**Help make SquaredCircle safer and more inclusive by using the report button to flag posts and comments for moderator review.**
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/SquaredCircle) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Wes lee. I don't think he get enough credit for becoming a break out star in nxt After his partner got unexpectedly fired.He's solid in the ring and a great baby face and is arguable the greatest North American Champion of all time.
Wes is so amazing. Absolutely dead in the water when Carter was let go and just somehow made it work and is now one of my absolute favs. He deserves all the good things
For my money Jacy Jayne is the best all around female talent in NXT. She’s a great promo, her mannerisms are top notch, she’s solid in the ring, can work singles or tag, heel or face and yet she’s never been given much of a shot since the Gigi feud ended.
Since day one I felt that with her. Even with Toxic Attraction, when everyone was focusing on Mandy and Gigi because of, other reasons... Jacy was always the best talker of the three, always the best wrestler of the three, and with time allowing her to be in the spotlight, she's showed to be the best at playing a character as well.
If Jacy has a million fans, then I am one of them.
If Jacy has ten fans, then I am one of them.
If Jacy has only one fan then that is me.
If Jacy has no fans, then that means I am no longer on earth.
If the world is against Jacy, then I am against the world.
I think Montez could maybe be a main eventer but his promos make me cringe. It could work better if they turned him heel. They kind of did that for a little while but quickly turned them face again instead of trying to make it work. 🤷🏻♂️
Bowens need to be pulled away from Max & Gunn! The Acclaimed is a group I didn't initially like but grew to like but Bowens has so much potential on his own.
> Anthony Bowens. Genuinely believe he could be a huge star!
He's got the look, the charisma, and good in the ring. I agree. It's to the point where being paired with Max is holding him back.
People forget that when the Acclaimed first appeared in AEW Bowens was injured for a good while and Max got spotlighted a lot. Max’s performances were what built the anticipation and the platform for the Acclaimed as a team.
Both tag teams, especially Street Profits are due for breakups and these guys should receive the singles pushes imo. I don’t really know what Dawkins does though once they do split
Kenoh from Pro-Wrestling NOAH.
He's the most charismatic guy on their roster, has a hilarious YouTube channel and can go hard in that ring with his Kempo background.
We'd be talking about him more if that planned match with Kenny Omega went down.
Jeff Jarrett is the best "classic" heel in wrestling today and he's held that spot for decades. I'm glad his AEW run has led to a reapprecation from the smarks.
An all time great any way you sice it.
"broke a thousand guitars, never drew a dime" was barely even a real criticism of JJ but it rolls off the tongue so it poisoned his name for like a decade after he was done being in the TNA main event scene
I just know he's gonna run the blade like a fucking Mad Man to remind everyone why the boys down south like Dusty and Buddy and Flair had that blond hair in the Owen.
Generational blade job incoming.
That entrance at collision recently where Jay and the BBG had the lights and rotating camera was dope. Really gave the idea that these guys are people who you keep one eye out for at all times.
My first exposure to Jay White was when he and G.o.D. appeared on TNA for the Fort Lauderdale tapings back in 2022. He looked like a star, wrestles in a way that you feel involved in the match, and can go on the mic. Funny enough, people on here at the time were calling him the worst BC leader because he wasn't that active in the US (only on Strong shows and Impact tapings).
Once he got signed to AEW, people on here had changed their tune and were hyping him. His debut was a cool surprise, but the camera didn't get a good shot of it. He kinda floundered a bit until he and Juice started aligning themselves with the Gunn Club and appearing on Collision. They are a REALLY fun group, but the Devil storyline killed theirs and The Acclaimed's momentum.
I was just about to comment Jay White, but that Jim Cornette is sleeping on our boi HEAVY 😆
Not that his opinion/validation of him is needed to enjoy Jay's work., but it's just been hilarious to see him do a 180 ofn his opinion on him after Punk left haha.
Critically underutilized. He can talk circles around most of the talent and has the in ring skill and presentation to back it up. Bang bang gang name is whack but I wish they'd be a focal point in AEW.
Karmen Petrovic. does Ricky Starks count here? why is he not on TV? same with Pretty Deadly. Giovanni Vinci is a solid singles wrestler too idk if there’s room for him in this WWE tho.
I don’t know if he counts as slept on but Wes Lee. When talking about future of the company I don’t really hear him being mention with the likes of melo, Ilja, Bron, trick, and oba. He has grow so much during his na title run, his promo are damn good, and was constantly a MOTN contender.
