Um, WWE's top faces of the future.... WHERE ARE THEY?

[Radical]

Looking at the WWE roster on WWE.com got me thinking ...

Um... WWE doesn't have many high potential top Main Event faces on their roster, even with NXT!

I don't want to turn this into a John Cena hate thread but John Cena as the top face for so long is now starting to be a big issue. If reports are true and Cena's in-ring days are limited, let's say to 1 year from now ... what options do WWE have to turn to for their new faces of the company. You can't just have one or two because in case they get injured you need at least a handful to be able to pop into the main event and ones that don't need a LOT of work (mic and ring work, as well as previous accomplishments for credibility) to move up.

Past years the top faces ranged from flip flopping guys like CM Punk, Triple H, Randy Orton, Batista, Edge, Chris Jericho, Undertaker, Christian, Jeff Hardy who were all well-established and ready to go to the Main Event (as some where there already). Now, there NEEDS to be a new wave. Too many old guys and not enough new guys with accomplishments.

Here's the list of all the Superstars, I think could be possible believable top faces along with a brief analysis of their situation:

Batista
He could be a top face but not long at all, in fact, he may not be back at all.

Big E
Still a lot of work for him to really be a TOP Main Event face. Needs to work on mic skills, needs to show more moves and, obviously, connect with the crowd more. Until then, he can't be used as a top main event face.

Big Show
Too old, too much damage to credibility to be top main event face for any length of time.

Cesaro
He has the potential. But he's been hurt with Creative almost working against the fans who want to cheer him but he's portraying a heel. I do think to become a top main event face he needs better ring attire (less old school, try full tights) and better entrance music, bring back The Swing and he has a chance!

Daniel Bryan
Obviously, he is established now. He can be a top main event face, but he will always be in the underdog spot. But the issue is now he is injured and out for a least 3 more months and maybe more so, yes, maybe he is one of the top main event faces of the future, but he will likely be in a Rey Mysterio-like role where he has to go up and down from top to mid card through out his career in WWE because he's not going to be believable as always a top contender for the WWE title all the time.

Dean Ambrose
So here it is. In my opinion, WWE's best potential top main event face, in the making! He's already got all the tools, great mic skills, great ring skills and a great look! He's a jacked up muscle freak but he's tall enough to not be laughed off and he's 'crazy' enough people can believe he can beat anybody because he doesn't know any better.

Ok, so, assuming WWE don't mess him up. Here is 1 top face for the future.

Dolph Ziggler
I'll be blunt. Don't see him being a top main event face for any long length of time. I see him popping up every once in a while because his great in-ring selling ability but mostly I think he's also been around too long, with too many losses that he can't be a top main event face of the FUTURE.

Jack Swagger
He actually has the size to be believable in the top main event face role but too many losses really hurts him and even with Zeb as his mouthpiece I don't think he'll ever get back to the main event aside from a few short stints here and there. Aside: I do think he'd be a great face for the crowd to get behind on a US or IC title hunt.

John Cena
He is the one reason why WWE needs to look for new top faces because he won't be around forever wrestling, maybe less than a year, and if the WWE and Cena don't start helping to put over new faces (and heels), when Cena goes, and especially if it happens earlier than they planned, then they are going to be hurting!

Mark Henry
He's great when he really plays his part, but he's better as a top heel and anyway he's too old to be a top main event player for any regular time span.

Randy Orton
Even though he's only 34, he's been in WWE since his early 20s, so naturally, he's just a bit stale on fans. He's been a good top face before but he is much better as a top heel. And, more importantly, he's not the top face of the future.

Roman Reigns
Clearly, he is the chosen one for WWE right now. And that's actually fine. Because they NEED to build a few top faces and Reigns is a good one to try with. He does need to be a bit more engaging on the mic and show us some more of his POWER not just his agility but if he does so he'll be another 1 more top main event face WWE can work with in the future.

But so far, on this list, that only makes about 2 (Ambrose and Reigns... Bryan left out because he's at least had some main event success and championships and his future is still a little uncertain).

Ryback
Now here's a guy I think WWE has overlooked. Hopefully after he deals with whatever he's going away for a bit to deal with they bring him back with a real purpose! He CAN work as a top face. He works BETTER as a top face. Fans cheer him more than they boo him even now.

When he comes back, I'd like to see him and Axel work towards a tag title, then if it doesn't work, they squabble and leads to Axel turning on Ryback but Ryback becomes the face and they feud for a while, Ryback wins and he goes on a re-energized run, but THIS TIME, no burial by Cena! If anything, since he is a face, he doesn't have to beat Cena, he just has to save Cena and have some tag matches with him.

I don't want to see WWE push Ryback down for too much longer. They have to either give him some credibility and show he is still powerful or just let him go because it's insulting if they let him lose easy too much. Don't let him go the way of Drew McIntyre!

