*Merged* All 2012 Speculation About New Champions, Future Stars, Etc.

[Warrior]

Who steps into the spotlight this year?At the end of this year, which wrestler are we going to say really became a star?( This is about who you think will step it up this year, not who you want to become a star. Try to keep it somewhat realistic.)

I going to go with one of the less obvious picks for discussion sake.

Drew Mcintyre- I love this guy. His career is all about follow through right now. If they keep him on TV, and give him someone to work with he can finally be the chosen one. Drew Mcintyre and Cody Rhodes for the IC title is a match i would love to see. He need a Rhodes type push, one were you give him plenty of learning experience and lots of mic time.Drew Mcintyre and Cody Rhodes for the IC title is a match i would love to see but a Drew V.S Orton feud is my goal for the end of the year.

 

[Straightedge Jericoholic]

Dolph Ziggler
Plain and Simple. I was initially skeptical about his mic skills and vickie guerrero being his mouthpiece. But he has really come leaps and bounds from the last time he was the No.1 contender. This year would be the year of Dolph Ziggler and i have a feeling a WWE title run is just around the corner for him.

 

[KnowMyRole-ShutYourMouth]

I'm also going to stray away from the obvious and sure to be majority picks of Ziggler & Rhodes. That being said...

I'm not really up on the whole William Regal situation. But if he were coming back for a decent enough time period, say a year or two, then I could see him really busting out in Mark Henry/JBL fashion. It seemed like he was heading for big things when he won KOTR, but we all know how that push got derailed.

 

[burnout4200]

Sin Cara

Hold the jokes. He was considered one of the greatest wrestlers in the world but he's struggling to grasp the American style. Unfortunately Rey Mysterio wasn't around to help him adapt, but he will be this year. I expect Sin Cara to shut us all up by the end of the year. He has talent, speed, and fluidity unlike I've ever seen out of a Lucha Libre star. He just needs some fine tuning and repetition.

 

[TheAllStarBlogger]

The year of Ziggler,Rhodes,Ryder,Barrett,McIntyre(Maybe),& Dibiase(Maybe)

I see Ziggler being WWE Champion,Barrett & Rhodes being World Heavyweight Champion's sometime later this year

As for Ryder,I see him getting even MORE popular & getting pushed a little bit more

Maybe McIntyre can go to Raw & become United States Champion & Dibiase becoming Intercontinental Champion on Smackdown

They all deserve it,if these things don't happen,or something similar happens they should quit.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

Obvious: Dolph Ziggler, Wade Barrett

Less Obvious: Sheamus, Cody Rhodes

Questionable: Zack Ryder, R-Truth, Daniel Bryan

It Might Happen: Brodus Clay, Kofi Kingston

Um...I guess?: Tyler Rekks, Justin Gabriel

WTF!?: Michael McGillicutty

I know, I've listed 12 guys here, but hear me out. I've ranked them based on their probability to become stars in 2012, but every person I've listed I feel has a chance and likely will exceed their current situation. I'm not saying Justin Gabriel is going to become World Champion, but I truly believe they'll give him a decent singles push, possibly winning tag team titles or even a mid-card belt along the way. Especially if they give up on Sin Cara.

McChicken is the WTF!? pick for me, because everyone hates him. I'm predicting that at some point this year, WWE will give him a random singles push. And I think that if they commit to it, and maybe give him a name change (SOMETHING Hennig would be nice, wouldn't it?) he could do well. Surprisingly well, in fact.

Brodus Clay has a good shot because of they way they've built up his debut. However, there's also a good chance nothing comes from it... Kingston is one guy I could see breaking free from Bourne, since he committed a no-no, and rising up the ranks.

I know many people expect Rhodes to skyrocket up and become a World Champ in 2012. I'm skeptical. I think there's a great chance he become a true star this year, but there's also a chance he starts to fade as well. It really just depends on whether or not management gets behind him and stays behind him. That could literally change by the week. Same with Sheamus.

Yes I listed Ryder as "questionable". I think he's going to get great focus until WRestleMania, but I do believe his star will fade later into the year. People are going to find some new fad to get into, especially now that Jericho is back and Punk is still on top. I just don't know... R-Truth is the one guy that is questionable, that I truly think has the best shot at becoming a big star this year. It's crazy how good he's gotten in the last six months, and I buy into his new face turn.