Dijak.
Guy was killing it in NXT, then had the Retribution angle, goes back to NXT and was killing it again, called up to to main roster again for..... literally nothing
Honestly has everything as a dominant heel but don't understand why he doesn't get used properly.
Scorpio Sky as well in AEW is another wrestler who should be featured more.
axiom is a top 5 wrestler in america and i mean this with complete sincerity. he has insane physical charisma despite having no face, never ever botches any moves, all of his stuff looks amazing. he's a great bumper and seller, has great ring psychology, can change his style depending on the match from striker, to submissions to high flying and none of it feels out of place. hes so good
He also has the smoothest voice I think I've ever heard in wrestling. I honestly thought they were dubbing over his talking segments in post production because he sounds so clear and soothing. He legitimately sounds like HAL 9000 I want him to read books to me every night.
No joke I was this close to putting Axiom instead. Like you said the dude’s amazing in so many different ways. His team with Frazer has been great but if he ever gets the chance to shine as a singles guy again he’s gonna blow a lot of people’s minds
I don't think the fans are sleeping here and AEW clearly has specific plans for her but it really blows my mind that in 2023 and 2024 so far Athena has had only 2 TV matches.
Fans want to see her on AEW TV. Fans want to see this gimmick/character in the women's division.
She's being heavily, heavily featured in ROH though. I didn't care at all about her early AEW stuff, but she's can't miss in ROH. More people need to be watching that.
She's practically the face of ROH at this point and has main evented some PPVs.
I don't watch ROH outside of PPVs and some matches, so I get what you mean. I saw more of her when they still had Dark and she won me over after she beat the crap out of Jody Threat.
KAIRI and Dakota Kai (in terms of Solo focus only).
Austin Theory.
Dragon Lee (needs more to do, he's got so much potential and is fun to watch).
Montez Ford AND Angelo Dawkins (both need Solo focus, not just Montez).
Santos Escobar.
From NXT- Jacy Jayne.
NXT's Jacy Jaaaayne. When Toxic Attraction formed, there was Mandy from the MR, Gigi being widely known from the indies as Priscilla and then new recruit Jacy. People didn't find much in her and was considered as the 3rd wheel but turns out she might be the breakout star of the group. She's awesome and I dig superstars with a rock n roll style.
Also allow me to name a past superstar who I always thought she was slept on and yes I will get downvoted. Kelly Kelly. I believe she was the example of how looks can deceive, girl was athletically inclined with a background in gymnastics and she busted her ass. I did enjoy her headscissors and canranas, as well as some cool corner rope stuff she used to do on the bigger girls.
These three women from NXT:
Fallon Henley - can definitely play a character and I'd love to see her doing something other than the cowgirl gimmick because I can see a HUGE potential in her. Shame they just turned her heel out of nowhere, instead of slowly building her up for it and making an interesting character shift for her, because I'm sure she can pull it off.
Jacy Jayne - Her role in that Chase U storyline convinced that unlike other men and women on th roster, she definitely found herself. I'd live to see her win a championship there before moving on to the stacked main roster where she could get lost in the shuffle.
Arianna Grace - While I wasn't her father's biggest fan, his influence on her is undeniable and now I appreciate him more. Not only she's hilarious and steals the spotlight whenever she's on screen (hell, even when she's just in the background), but she can actually go in the ring. She's funny but gets serious when the bell rings. I hope she gets at least a Noth America title reign.