Seth Rollins
Rollins could work as a top main event face, similar to how CM Punk and Edge have done but, of course, with Rollins character as it is now, he's probably a good half year to a year away from turning face. I think he will, eventually, and he'll be great but it could even be a couple years down the road so WWE has to build other top faces since Rollins is doing well as the top heel.

Sheamus
He is a pretty good top face. He's big and strong and has good signature moves and that always ready for a fight mentality that usually goes over well with the crowds. He gets pretty good reactions. But, he is 36! He's also had MANY top championships so he, like Orton, can't be a top main event face of the future because his career can't be that much longer.


So, considering all that. What do you folks think? Does it look kind of worrisome for WWE's future to have top main event faces?

I can only see about 3 or 4 out of that list. Guys who aren't too old and have already begun pushes and have some accomplishments and credibility. But some of those guys would still need some tweaks and pretty quick if they needed them to be top faces, let's say by after WM 31.

Ambrose, Reigns and Bryan can't be enough.

Hopefully guys like Ryback, Cesaro and Big E will be established better and ready to make the move to top main event face, if needed after WM 31 but no guarantees on that.

I won't get into NXT guys too much, but even there, guys like Adrian Neville, Sami Zayn and Kalisto are great but will play underdogs when on the main roster and thus take a year or two at least to be considered main event caliber.

So, what do you think?

Is the future bleak for WWE and their top main event faces?

 

[Navi]

I would kind of like to know the answer to that as well. He doesn't have a terminal disease as far a I know, so he'll be around for quite some time.

The list the OP presented is quite impressive considering that he doesn't think the WWE has any faces on their roster.

Out of all of them I think the former members of the Shield have the best chance at getting there. I would even hazard a guess to say that all three of them are well on their way.

Wrestlers like Big Show, Ryback, Mark Henry will never be main eventers. Show and Henry are in the twilight of their careers, and they're jobs now are to full out the midcard and help put the younger guys over.

Sheamus although I think he's good in the ring, is boring as fuck. He has some good moves, but man watching grass grow is more exciting. All his matches are the same. Well that goes for a lot of them as well.

Ziggler is a worry with injuries, so I think he's at the stage where he'll remain, holding a mid card belt. Although I really like the guy.

Big E has zero charisma and I don't think I've ever heard him talk on the mic once. If he did it was forgettable. He is better off in squash matches or on a tag team.

Jack Swagger I would put in the same category as Big E. He was given a push and didn't get over with the fans, he's fine in the mid card and I think that's where he'll stay.

Daniel Bryan and Batista are wildcards in all of this. Both are already main eventers, and if Bryan and recover from his injury and come back, he'll be put back into the main event scene. Same with Batista, although I can't see him coming back as a heel. After that pageant wave and the tiff with HHH, I see him coming back as a face, to avenge the fact he didn't get his WWC championship shot, and maybe being put into a feud with Lesnar.

Cesaro can make a go of it, the guy has the power, strength and more importantly he has the swing. If they can turn him face, which I think he is better at, I can see him being a main event star for years to come. The threesome from the Shield are holding him back right now. Once the WWE decides what to do with them, you'll see Cesaro get a push.


Jesus Christ now I look like a ****** - the question I want answered is why do you think Cena only has a year left in the WWE?

 

[bioshock]

Well Cena is going to be around at least another 5+ years full time unless he goes Hollywood or has a string of major injuries and I don't see either going on.

Reigns is the guy to be the next guy we can all see that. But remember how Bret was the guy or how Diesel was going to be the guy? And instead it was HBK who ended up becoming the top dog.

Well I really think Ziggler is going to be that guy. Fan support is still strong for him, he has the IC title now, which is the strong #2 belt = which would be the WHC had it not been gone. Don't be shocked if its someone like Ziggler who headlines WM31.

 

[mral82]

Sorry to say by 2020 The Top Dawg will be Seth Rollins as he'll be 32 by then and the Best while Ambrose if still there will be his Rival and sometimes partner. As Far as Reigns he's just temp for Rollins as he's the Batista or The Shield while Rollins is The Cena and Ambrose is The Orton type. Why is The Authority protecting Seth is because they've known since they got him from ROH that he was the Future barring injury.

 

[Creepy Old Man]

The top stars of WWE are John Cena, The Rock, Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, Batista and Triple H. That's how it'll remain until that business model snaps because those men die or get crippled. The company's uninterested in/incapable of making new headliners, and haven't produced a single one since Edge eight-and-a-half years ago (Punk and Bryan were made by the fans and forced WWE's hand). Think of the 90s when The Undertaker, Bret, Yoko, Nash, Shawn, Sid, Austin, Kane, Rock, Foley, Triple H and Big Show all became main event talents and world champions in the WWF. Include Flair if you like, as he'd never been there despite headlining elsewhere. All that in eight years from 1991-1999, yet WWE hasn't made a single main-eventer in the last eight-and-a-half years! I don't consider silly mid-carders occasionally forced into main events, like Miz and Sheamus, as "headliners".