Sorry for all the choices - just wanted to give some variety.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

Ok I'll take a wild guess

Tag Teams
Air Boom is getting a solid reaction each time they are out and Kofi is getting better on the mic, Bourne still has a way too go but as long as they keep him playing the crowd in ring and have Kofi with him I think he will become decent.
Epico and Primo are looking solid. Also has anyone had a better career resurgence than Primo lately?
If the Ziggler push doesn't work well they could always put he and Swagger back together
Cena and Ryder and have teaming up more and more in recent months and I could see them becoming a semi regular team
Hawkins and Reks have been teaming regularly on NXT
Same with Yoshi Tatsu and Barreta have been teaming up there as well
Then you have guys like Slater, Tyson Kidd,and J. Henning who have all fallen off since their teams broke up and could jump back if they pair them with a regular partner

 

[Miakisaki]

2012 is without a doubt to be the year of Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson. He's really been misused since coming back as a face as a serious and heel Danielson is something to behold both in the ring and on the mic. It looks like they are finally pulling the trigger and letting Danielson run as a heel with the world title, which will lead to great things. He needs to ditch that entrance music and somehow convince the WWE to license Final Countdown for him to use. He can easily become a top heel on Smackdown, and a very worthy (and fresh) opponent for many other faces.

Dolph Ziggler I'd rather see become an established tag team competitor instead. Partner him up with a repackaged Jack Swagger and Vickie Guerrero as manager, and you have the makings of something similar to what the Bodydonnas had back in 1995. Even the names "Ziggler" and "Swagger" really fit into that kind of mold, and I think they could find a much better purpose in that.

Sin Cara and Hunico are both are somewhat weak singles wrestlers. A tag team with Sin Cara and Hunico back in his darker Sin Cara outfit would work well since they could cover each others weaknesses nicely. Neither brought much to the singles table, and it would let Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne break off and go back to being single wrestlers.

This year belongs to Bryan Danielson. No question.

 

[MCMG]

It is difficult to predict. This time last year I would have said John Morrison but look at him now.

I would have to say it will be the year of Dolph Ziggler. He is starting the year in a feud for the WWE championship which willl help him establish himself in the main event. In this year I can see him having 2/3 title reigns on Raw or Smackdown. Since Orton turned face I would argue that no-heel has really grabbed the opportunity to claim they are the best heel. I definitively feel that Ziggler can be the best heel in the WWE and this year will be the start for him.

 

[Cravendale]

I think Dolph Ziggler is an obvious pick to break out big time this year and deservedly so, his in ring skills are up there with the best in the business and he's really improved his mic skills.

I think Wade Barrett is also going to have a big year. He's talented on the mic and his in ring work is solid. He's just come out of a solid feud with Orton looking strong and he's set perfectly to progress to a WHC feud in the next 6 months.

If he ever debuts then Brodus Clay has potential to break out big time filling the classic "monster heel" gimmick. He's huge but fairly agile as well and from what i saw on NXT he has potential on the mic

Finally, one slightly outside the box pick would be Justin Gabriel. He is great in the ring, one of the best high flyers around. His mic skills need work and he needs to develop some charisma but that will come with time i think. If used correctly he could really break out towards the end of 2012.

 

[phoenixphreek]

there are several in line for big time pushes. ziggler, barret, and sheamus.
unfortunately i don't see Cody swapping belts anytime real soon, i mean look at how long ziggler held the midcard titles until getting the main event push. obviously cody is getting a bigger push than ziggler was but still, i expect them to drop the ball w rhodes

 

[Bland]

i believe 2012 is gonna be the year in which the next generation of superstars break though. Some young stars will win their first championship whilst other young stars will win their first world titles belt and other will have dominant reigns:

RAW

Dolph Ziggler- The Show-off will win the wwe title some point this year, probably Survivor Series time after he win either King of ring tournament or MITB. 2012 should mark return of KOTR so why not have the show-off win it? Dolph has proved on many occasions he can wrestle multiple matches in one night (e.g. Vengeance & Survivor Series) so why not have him win KOTR and really be a show-off. If not KOTR, then dolph will defiantly win MITB this year.