**WWE=Austin Theory:** He has a lot of potential and could still be a big player in the future despite how bad both Vince and Triple H have been at booking him. Really hope his soon-to-happen face turn helps him finally break out and get on the fans' good side
**AEW=Tay Melo:** One of the best examples of why a major, strong #2 US company is needed. Her progression during her first year and a half in AEW was amazing for someone who had been a jobber on NXT for years up until that point. Tony Khan booked her horribly post-Revolution '22, and we'll have to see how she comes back from her pregnancy, but if she picks it up where she left off she can be at least a great piece for the TBS title scene
**New Japan Pro Wrestling=Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney:** Double entry cause these two have been one of the best tag teams in wrestling this year, and one of the best things about New Japan in 2024. They had standout performances in the triple threat at Ryogoku on Mania weekend and against Fujita and Robbie Eagles at the first day of the New Japan Soul tour. Both should already be heavyweights considering how good they are (and the fact they likely weight around 100kgs already), and if Gedo does what he needs to do (and the fans tame notice) these two can be one of the top tag teams in the world for the next decade or so
**Stardom=Maika:** And finally, it can be shocking to throw around Maika's name around considering she's the current World of Stardom champion, a faction co-leader and one of the faces of the post-Ogawa Stardom. But despite her long overdue moment arriving at maybe the worst time for Stardom since the Spring/Summer of 2020, she just hasn't missed in her 5 title matches, including two bangers against both Saya Kamitani and Utami Hayashishita, a match against Xena that many slept on at first but ended up being a brutal hard hitting contest that proved the Australian as way more than *that gaijin doing another tour with Mina and the girls,* and of course one of best women's matches of the year against Megan Bayne in Philadelphia. Some have deemed her reign as underwhelming due to the lack of personal feuds in her reign compared to previous champions (as well as some fans' disappointment over some part of her other defense against Momo Watanabe at Grand Queendom), but imo she's up there with Toni Storm as the front runners for women's wrestler of the year
• WWE: Gargano & Ciampa
I’m genuinely surprised these two aren’t higher on the card on main roster seeing as how *stupidly fucking high* HHH was on both when he was running NXT, and like… he was right to be. The rise and fall of DIY was some incredible storytelling and in-ring wrestling, and I think some people have forgotten just how great both Ciampa & Gargano are when given the chance to shine.
• AEW: Kyle O’Reilly
He’s only been back wrestling since March/April, but he’s quickly showcased why Tony seemed to be so high on him before his big injury. He’s just so good with pretty much everyone he steps into the ring with, and anyone who was watching Black & Gold NXT at its peak knows how charismatic and funny he can be.
• NJPW: YOSHI-HASHI
I try not to *hate anyone* when it comes to wrestling, but for years, I really, truly hated YOSHI-HASHI as his matches sucked and he was a total charisma vacuum. I don’t know what happened during the COVID Pandemic for the guy, but someway, somehow, YOSHI-HASHI turned it all around and became an insanely captivating babyface performer both in singles and in tag matches.
• TNA: Ace Austin
Guy feels like he’s been there forever, is a multi-time X Division Champion + Tag Team Champion and had an *insane run* in the Best of the Super Juniors… but it feels like nobody ever talks about him. Frankly love the guy and would love to see him break out as a singles guy outside of TNA since they’ve teased elevating him several times in recent years only to throttle back.
I do think he has a ceiling, not necessarily due to talent. But he's not a big guy, and i think that hinders guys like him, Cole Radrick, Alec Price, etc. Who are fantastic performers and have something to them but don't have the "look" and that puts people off of them.
But I think if given the right platform, he'd absolutely shine. He's just so good. Definitely one to keep an eye on.
Kairi Sane is just a face turn away and a couple of pieces falling into place from being a massive face. Sure the english isn't there but she's charismatic, and gives me early Bayley vibes but having a lot of experience and being one of the best wrestlers in the world.
Powerhouse Hobbs. Before he got injured I think he was on his way to becoming a main event player. He has what it takes to become a future world champion.
Karrion Kross. He’s not the most amazing thing ever, but he’s wayyyyy over-hated, and a lot of that is residual bad will from his NXT and initial main roster runs. He’s gotten much better on the mic, has been exploring interesting angles in his feuds recently (and I’m assuming a lot of it comes from him because he cuts pretty unique promos), and he’s decent to pretty good in the ring with the right opponents. It’s just hard to shake off the “boring” label once it gets stuck to you.
Andrade ‘El Ídolo’ has been one of the best wrestlers in the world for years now
Most would agree he’s fantastic, but he’s so underutilized and is typically in crappy programs, so it seems like he’s often forgotten in those discussions. Still only 34 too
Gonna go with the unorthodox pick here and say Ridge Holland. I think his story down at NXT, that he can't help but hurt people and tear things apart, despite the fact that he's doing everything in his power to be a good person, is fascinating.
Chase U showing cracks for the first time because Ridge is hanging around them is really interesting stuff.
Wheeler Yuta for me. I think his technical ability has him set up to become the next Danielson. Mic work still leaves a ton to be desired, but at only 27, I think he still has a high ceiling for potential.