Sad times right now.

 

[Radical]

Jesus Christ now I look like a ****** - the question I want answered is why do you think Cena only has a year left in the WWE?

Why?

Partly because of a report I read saying Cena is battling many nagging injuries that have been piling up right now, including with his neck, and neck injuries are no light issue (see: Daniel Bryan).

Partly because there is a chance Cena's movie career gets going a bit more, as it already is.

Partly because I just HOPE for Cena's health and, honestly, the health of the WWE audience that Cena is the #1 guy wrestling matches for WWE on a regular basis 5 years from now.

If he keeps going the way he is now, he might die in the ring and/or become a cripple before 40. I'm not even trying to be silly, I'm dead serious. He has taken a BEATING for 12 years + and hardly has taken any time off. Look at Austin, Hulk Hogan or even The Rock. Those guys have had serious injury problems and were #1 guys but not for 12 straight years (maybe Hogan).

But look at those guys. Austin had like a 3-4 year (maybe that) career as #1 guy doing crazy long and brutal matches and he retired in like 2003 and never wrestled since and STILL has nagging injuries and a bad neck. Hulk Hogan had some great runs with the WWE and then later with WCW and back again with WWE but he got SUPER limited near the end, and some say even in WCW he was pretty darn limited and beat up. Now, he's basically crippled but does his best to put on a tough face. The Rock had about 3-4 years on top, came back here and there to WWE but his last match against John Cena he ripped his pectoral or something and almost made him mess up filming one of his movies.

I'm just saying, John Cena for his own sake and the WWE fans should start thinking about going at least on a part-time basis as a wrestler in WWE after WM 31. The kids can handle it, I promise. He will still do the Make-A-Wish stuff but at least he won't be stunting the growth of numerous other potential top stars.


So, I MAY be wrong, I'm just going on some news I heard and trying to use common sense for Cena's own well being but what I'm saying is IF Cena's time as a full-time wrestler is slowly going away in about a year from now, who EXCEPT the obvious choices, former Shield guys, can be top faces?

 

[Jack-Hammer]

At some point, all three members of The Shield will be top faces in WWE. When Seth Rollins is a babyface, he's usually more entertaining, energetic and less methodical during his matches. We know he can talk on the mic, he's a young guy, in great shape, etc. I could see him, eventually, as sort of an amalgam of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. During a lot of matches featuring The Shield, Rollins usually wound up stealing the show with his athleticism.

As a character, Ambrose certainly stands out, he's put on some entertaining matches since being on his own and I can see WWE embracing him. He's also young, in great shape, has fans behind him and just has a ton of upside.

While Roman Reigns is, in my opinion, the overall weakest member of The Shield, he's doing pretty well as of right now. It won't surprise me if some fans start "turning" on Reigns they did with Cena because he's obviously someone with a look that Vince loves.

I think part of WWE's problem right now is Vince's unwillingness to take a chance. Reports from yesterday, unsurprisingly, allege that Vince himself wrote and booked Cena looking so strong this past Monday because he's worried his loss to Lesnar might cause fans to lose faith in him. If all that's true, then it's a genuine example of Vince being out of touch with what people are into these days. He gets accused of it quite a bit, but this is one of the few times where it seems to be legit, if these reports are accurate. The notion of Cena being vulnerable makes him interesting, a lot of people are long since burned out on John Cena being this untouchable, unstoppable human juggernaut that can handle anyone or anything. Sometimes, Vince protects Cena to such a degree that it's a detriment to others on the roster. For instance, The Wyatt Family is an over and interesting heel faction who Vince has made look like chumps a couple of times up against Cena. They're not the first and I'm sure that they won't be the last. As long as Cena is still around AND Vince McMahon is ultimately THE decision maker, I don't think anyone will be given an opportunity to rise to Cena's level.

 

[CyberPunk]

At some point, all three members of The Shield will be top faces in WWE. When Seth Rollins is a babyface, he's usually more entertaining, energetic and less methodical during his matches. We know he can talk on the mic, he's a young guy, in great shape, etc. I could see him, eventually, as sort of an amalgam of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. During a lot of matches featuring The Shield, Rollins usually wound up stealing the show with his athleticism.

As a character, Ambrose certainly stands out, he's put on some entertaining matches since being on his own and I can see WWE embracing him. He's also young, in great shape, has fans behind him and just has a ton of upside.

While Roman Reigns is, in my opinion, the overall weakest member of The Shield, he's doing pretty well as of right now. It won't surprise me if some fans start "turning" on Reigns they did with Cena because he's obviously someone with a look that Vince loves.