REIGN: WWE Title- Survivor Series - Wrestlemania 29

Wade Barrett - I can see barrett being drafted to raw and being the man to take the wwe belt of jericho. barrett has been on a roll of late and i can see it leading to his first wwe title. after punk and jericho feud at mania and one of them is drafted to smackdown (PUNK) barrett will feud with the winner. barrett vs y2j would be a good student vs teacher feud as jericho was barretts mentor in nxt and i can the belt switching to barrett for a short reign before going back to Cena or Jericho for a couple of months before they lose it to ziggler.

Reign: WWE title- Bragging Rights (may/June) - Summerslam

Brodus Clay- 2012 is going to be a a huge year for clay as he biggest wwe top monster heel. I belive with stars like Punk, jericho, barrett, cena and ziggler feuding over the wwe title throughout the year it leaves clay to destroy the mid-card - thus zach ryder for a few months. after clay destroys ryder he can then move on to cena once cena has finished with rock at wrestlemania. Clay vs cena can last 3 moths with clay getting one win and then cena just edging ahead with 2 wins. In the summer, clay could feud with other main eventer, rey mysterio. clay could destroy rey for 2 PPVS before moving onto potentially HHH around HITC ppv. it would wonders for clay career to face king of kings in HITC but i can just see HHH edging the win (but would be very close).

REIGN: US Title - elimination chamber - TLC (loses it in a ladder match)

Smackdown
Daniel Bryan - D.Bryan is already WHC heading into 2012 but i see Bryan having a dominating reign until wrestlemania where he loses the belt to Royal rumble winner Sheamus. However, by this time bryan would have a nice collecting of wins over: SHow & Henry at Royal Rumble and walking out of elimination chamber with the gold.

However, i do see bryan regaining the belt around june at bragging right ppv over sheamus in a submisson match. Bryan would then hold on to the WHC for another two months until he loses the belt to CM Punk at summerslam in a Ironman match!!! later on in the year he will then feud again, with the miz.

Reigns: WHC now- Wrestlemania & Bragging Rights- Summerslam

Sheamus: Will win 2012 royal rumble and then beat D.Bryan for gold at wrestlemania. Would have an amazing win over bryan at extreme rules (street fight) and a controversial win at over the limit (maybe bryan taps out put his foot was under rope) which leads to bryan vs sheamus at Bragging right in a submission match. Sheamus will lose the belt in a close encounter and then go on and feund with big show/cody rhodes for a couple of ppvs.

Around, HITC ppv sheamus will be back in title picture and have a couple of amazing matches against Punk with one of them in HITC but coming up short. But will beat drew mcintrye for ic tiltle at survivor series to add a bit more prestige back to ic title.

Reign: WHC- Wrestlemania 28 - Bragging rights IC- Survivor Series - Wrestlemania 29


Cody Rhodes: After a dominating reign with IC title up until extreme rules where he loses belt to Justin Gabriel, Cody rhodes can move into the main event picture and have a mini-feud with punk. Rhodes will then win smackdown MITB. have a mini (awesome) feud with miz before cashing in MITB and winning WHC at Survivor series over Punk. Will have a dominating reign until he loses WHC at elimination chamber 2013.

reigns: IC title- Now - Extreme Rule, WHC - Survivor series 2012- Elimination CHamber 2013

Justin gabriel - will win Ic title from cody at extreme rules and with have a good reign as cham before losing belt to drew mcintrye at summerslam

Reign: IC title - Extreme Rules - Summerslam


Drew McIntrye- Drew has finally gotten back on tv and i can see him getting very close to winning whc in elimination but just coming short. will begina short feud with Randy orton until mitb where drew will in MITB ladder match. In this match he will start a feud with justin agbriel where he takes gabriel out of match. Will win IC title of gabriel at summerslam and will have a dominating reign as IC champ before losing the belt to sheamus at Survivor series. Drew will then move in to main event picture and compete with Punk, Rhodes & Miz at TLC for whc.

Reign: Ic title: Summerslam - Survivor series

 

[J.J.]

Wade Barrett - can finally see him getting championship gold and becoming a dominant force as a champ. His feud with Orton with the mind games have been very interesting.