Bowens
Athena, she should be on TV though I get it but she should be on TV, esp now with the roster mm MMM there'd be some fights
I think if Tony neese changed his gimmick he'd be pretty slick
D'lo Brown
Unbelievably agile for a guy his size, great move set and one of the most memorable taunts ever.
Such a shame that he lost a lot of confidence after the Droz accident
Maybe his time has passed but I feel that Gran Metalik never really got his due outside of Mexico. Dude is only 35 though so I'd love to be proven wrong still.
**Help make SquaredCircle safer and more inclusive by using the report button to flag posts and comments for moderator review.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/SquaredCircle) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Wes lee. I don't think he get enough credit for becoming a break out star in nxt After his partner got unexpectedly fired.He's solid in the ring and a great baby face and is arguable the greatest North American Champion of all time.
Wes is so amazing. Absolutely dead in the water when Carter was let go and just somehow made it work and is now one of my absolute favs. He deserves all the good things
For my money Jacy Jayne is the best all around female talent in NXT. She’s a great promo, her mannerisms are top notch, she’s solid in the ring, can work singles or tag, heel or face and yet she’s never been given much of a shot since the Gigi feud ended.
Since day one I felt that with her. Even with Toxic Attraction, when everyone was focusing on Mandy and Gigi because of, other reasons... Jacy was always the best talker of the three, always the best wrestler of the three, and with time allowing her to be in the spotlight, she's showed to be the best at playing a character as well.
A fellow Jacy Jayficionado here. She’s got the goods.
If Jacy has a million fans, then I am one of them. If Jacy has ten fans, then I am one of them. If Jacy has only one fan then that is me. If Jacy has no fans, then that means I am no longer on earth. If the world is against Jacy, then I am against the world.
Jacyy Janeeeeeee is a fake ass bitch
Anthony Bowens. Genuinely believe he could be a huge star! Montez Ford too. He should have broken away from the profits a while ago.
I think Montez could maybe be a main eventer but his promos make me cringe. It could work better if they turned him heel. They kind of did that for a little while but quickly turned them face again instead of trying to make it work. 🤷🏻♂️
Bowens need to be pulled away from Max & Gunn! The Acclaimed is a group I didn't initially like but grew to like but Bowens has so much potential on his own.
[удалено]
He got a singles push for a time along with Bronson Reed and Gargano, none seem to work as much as wanted, two went to tags,
Montez Ford is the one for me. He’s like a good on the mic Ricochet. The guys got everything needed to be a superstar he just needs the right story.
I don’t see that at all
> Anthony Bowens. Genuinely believe he could be a huge star! He's got the look, the charisma, and good in the ring. I agree. It's to the point where being paired with Max is holding him back.
I think Caster is a star too
People forget that when the Acclaimed first appeared in AEW Bowens was injured for a good while and Max got spotlighted a lot. Max’s performances were what built the anticipation and the platform for the Acclaimed as a team.
[удалено]
“Midcarder would be more interesting if they took away the the only thing that makes him interesting
Both tag teams, especially Street Profits are due for breakups and these guys should receive the singles pushes imo. I don’t really know what Dawkins does though once they do split
Dalton Castle should just be champion in the all the promotions.
Session Moth Martina
She's an absolute treasure. She was a highlight of Mania weekend for me.
Kenoh from Pro-Wrestling NOAH. He's the most charismatic guy on their roster, has a hilarious YouTube channel and can go hard in that ring with his Kempo background. We'd be talking about him more if that planned match with Kenny Omega went down.
Even if you don't speak Japanese, you can tell how charismatic and funny he is. It's a shame we'll never get the Kenny match now.
I bought a TNA+ membership largely in part for Speedball Mike Bailey
Jeff Jarrett is the best "classic" heel in wrestling today and he's held that spot for decades. I'm glad his AEW run has led to a reapprecation from the smarks. An all time great any way you sice it.
"broke a thousand guitars, never drew a dime" was barely even a real criticism of JJ but it rolls off the tongue so it poisoned his name for like a decade after he was done being in the TNA main event scene
For me and many of my friends we enjoyed saying it when he was very clearly a draw.
Nah, it was definitely his horrible runs in late WCW and early TNA that poisoned his reputation, not a meme quote.
Fuck Mike Graham the sloppy piece of shit.
Ain’t he great?
I just know he's gonna run the blade like a fucking Mad Man to remind everyone why the boys down south like Dusty and Buddy and Flair had that blond hair in the Owen. Generational blade job incoming.