I think part of WWE's problem right now is Vince's unwillingness to take a chance. Reports from yesterday, unsurprisingly, allege that Vince himself wrote and booked Cena looking so strong this past Monday because he's worried his loss to Lesnar might cause fans to lose faith in him. If all that's true, then it's a genuine example of Vince being out of touch with what people are into these days. He gets accused of it quite a bit, but this is one of the few times where it seems to be legit, if these reports are accurate. The notion of Cena being vulnerable makes him interesting, a lot of people are long since burned out on John Cena being this untouchable, unstoppable human juggernaut that can handle anyone or anything. Sometimes, Vince protects Cena to such a degree that it's a detriment to others on the roster. For instance, The Wyatt Family is an over and interesting heel faction who Vince has made look like chumps a couple of times up against Cena. They're not the first and I'm sure that they won't be the last. As long as Cena is still around AND Vince McMahon is ultimately THE decision maker, I don't think anyone will be given an opportunity to rise to Cena's level.

Exactly my thoughts. Cena cannot be the guy forever. There are quite a few ME caliber talents on the roster, but till the time Vince thinks they are not worth the risk, they'll never rise. Part of what makes Shield guys the best bet is because they've been booked so well. All of them have received strong and consistent booking which in turn made them look like gold, inside and outside the ring. The same thing happened with Punk when he was here, and the same thing happened with Bryan.

Cena can lose and will not take a hit to his credibility. Vince has to understand that. The no-selling of his beatdown from Summerslam really irked me. Why can't he be more vulnerable. And in the process, they made Wyatts look completely incompetent. That's worrisome. Cesaro's push gets halted for seemingly no reason, Ziggler floats around with no purpose, and all we've got are the part timers.

At this time, I can only hope that Triple H can somehow persuade Vince to relax.

 

[CrucifiedRaven]

I'm not a big fan of Sheamus, but he constantly gets big pops from live crowds. He has been de-pushed ever since he lost the World Heavyweight Championship to The Big Show in 2012. But let's say Cena gets injured again, if they wanted they could easily push Sheamus "Cena-strong" and I don't think they'd miss a beat.

That's one of the things about John Cena, is that if they actually just let him go away for a while, I firmly believe at this point fans would still spend all that money on someone else's merch. Losing Cena is not as bad as they think. CM Punk outsold Cena in t-shirts when they actually pushed him strong. If he ever decided to come back, he'd instantly be a top face again. Daniel Bryan came close to outselling Cena in merch as well, and was obviously out-popping him for about a year. Don't underestimate Bryan and the reaction from the crowd when he does finally return, even though I suspect they'll try to bury him.

All three members of The Shield will eventually be top guys in my opinion. Roman Reigns is obviously the guy who is pegged to be in that spot right now. Both Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose will likely flip back and forth throughout their careers between face and heel, but they're both so talented that they'll always be at or near the top of the card, in my opinion.

One guy not mentioned is Bray Wyatt. He was getting over big, even though he is a heel. His production screams babyface. The "<Insert Town> We're Here" line, the phone lighters in the air, the Follow the Buzzards catchphrase, the singing along to a recognizable song... despite being a heel, these are all ways you'd ideally want to promote your babyface. And it worked! He was getting over as a face until the end of the Cena feud and then dud of a feud with Jericho.

Finally, I agree with you on Cesaro. He was over big-time at WrestleMania, but they killed all of his momentum by sticking him with Heyman, making him a heel and not allowing him to do The Swing. He was rumoured to be one of the guys to get a strong push in 2014, but now he's jobbing on RAW and SD. Not sure if he will get back to that same level, or if he'll become another Dolph Ziggler or Ryback.

All of those guys, in combination with Triple H, Brock Lesnar, The Rock, John Cena, Randy Orton, Batista coming and going... they'll be fine.

 

[MCMG]

Cena can continue to carry the company. He definitely has a few years left and the burden won't be on others until they are ready - Cena seems to loyal to leave the WWE in a difficult situation. Looking forward, Reigns and Daniel Bryan is enough. Two guys who are different but are both talented in their own right. Moreover, both are over with the crowd.

Looking at the last decade John Cena was the top babyface. Thereafter there were only a few who remained good guys in the same period. Taker, Hardy, RVD and Mysterio never changed but all had significant time off with HBK having only brief character changes. Every other main-event level guy had a stint as a heel and, indeed, the vast majority of wrestlers are better as bad guys. Punk, Jericho, Orton, Batista, Edge... I could go on. A lot of the top guys of the future will switch between the two and history shows that.

I reckon Reigns and Bryan will be straight and remain good guys but that is only a guess - anything can happen. This roster is talented so the future (post Cena) looks pretty good. Reigns, Bryan, Ambrose, Rollins, Wyatt, Cesaro, Miz, Barrett, Ziggler are all very capable. Add guys from NXT and the performance centre as well as the existing top guys and the WWE are not crying out for more faces.