twitter @MainstreamMat.

Let me just start by saying that 5 hours of professional wrestling on a single night is a terrible idea. I like to think of myself as a voracious consumer of the product in all its many, wonderful forms, but even I was overwhelmed. That said, here are my thoughts on the first night of the newly expanded Mid-Week War.

Kevin Owens: The Dream Match Machine

Kevin Owens is one the most remarkable talents in professional wrestling, and one the hottest things going right now in WWE.

Since his first appearance for NXT, Owens' popularity has grown at breakneck speed. As the theme of last night's live NXT Takeover special on the WWE Network suggests, Owens has been unstoppable.

In a matter of months, Owens established himself as the face of NXT. He's dominating and entertaining as its champion, but he hasn't stopped there. That thunderous sound you're hearing is Owens banging on the door of WWE's main roster.

The Best Of The NXT Live Specials (a.k.a OMG!!! SAMI ZAYN!!!)

We're getting close to the one-year anniversary of NXT's debut on WWE Network. I don't think it's overstating things to say that this brand has been a revelation for a lot of professional wrestling fans who've been desperate for an alternative to the mainstream WWE product.

The NXT live specials have become the best bet for quality professional wrestling on WWE Network. They've certainly been more consistently entertaining than those hit-or-miss pay per views.

10 matches from those NXT live specials stand out as the best of the best. Here is the Top 10 I put together, with more than a little help from some of my cohorts at the Wrestling Mayhem Show and the Mid-Week War Podcast.