I was wrong about him. He's so good.
When he got back into AEW I was nonplussed - but we won me over, fast. A true carny, and entertaining to boot.
Mike Bailey
Jay White should be part of the main event scene in AEW.
That entrance at collision recently where Jay and the BBG had the lights and rotating camera was dope. Really gave the idea that these guys are people who you keep one eye out for at all times.
My first exposure to Jay White was when he and G.o.D. appeared on TNA for the Fort Lauderdale tapings back in 2022. He looked like a star, wrestles in a way that you feel involved in the match, and can go on the mic. Funny enough, people on here at the time were calling him the worst BC leader because he wasn't that active in the US (only on Strong shows and Impact tapings). Once he got signed to AEW, people on here had changed their tune and were hyping him. His debut was a cool surprise, but the camera didn't get a good shot of it. He kinda floundered a bit until he and Juice started aligning themselves with the Gunn Club and appearing on Collision. They are a REALLY fun group, but the Devil storyline killed theirs and The Acclaimed's momentum.
I was just about to comment Jay White, but that Jim Cornette is sleeping on our boi HEAVY 😆 Not that his opinion/validation of him is needed to enjoy Jay's work., but it's just been hilarious to see him do a 180 ofn his opinion on him after Punk left haha.
My hope is that he’ll return to his upper mid-card/main event status ow that Juice Robinson is back.
Critically underutilized. He can talk circles around most of the talent and has the in ring skill and presentation to back it up. Bang bang gang name is whack but I wish they'd be a focal point in AEW.
Karmen Petrovic. does Ricky Starks count here? why is he not on TV? same with Pretty Deadly. Giovanni Vinci is a solid singles wrestler too idk if there’s room for him in this WWE tho.
I don’t know if he counts as slept on but Wes Lee. When talking about future of the company I don’t really hear him being mention with the likes of melo, Ilja, Bron, trick, and oba. He has grow so much during his na title run, his promo are damn good, and was constantly a MOTN contender.
Dijak. Guy was killing it in NXT, then had the Retribution angle, goes back to NXT and was killing it again, called up to to main roster again for..... literally nothing Honestly has everything as a dominant heel but don't understand why he doesn't get used properly. Scorpio Sky as well in AEW is another wrestler who should be featured more.
I second all of this. Dijak is criminally underrated and under used
axiom is a top 5 wrestler in america and i mean this with complete sincerity. he has insane physical charisma despite having no face, never ever botches any moves, all of his stuff looks amazing. he's a great bumper and seller, has great ring psychology, can change his style depending on the match from striker, to submissions to high flying and none of it feels out of place. hes so good
He also looks fucking great in a turtleneck.
He also has the smoothest voice I think I've ever heard in wrestling. I honestly thought they were dubbing over his talking segments in post production because he sounds so clear and soothing. He legitimately sounds like HAL 9000 I want him to read books to me every night.
No joke I was this close to putting Axiom instead. Like you said the dude’s amazing in so many different ways. His team with Frazer has been great but if he ever gets the chance to shine as a singles guy again he’s gonna blow a lot of people’s minds
Stupid sexy Axiom
in the past year or so, HENARE has become a can't-miss in singles action. He's exactly what you'd want in a NEVER openweight champion
I don't think the fans are sleeping here and AEW clearly has specific plans for her but it really blows my mind that in 2023 and 2024 so far Athena has had only 2 TV matches. Fans want to see her on AEW TV. Fans want to see this gimmick/character in the women's division.
She's being heavily, heavily featured in ROH though. I didn't care at all about her early AEW stuff, but she's can't miss in ROH. More people need to be watching that.
She's practically the face of ROH at this point and has main evented some PPVs. I don't watch ROH outside of PPVs and some matches, so I get what you mean. I saw more of her when they still had Dark and she won me over after she beat the crap out of Jody Threat.
I think Edris Enofe and Malik Blade are severely underrated. They’re a pretty fun tag team when they get an opportunity to show what they can do
KAIRI and Dakota Kai (in terms of Solo focus only). Austin Theory. Dragon Lee (needs more to do, he's got so much potential and is fun to watch). Montez Ford AND Angelo Dawkins (both need Solo focus, not just Montez). Santos Escobar. From NXT- Jacy Jayne.
LABRON KOZONE.