The bad is i think the roster is loaded with heels. Ziggler, Swagger, Barrett, Miz, Truth and Rhodes, Henry, Kane and ADR. Granted some of them are on Smackdown, they still appear on Raw.
Think this is the year someone like The Miz should turn face(although looks like R-Truth is first)

This is also the year people will notice Kane cuts some of the most brilliant promos and is underrated in that department.

A feud between Jericho/CM Punk would help solidify CM Punk as the face of the company.

 

[RoadWarriorBaigy]

this is zigglers year, i hated him a year ago but he has improved so much in 2011, hes got 'it' call me crazy but i see alot of similarties with ziggler and a young hbk, once he gets his break, he'll be a top guy for years imo

 

[Tyler44]

Dolph Ziggler, Wade Barrett, Sin Cara, Drew McIntyre, Ted Dibiase (really?)? Is this a joke?

This question is the same as the last 3 years when John Morrison was the guy we all picked. Look what happened to him. No push, nothing to him, now gone.

Truth is, nobody is going to rise enough to become a star. The mid-card is so bad, and do you honestly think Dolph Ziggler in a this next coming year will be fighting CM Punk for the title...but on a high level ppv that we are actually tuned into? Will anything change from this Royal Rumble's match to one 8 months down the line?

I just see no star power, no excitement, or anything from today's mid-card. It's so poor, with all boring regular named people and one of the worst nick names I've ever seen "The Great White Sheamus".

But to give somewhat of an answer, here you go: Cody Rhodes. That is saying a lot right, because everyone, it IS Cody Rhodes...

 

[(your ad here)]

#1-Dolph Ziggler-I have been saying hes great since day one, and his mic skills are improving,and we all know hes tremendous in the ring.

#2 Wade Barret-Have you seen him lately?

#3-Cody Rhodes-^

#4-Drew Mcyntire-Like the guy said above, hes looking to finally become the chosen one right now.

#5-Heath Slater-(Bare with me)Ik most of you think he sucks, but trust me this guy sells moves really good, His story lines are always great,his mic skills are decent,and he makes his opponents look good.With a little more practice this guy will be gold, just watch.

 

[Daniel]

Like him or not, 2012 is set to be Dolph Ziggler's year. Some would say that he's just in the same position that he was last year. That's, um, false. First of all, Raw is bigger than Smackdown. The WWE Championship is bigger than the World Heavyweight Championship. Ziggler has one more year of invaluable experience behind him. He's improved in every single way in the past year - perhaps most importantly in the heat department.

So Dolph Ziggler. But that's too easy, right? So here's a few other Superstars.

Brodus Clay
Brodus Clay seems to have the backing of WWE. Sure, it's been over two months since he was supposed to debut, but that speaks volumes about how WWE sees him. They want his debut to be perfect. Not overshadowed by anything. I can't remember the last time WWE took this approach to a debuting Superstar. Not only does Clay have the power of the machine behind him, he also has the ability to get over. His look, in-ring style, mic skills and demeanour should put him in good stead for the forthcoming year.

Alex Riley & Mason Ryan
I lumped these two together because I already made a post about them in this thread. Like I said, all they need is to improve in the ring and they will no doubt get the pushes they deserve.

 

[J.J.]

I'm sorry its just laughable people are naming off Brodus Clay and he has yet to debut. Atleast with the other names listed they have some recent success to solidify why they're capable of being a big deal in 2012.

 

[PrideWS]

This is all speculation and my own opinion.

This is an interesting year upcoming as we have a major main event for Wrestlemania in Rock vs. Cena. I would like to see, if the feud with Rock is not drawn out past WM, Cena start a feud with a guy like Ziggler or Rhodes. Both of those guys have had a great time of growth in 2011 and I hope that Cena sees this and decides to get into a program to help one of them instead of jumping back into title contention.

Aside from them, who no doubt will have big years, I feel that Daniel Bryan will have a field day as a heel once they pull the trigger on the turn. If he can build momentum going into Wrestlemania, provided he does go in as champion, and faces a guy like Randy Orton, I think he will have a great year. He and Orton are absolutely great in the ring, and if Orton would put Bryan on his level, they could have a feud that is better than Orton's feud with Christian and both of them would be better because of it.

I don't like saying this, but I don't see Ryder moving up very much this year. He has shown to be a good merchandise seller and is very much over, but I truly believe that will stall and his momentum will be deflated. His character, while fun in its place, is not a world title gimmick and unless he changes, which I don't see him doing, he will not become a big player in the coming year.

