New Stars in 2016

[GeTiTT]

Last year we saw a few stars be born and grabbed the "brass ring" in Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. I think it's safe to say that all 3 of these guys solidified themselves in the main event picture. Now with Daneil Bryan gone, John Cena and Randy Orton on the shelf and possibly toning down their scheudle, who do you see on the current main roster "grabbing the brass ring" and join the current top 3 stars?

Bray Wyatt- If the rumors are true and he takes on Brock Lesnar at WM, he needs to win this match and really be a top player on the roster and hopefully challenging for the WWE title in the Summer.

Cesaro- not much to say other than he is long over due and deserves it. Heel or face he needs to be at the top!

Bad News Barrett- yes Bad News(hopefully as a face) he is the most entertaining out of all the LON yet has been kept aside due to injury. He will never be a long running star but he deserves to reach the top at least once in his career.

 

[ISkye]

I'm honestly feeling like Kevin Owens is going to do something to put him even higher...Bray is getting a bit worn and really doesn't have much to work with. I'd love to see him actually get a bit of credibility.

100% behind Cesaro. I've liked him on and off since Wrestlemania 30, but never doubted his skill and potential. I believe with the right circumstances or feud he really could elevate himself.

 

[@smarkmouth]

While it won't be a career year, Sami Zayn is going to explode when he hits the main roster. I don't say that as an NXT mark, but with Daniel Bryan shelved, WWE will need a scrappy underdog who works an energetic style. Sami is every bit as likeable as Daniel Bryan, and I'd even argue that Zayn has the more marketable look and is stronger on the mic.

Kevin Owens is one marquee moment away from staking his claim on the top of the card. I thought eliminating Brock Lesnar at the Rumble could have done remarkable things for him, but alas, Owens will have to wait.

 

[NotoriousWWE]

Kevin Owens is without a doubt behind Reigns, WWE's top priority for 2016 in my opinion. I think he'll get a summer time push, maybe win MITB and cash in at Summerslam. I'm just waiting for a face Rollins vs Owens feud!

I actually think they'll also push AJ Styles. As someone previously mentioned, Daniel Bryan needs replacing. I think they might put Styles in that underdog position.

Samoa Joe is my pick from NXT to get a mega push. I've heard rumours he's going to be feuding with Lesnar. That in itself should tell you he's being touted for big things.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Last year we saw a few stars be born and grabbed the "brass ring" in Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. I think it's safe to say that all 3 of these guys solidified themselves in the main event picture. Now with Daneil Bryan gone, John Cena and Randy Orton on the shelf and possibly toning down their scheudle, who do you see on the current main roster "grabbing the brass ring" and join the current top 3 stars?

Bray Wyatt- If the rumors are true and he takes on Brock Lesnar at WM, he needs to win this match and really be a top player on the roster and hopefully challenging for the WWE title in the Summer.

Cesaro- not much to say other than he is long over due and deserves it. Heel or face he needs to be at the top!

Bad News Barrett- yes Bad News(hopefully as a face) he is the most entertaining out of all the LON yet has been kept aside due to injury. He will never be a long running star but he deserves to reach the top at least once in his career.

Bray Wyatt is a possibility, he's still a very young man, a fact that's easy to forget considering that his beard, hair, mannerisms and character altogether make him seem like someone in his 40s rather than his late 20s. Despite the proclamations of Wyatt being misused or that he's too damaged, I think there's still plenty of time for Wyatt in the main event picture. I do think WWE, in my opinion, has squandered a few opportunities and that there aren't as many as there were a few years ago, but Wyatt is far from exhausted.

Cesaro will probably be a mid-card/tag team guy for his career in WWE because Vince himself has flat out stated that he just doesn't see IT in Cesaro. Cesaro is someone that I see being used as a workhorse, someone who'll be utilized as a valuable asset, someone who can be relied upon to provide quality matches but I don't think he'll be a serious main event contender so long as Vince is still making the final calls. Stranger things have happened and it's possible Vince's mind could be changed with strong enough support among some key officials and locker room leaders, I'm just not holding my breath.

Wade/Bad News/King Barrett has been a personal favorite of mine since his NXT days. He's quality on the mic and inside the ring; the problem is that the guy's just too injury prone to be relied upon in the long run. It's a shame really because Barrett is someone that I think had all the tools to be an upper mid-card/main event mainstay. Whenever Barrett started gaining momentum, it was either obliterated due to some pretty chaotic booking decisions from Vince, injury that would put him on the shelf for months or a combination of both.

As for new stars for 2016:

Kevin Owens - Kevin Owens' first year in WWE has been quite productive. He made a big splash in NXT by taking out Sami Zayn, winning the NXT Championship and made his main roster debut within a handful of months. He engaged in a legit feud of the year contender with John Cena that resulted in some classic matches, won the Intercontinental Championship and, in my opinion, had one of the most overall entertaining IC title feuds in quite a while with Dean Ambrose. The writing is on the wall for Owens to continue to rise as a lot of people are already predicting he'll be a top contender to win Money in the Bank this year.

Finn Balor - I think that Finn Balor will make his WWE main roster debut sometime in the post WrestleMania season. I don't think it'll be a "career year" for Balor, but I do think he'll generate a lot of buzz and capture a lot of people's attention.

