Who Would Have Made It First?

[TheJbody]

When the first rankings came out for season one of NXT the top two were Wade Barrett and Daniel Bryan. Those two are both on Smackdown and have very good futures in this company. Barrett has been in three WWE championship matches and is a former Intercontinental Champion. Daniel Bryan is a former United States Champion and is current Mr. Money In The Bank.

I know that there are a lot of Barrett and Bryan marks so here's my question. Who would have been called up from FCW without NXT first, Wade Barrett or Daniel Bryan.

I think Barrett would have made it first. It's not not because I hate Daniel Bryan. I love D-Bry (Booker T voice:Man you know he in my fave five). Bryan is very athletic, very talented and I love watching his matches. The one thing he needs to improve on is his mic skills. That is probably the only thing holding my back on picking Bryan.

Now, when you look at Wade Barrett, he has the size WWE like, has a lot of charisma, and if WWE ever wanted to start a stable you know theeir fist choice for a leader would be Barrett.

But, what do you think. Would Barrett or Bryan come up fist. Or would they come up together as a tag team. You never know in the WWE.

 

[Azane]

Wade Barret was much more impressive in NXT and in debut, but Daniel Bryan had a lot of history and was already had a cult like following before.

Barret would of been a much weaker star without NXT and Nexus.

So I would put Bryan ahead in this case.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

So, I voted for Wade Barrett thinking that with his size and obvious look he'd be the sure-win for a future main eventer. At least over the smaller, less vocally-gifted Daniel Bryan. And then I did some research and I have to change my vote to "dat boi D-Bry".

Wade Barrett spent two to three years in WWE development, first in OVW and eventually moving on to FCW when the companies split off. I'm sure he would have made it eventually, but NXT gave him a huge break, and working with Jericho didn't hurt one bit either. Regardless of all of that though, I still fully support Barrett's victory in Season 1 of NXT.

Daniel Bryan, on the other hand, asked to be sent down to FCW. He was only there for a month (I believe?) to work the WWE style before being sent into NXT. He pretty much went right from Ring of Honor to WWE television, with very little down time in between. There's a good possibility that if NXT didn't exist, Daniel Bryan would have made it to WWE quicker than Barrett.

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

This is quite tough to call as there are arguments to be made for both men, but I'd give the edge to Barrett. Just.

While Bryan was the only guy to come with a history into the NXT fold, it's arguable that both Cole and Miz were big factors in his succession through the series due to them both putting him down whenever they good. Couple that with vocal fans who knew and appreciated him, and he began to grow in popularity.

Then came the NXT invasion and his subsequent suspension for choking Justin Roberts. Whether or not it was real or worked or a mix of both doesn't really matter, the end result was a fan favourite off of TV, explained along the lines of him showing remorse or not being hard enough or something. (The exact wording escapes me at the moment.) That his reason for disappearing was changed from what actually happened, built him up even more to both casual and mark/smarky fans. To the casual, a guy who had been doing well in the NXT competition was gone without much of a fuss, to the others, it seemed like he was a victim of an overly strict rule or perhaps because it could have reminded people of the Benoit controversy.

Bryan got a huge pop at Summerslam for returning against the group that cast him out and taking Miz's place too at the same time to add salt to Miz's wound at the same time.

Now, while debutants do depend on what current talent can do for them, Bryan got a lot of help from heels and faces (as and when they were needed) that helped get him over with the wider audience as opposed to those that knew him from his indy work. It's a disputable argument, but I believe Wade's size, look and mic skills would have got him closer to the ME sooner than Bryan without Nxt.
While Wade received tutelage from Jericho, a lot of it seemed to be behind the scenes advice as to how he could improve when he was in front of the camera, rather than when Cole would make a big deal out of Bryan's personal life and have the face commentator stick up for Bryan, and eventually have Bryan attack Cole for what he was saying about him.

 

[JWGunslinger]

I would have to say Barrett, I like D Bryan but Wade would have come up first and heres why. As a performer Wade is the complete package, the man has the look and size, good ring work and one of the best current men on the mic if not the best. Meanwhile Daniel has incredible in ring skill and is one of the best pure wrestlers in the company but his look and mic skills are a bit underwhelming, and while he gets by with his talent and ability to put on great matches he might have had a little more trouble getting through the ranks at FCW. Both guys are very strong superstars but considering that Barrett doesn't have any major holes in his game and is a very marketable guy who can draw great heat, I give him the edge here.