Possible yes: Bryan, Rhodes, ZIggler
Probable no: Ryder

And [Heel] Green Ranger has the best signature picture ever, bar none.

 

[akathelaw]

2012 will be a landmark year for The Big Show. His work with Daniel Bryan is getting the new champion noticed, and Show is demonstrating a whole lot of charisma in every aspect of the show. The current WHC storyline is designed to position Daniel Bryan as Smackdown's number one main event heel and Show's involvement has been crucial to getting this story over to the average WWE fan. This leads me to think Big Show will be greatly rewarded for getting Bryan over.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Big Show capture the WHC title again before Wrestlemania. He's going to have his run with the championship sometime this year, possibly Summerslam. There are so few big star talents right now, I think this is Show's year to get some glory before retiring.

 

[The Perfect Max]

2012 is being dubbed the Year of the Youth Movement in many peoples eyes. I believe this too. Look at the guys that should be pushed to the limit this year, because if they do, WWE have new guys to headline WrestleMania next year. This gives WWE just over 12 months to do this.

Guys like Cody Rhodes, Dolph Ziggler, Daniel Bryan, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Wade Barrett, Sheamus, The Miz, R-Truth and Zack Ryder are all contenders to be pushed. And think about it, The Miz, Sheamus and R-Truth are pratically there almost. Guys like Dolph Ziggler, Daniel Bryan, Jack Swagger, Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes just need a little more time before being trusted with a proper long title reign. Other guys like Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston and Zack Ryder need a change somewhat, to a gimmick, maybe, but something doesn't quite fit yet. A heel turn for Kingston? An aggressive Swagger? No more woo woo woo.

Also consider guys yet to debut... Brodus Clay. He could be a huge "monster" heel and it looks like this is the way WWE are going to go with him. I hope so because I personally like him.

 

[Adam Rush]

I personally believe that Dolph Ziggler is right about to break through. He has impressive in-ring ability, and he just needs one big match to become a main eventer.

 

[Adam Rush]

Alright, so I've been thinking for awhile about the amount of young wrestlers who might be about to break through. I'll name three that I think will become main-eventers this year:

1) Dolph Ziggler- He is almost there now, and he needs just one more huge match to break through.

2) Brodus Clay- Laugh all you want, but the Funkasaurus is set to make a huge impact. Could he be the monster face? In any case, he's set for a big 2012.

3) Cody Rhodes- He is becoming a top player on SmackDown!, and he looks to be as good as Old Man Dusty. I really hope they don't waste his talent on Goldust (no offense). He deserves a long world title run.

Now, what do you guys think?

 

[codebreaker1212]

Agree with your choices but I have a few others:
drew mcintyre- great look, good wrestler and is good on the mic.
ted dibiase- same as above, also his dad's name will help him.
justin gabriel- looking good for a ic title reign then who knows.
jinder mahal- seems to have a lot of heat already.
hunico- bring back chavo as his manager andthe sky is the limit.

 

[King of the Words]

Well, definetly Dolph and Cody. I see both of them being WWEC. and WHC. before the 2012 year is out.

I think if Jomo returns he will have a great year, possibly as a heel or a face feuding with Dolph, putting on epic matches.

Sheamus and Wade Barrett could have an amazing feud. I would love to see Wade Barrett, Mcintyre, Ryan and Regal start a group like Evolution. They could feud with a face Sheamus on SD the way Cena feuded with the Nexus on Raw in 2010. Call them, The Barrage.

Kharma, when she returns will be unstopable, but I wonder what they will do with her once she has beaten every Diva. Maybe feud with some of the guys. Would love to see a Heel Kharma kicking Cenas ass.(lol)

Mcintyre, as I stated earlier, being part of Wades group, AKA, The Barrage, could have a great year, possibly becoming INC. and or Tag Champion. Mayson Ryan in the group too, could have a great year. They could be the Orton and Batista of The Barrage.

R-truth could take over the Usc. after Ryders star fades.

The Miz will probably get back in main event form and eventaully start feuding for the WWEc. again, maybe as a face.

Would love to see Cena as a heel and Punk take over as Raws top face. On SD I would love Sheamus to become top face and feud with Barrett and a heel Orton. That would be great to see.