Sasha Banks - Even before her debut on the main roster, Sasha Banks was the most talked about woman in WWE in a very long time. The writing is on the wall for Sasha to become the new WWE Divas Champion, at WrestleMania most likely, and there's all sorts of potential for Sasha to be able to help elevate the women's division as a whole.

Bayley - Bayley has got IT and her time as NXT Women's Champion has shown that. Bayley has had fans invest in her like very, very few have in NXT's history male or female. I mean, how often do you see grown men wearing the merchandise of a female wrestler as we've seen with Bayley? On NXT each week, I always see adults wearing Bayley's "I'm a hugger" t-shirt, I've seen little girls, teenagers, college girls and grown women all wearing Bayley stuff and doing the side ponytail thing. On the main roster, the last person I've seen in which fans were more emotionally invested was Daniel Bryan and Bayley is someone who could also really just help blow the Divas Division wide open on the main roster. She's got the goods and if Vince just lets Bayley be herself, I've little doubt she'll connect with fans as she's a genuinely beloved babyface that even jaded fans WANT to cheer for.

 

[Black Anaconda Vise]

I think it'll be Owens.

He's great in the ring not just wrestling-wise, but with the storytelling and psychology. The way he trash-talks an opponent, to the way he'll sell an injury, plus he can move pretty well for a guy his size and do dives and top-rope stuff, but he can also dish out a beating. He's a really great talker, and he's entertaining, and he's a great heel, as he acts the way outside of the ring as he does inside making him a much more believable heel. He's just a guy that wants to beat the shit out of people and show people why he's better than everyone else. I think there will be big things in his future.

I'd love to see Cesaro up there as well, the guy does wonders in the ring, but his lack of mic-skills is going to do him in. He'd be fine as a guy who lets his wrestling do the talking and other than the way he was booked (i.e him losing almost all of his matches), I liked the role he was in, as the workhorse. The WWE knows that he's awesome and can do insane stuff in the ring so they let him have competitive 10-20 minute TV matches with the top guys. As much as I'd like to see him reach main-event status, I just don't think it'll happen but he'll be totally fine in the tag team/uppermidcard scene. Have him as the workhorse that goes out and busts his ass, let him win the IC title or US title.

I'd love to see Barrett get in one last run, but he's basically been made into a joke plus he's been injured so much that his in-ring career might be over, however the guy could still be a very good mouthpiece for someone.

I also wouldn't be surprised if we had AJ in the Daniel Bryan position as the underdog and that seems to be the direction they're going by having him be the small guy that beats the hell out of his opponents.

 

[The Samoan Heritage]

Last year we saw a few stars be born and grabbed the "brass ring" in Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. I think it's safe to say that all 3 of these guys solidified themselves in the main event picture.

I have to disagree with you on Ambrose. He's far from solidified as a main eventer. I personally am having a hard seeing him as a legit IC champion.

1. Bray Wyatt- WWE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING WITH HIM. If they continue to book Bray the same way they've been doing for the past 2 years, they might as well repackage him back as Husky Harris. Bad news is even if wwe decides to finally push him/them, the issue is that there are few main eventers for him to face and we will be forced to watch Wyatt vs Reigns/Cena AGAIN(unless orton will be back soon).

2. - Kevin Owens- I'm half and half about him. He has the talent but hasn't done anything impressive since fighting Cena. Even his IC run was easily forgettable. I also can't get over his stomach. On Raw when he was laid out by Ziggler, I couldn't help but stare at how far his stomach was poking out, it is pretty big especially for someone his size. (possibly replace him with Styles, depending on what they decide to do with the rest of the Bullet Club once they come in)

3. Samoa Joe- He don't belong in NXT. Every time I see him, he looks out of place. I've enjoyed him but time for him to move up. He can and will be a big deal if Vince's ego doesn't get in the way.

I'm not a fan of shooting guys into the main event but there's not many that should even be mention as possibilities. Since 2014/15 was all about Reigns and Rollins, I can only see one guy being given all wwe's attention. If I would have to choose, I am going with Samoa Joe as the 2016 rising star.

 

[LBGetBack]

Kevin Owens, Sasha Banks, and AJ Styles. To me, all 3 of them can't miss. They're too good, and WWE actually seems to like them. Talent + opportunity = pretty good bet that they'll be top stars.

 

[hollowpoint]

In terms of grabbing the "brass ring" from the current top 3 stars, I would have to say Kevin Owens and Bray Wyatt. Both are masters on the mic and in-ring psychology. Heels that can tell a story are hard to come by nowadays. It's hard to look at anyone else in terms of top stars because of health considerations. As fresh as AJ Styles is in the WWE, he's almost 40 and was injury prone early in his career. I would say Rollins, but given his current injury situation, I would have to see if he can recover and return back to his main event status.

 

[Hem]

The main priority behind The Shield should be Kevin Owens. KO is the future top heel of the company and after a couple of years, he'll become a good babyface as eell.


AJ Styles is #2. While KO, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose all probably have a good 10+ years left while I see AJ having a much smaller time frame. He needs some time in the main event and I think the gradual build to the top is currently great.


Finn Balor should be #3 and he'll probably debut during the summer and make a huge impact so he should have a few big matches lined up like Cena, Orton, Rollins etc.


The wildcard in my opinion is Cesaro. He was getting hot before he got injured and he should get a big return. Build him up with vignettes and give him a big feud and eventually the MITB and a decent reign for a couple months.