 

[marklouis]

Barrett. He has the size Vince likes, & he's much better on the mic. And he's decent enough in the ring to put on solid matches. Bryan is obviously a good wrestler, but I don't know if he's a good pro wrestler. Being a good pro wrestler isn't just about putting together a string of moves. You have to entertain the audience both in the ring and on the mic. I'm not sold that Bryan can do both.

 

[BK Styles]

I have to go with Bryan, for no other reason than that was the original plan. On this very website, when Bryan was signed, it was reported that WWE wanted to promote him up to the main roster immediatel (on ECW):

http://www.wrestlezone.com/news/186263-big-bryan-danielson-update-what-brand-will-he-debut-with

but he actually requested to go down to FCW after his dark match with Chavo Guererro:

http://www.wrestlezone.com/news/184561-update-bryan-danielson-asks-to-be-sent-to-developmental

Personally, I just think that Bryan's reputation in the indeis would have been enough to rpomote him up before Barrett. Yes, I know WWE very rarely takes notice of stuff like that, but even so. And here, clearly the WWE took notice.

 

[The Dragon Saga]

Danielson. Once Bryan had signed with WWE he originally wasn't going to feature in Florida at all, but due to the lack of interest with ECW at the time, once they decided to scrap it and replace it with NXT, Bryan was sent to Florida to compete in a few matches first off his own advice to the WWE and second because they wanted to use him for NXT. Going into NXT the hype was built around Danielson, not Wade Barrett.

Barrett on the other hand didn't have a great time in WWE development. He had a problem with getting over the characters handed to him, going through three character changes and name changes until landing on Wade Barrett. Second, he'd two injuries, one being long term which saw him sit at the commentators desk for five months, he'd only been back for two months when he was brought up to WWE NXT. His size was probably the main reason for him getting the nod, he finally got into his character once The Nexus debuted.

Danielson would have been brought up first. Not only was it going to happen anyway until the NXT idea was concieved but it would only be common sense anyway that the guy with a fanbase as broad as Danielson's would have been brought forth instead of Wade Barrett who nobody knew until FCW.

 

[arcticfox04]

Danielson has something Barrett will never had. Danielson is a media darling. He's a Vegan athlete and gets alot of attention from groups that are anti-meat & animal rights. Basically he's something that can get praise and free advertising which means more money for VKM.

Basically Danielson and CM Punk are the new look guys that don't do drugs that are champions because the WWE has taking a beating for years for drug abuse and steriods/hgh.

 

[Otacon]

Danielson has something Barrett will never had. Danielson is a media darling. He's a Vegan athlete and gets alot of attention from groups that are anti-meat & animal rights. Basically he's something that can get praise and free advertising which means more money for VKM.

Basically Danielson and CM Punk are the new look guys that don't do drugs that are champions because the WWE has taking a beating for years for drug abuse and steriods/hgh.

Eh, I think its more than how they choose to live their lives. Punk and Danielson had solid followers on the indy scene. Thats what got them where they are today. Punk being straight edge and Daneilson being vegan are just ways to relate to the audience. They would be no where without there solid in-ring ability.

That being said Daniel Bryan gets to WWE first just because he's more of a name in the states than Barrett was

 

[SPR*VLN]

Daniel Bryan was able to be a star and a big addition to Smackdown without the help from Nexus. He already had a large fanbase and I believe more experience then Wade.

I would call for Bryant, but I'm sure WWE wouldve called for Wade. He has the size and is decent on the mic.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I'd say that Bryan would have been called up to the main roster first. They had already planned to bring him up before there was an NXT but he volunteered to remain in developmental until he was ready. Barrett happened to be in the right place at the right time with NXT season 1 and the Nexus storyline that followed. He would have made it regardless but NXT played a big part in that. Bryan would likely have made it first without NXT because he was on his way there with or without that show, it just ended up being a way to introduce him to the fanbase before his official Raw debut.

 

[CapnKabuki]

Barrett definitely would have been. He has that "it" factor. He's a big guy, he can work the mic better than most on the roster right now, and he's ever improving in the ring. He has everything that's required to get on the roster.

The one thing that would have held Bryan back was the fact that his mic work is just not up to snuff. Sure, he could've come up and gotten by on his abilities alone (which I don't think anyone would argue in the slightest) but I seriously doubt that would've happened.