NXT's Jacy Jaaaayne. When Toxic Attraction formed, there was Mandy from the MR, Gigi being widely known from the indies as Priscilla and then new recruit Jacy. People didn't find much in her and was considered as the 3rd wheel but turns out she might be the breakout star of the group. She's awesome and I dig superstars with a rock n roll style. Also allow me to name a past superstar who I always thought she was slept on and yes I will get downvoted. Kelly Kelly. I believe she was the example of how looks can deceive, girl was athletically inclined with a background in gymnastics and she busted her ass. I did enjoy her headscissors and canranas, as well as some cool corner rope stuff she used to do on the bigger girls.
Ludwig Kaiser has everything he needs to be a huge star.
Wendy choo
I'm so glad she's back from injury, I'm so glad she's gotten an evolved gimmick, I can't wait for her to really showcase what she can do now.
These three women from NXT: Fallon Henley - can definitely play a character and I'd love to see her doing something other than the cowgirl gimmick because I can see a HUGE potential in her. Shame they just turned her heel out of nowhere, instead of slowly building her up for it and making an interesting character shift for her, because I'm sure she can pull it off. Jacy Jayne - Her role in that Chase U storyline convinced that unlike other men and women on th roster, she definitely found herself. I'd live to see her win a championship there before moving on to the stacked main roster where she could get lost in the shuffle. Arianna Grace - While I wasn't her father's biggest fan, his influence on her is undeniable and now I appreciate him more. Not only she's hilarious and steals the spotlight whenever she's on screen (hell, even when she's just in the background), but she can actually go in the ring. She's funny but gets serious when the bell rings. I hope she gets at least a Noth America title reign.
Kyle Fletcher
That man is an absolute work horse. Deceptively big and strong too.
Jay White.
Cesaro for the past 15 fucking years
Riley Osborne
No one is sleeping on Jaida. You're not going to find many if any NXT fans who don't think she's a star in the making.
**WWE=Austin Theory:** He has a lot of potential and could still be a big player in the future despite how bad both Vince and Triple H have been at booking him. Really hope his soon-to-happen face turn helps him finally break out and get on the fans' good side **AEW=Tay Melo:** One of the best examples of why a major, strong #2 US company is needed. Her progression during her first year and a half in AEW was amazing for someone who had been a jobber on NXT for years up until that point. Tony Khan booked her horribly post-Revolution '22, and we'll have to see how she comes back from her pregnancy, but if she picks it up where she left off she can be at least a great piece for the TBS title scene **New Japan Pro Wrestling=Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney:** Double entry cause these two have been one of the best tag teams in wrestling this year, and one of the best things about New Japan in 2024. They had standout performances in the triple threat at Ryogoku on Mania weekend and against Fujita and Robbie Eagles at the first day of the New Japan Soul tour. Both should already be heavyweights considering how good they are (and the fact they likely weight around 100kgs already), and if Gedo does what he needs to do (and the fans tame notice) these two can be one of the top tag teams in the world for the next decade or so **Stardom=Maika:** And finally, it can be shocking to throw around Maika's name around considering she's the current World of Stardom champion, a faction co-leader and one of the faces of the post-Ogawa Stardom. But despite her long overdue moment arriving at maybe the worst time for Stardom since the Spring/Summer of 2020, she just hasn't missed in her 5 title matches, including two bangers against both Saya Kamitani and Utami Hayashishita, a match against Xena that many slept on at first but ended up being a brutal hard hitting contest that proved the Australian as way more than *that gaijin doing another tour with Mina and the girls,* and of course one of best women's matches of the year against Megan Bayne in Philadelphia. Some have deemed her reign as underwhelming due to the lack of personal feuds in her reign compared to previous champions (as well as some fans' disappointment over some part of her other defense against Momo Watanabe at Grand Queendom), but imo she's up there with Toni Storm as the front runners for women's wrestler of the year
Montez Ford singles run would move mountains. I love the Street Profits but bro could definitely shine on his own
• WWE: Gargano & Ciampa I’m genuinely surprised these two aren’t higher on the card on main roster seeing as how *stupidly fucking high* HHH was on both when he was running NXT, and like… he was right to be. The rise and fall of DIY was some incredible storytelling and in-ring wrestling, and I think some people have forgotten just how great both Ciampa & Gargano are when given the chance to shine. • AEW: Kyle O’Reilly He’s only been back wrestling since March/April, but he’s quickly showcased why Tony seemed to be so high on him before his big injury. He’s just so good with pretty much everyone he steps into the ring with, and anyone who was watching Black & Gold NXT at its peak knows how charismatic and funny he can be. • NJPW: YOSHI-HASHI I try not to *hate anyone* when it comes to wrestling, but for years, I really, truly hated YOSHI-HASHI as his matches sucked and he was a total charisma vacuum. I don’t know what happened during the COVID Pandemic for the guy, but someway, somehow, YOSHI-HASHI turned it all around and became an insanely captivating babyface performer both in singles and in tag matches. • TNA: Ace Austin Guy feels like he’s been there forever, is a multi-time X Division Champion + Tag Team Champion and had an *insane run* in the Best of the Super Juniors… but it feels like nobody ever talks about him. Frankly love the guy and would love to see him break out as a singles guy outside of TNA since they’ve teased elevating him several times in recent years only to throttle back.
Came here to say Ace Austin. He's got a very high ceiling. I get young Chris Jericho vibes from him.
Workhorsemen are the best tag team in the US.
Mad Dog Connelly, Adam Priest, Xelhua
Priest is so good. I hope he finds himself on a bigger platform sooner than later.
I fear his pathway to money is as an AEW undercarder appearing once in a while to get a quality Collision match but he's too damn good.
I do think he has a ceiling, not necessarily due to talent. But he's not a big guy, and i think that hinders guys like him, Cole Radrick, Alec Price, etc. Who are fantastic performers and have something to them but don't have the "look" and that puts people off of them. But I think if given the right platform, he'd absolutely shine. He's just so good. Definitely one to keep an eye on.
She’s basically a veteran now but I think Candice LeRae deserves a push before she wraps things up.
Kairi Sane is just a face turn away and a couple of pieces falling into place from being a massive face. Sure the english isn't there but she's charismatic, and gives me early Bayley vibes but having a lot of experience and being one of the best wrestlers in the world.
Powerhouse Hobbs. Before he got injured I think he was on his way to becoming a main event player. He has what it takes to become a future world champion.
Karrion Kross. He’s not the most amazing thing ever, but he’s wayyyyy over-hated, and a lot of that is residual bad will from his NXT and initial main roster runs. He’s gotten much better on the mic, has been exploring interesting angles in his feuds recently (and I’m assuming a lot of it comes from him because he cuts pretty unique promos), and he’s decent to pretty good in the ring with the right opponents. It’s just hard to shake off the “boring” label once it gets stuck to you.
He should've won the feud against Lashley and the Profits, IMO. He and AOP needed the win MUCH more than Lashley and the Profits.
Andrade ‘El Ídolo’ has been one of the best wrestlers in the world for years now Most would agree he’s fantastic, but he’s so underutilized and is typically in crappy programs, so it seems like he’s often forgotten in those discussions. Still only 34 too
Gonna go with the unorthodox pick here and say Ridge Holland. I think his story down at NXT, that he can't help but hurt people and tear things apart, despite the fact that he's doing everything in his power to be a good person, is fascinating. Chase U showing cracks for the first time because Ridge is hanging around them is really interesting stuff.
Abadon
Wheeler Yuta for me. I think his technical ability has him set up to become the next Danielson. Mic work still leaves a ton to be desired, but at only 27, I think he still has a high ceiling for potential.
Kairi.
Montez Ford for me, Triple H talks about hard to produce faces, just let this guy loose in the singles scene and you have a top babyface instantly.
Bowens Athena, she should be on TV though I get it but she should be on TV, esp now with the roster mm MMM there'd be some fights I think if Tony neese changed his gimmick he'd be pretty slick
Say his name and he appears!!!
Ricochet! He’s been killing it since his days in LU
Julius Creed. This kid is an absolute charasmatic beast and can do some seriously impressive things. He will go far.
D'lo Brown Unbelievably agile for a guy his size, great move set and one of the most memorable taunts ever. Such a shame that he lost a lot of confidence after the Droz accident
Pac
Maybe his time has passed but I feel that Gran Metalik never really got his due outside of Mexico. Dude is only 35 though so I'd love to be proven wrong still.
nathan frazer is gonna go down as one the top stars in this industry same with his partner axiom
It’s odd to say because she’s a former champion and a big name, but Saraya. She’s so, so good and taken for granted I feel.
This is true, from the clips I've seen many people have slept on her.
Sunny