Unless you’ve lived under a rock for the past month, or if you’re Dixie Carter and are blissfully ignorant about everything around you, you’ll know by now that CM Punk has “taken a sabbatical”, as Vince McMahon put it, from the WWE. And with his contract set to expire this summer, it’s possible that the Royal Rumble was the last time we’ll see Punk in a WWE ring.
While this is no doubt a terrible turn of events for fans of excellent mic work and in-ring ability, there is a glimmer of good news. With a top spot on the card ready to open up, and with several breakout stars on the payroll, a couple of guys may see their star increase in the not-too-distant future.
With that said, who is ready for the next step? Who is ready to get the push of a lifetime? Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve polled wrestling fans, total strangers and some of our dear readers and posed them the question: “Who should be next in line for a major main-event push?” And outside of “Please stop bothering me, I have pepper spray!”, these five names were the names brought up most often.
Based on a series of criteria, including crowd overness, in-ring ability, charisma and mic work, and the dreaded “It” factor, we (namely, me) have scored out which superstars should be in line for their WrestleMania moment by this time next year.
DANIEL BRYAN
It should come as no surprise that Daniel Bryan was the name most mentioned in the survey. While it could be argued that Bryan is already in fact a main-eventer, he certainly hasn’t had the rocket strapped to his back like he perhaps should. But does he tick all the boxes?
OVERNESS – 5/5 Punks 
Without a doubt, Daniel Bryan may be the most over wrestler in the WWE since Steve Austin. Over the past year, and despite some horrendous booking decisions, the crowd’s love for the Yes Man has only grown. The so-called “Yes Movement” has picked up some serious mainstream traction, not unlike the Austin 3:16 movement from years past. It’s not often that a guy can get such a reaction by not being in a match (i.e. the Rumble) that it causes the unflappable Vince McMahon to rethink all his WrestleMania plans.
IN-RING ABILITY – 5/5 Punks
Another perfect score for Bryan, who is arguably the best worker in the WWE right now. Truth be known, he hasn’t had a bad match in a long time, and even at the universally-panned WWE Battleground PPV and his match with Randy Orton was more of a problem with bad booking than actual ring work. He’s had great matches with a veritable smorgasbord of in-ring talent, and carried Bray Wyatt to the best match of his career at the Rumble.
CHARISMA & MIC SKILLS – 3/5 Punks
Here’s where Bryan starts to falter. While he’s by no means bad on the stick, he’s not one of the best either. He’s certainly passable and won’t ever be considered in the same ranks as The Great Khali, but he lacks the same oomph that guys like Austin, Punk and The Rock had.
His promo with John Cena before SummerSlam was impeccably done, but he hasn’t had the same consistency with subsequent mic time. His body language, however, is great. He really knows how to play up to the crowd with his body language. He’s on par with guys like Ricky Morton, who always had the innate ability to get the crowd behind him in the “face in peril” role.
“IT” FACTOR – 4/5 Punks
The biggest detractors of Bryan point to his “less than traditional” look in relation to his future success. From the short stature to the shaggy, unkempt hair, to the scraggly lumberjack beard, he’s seen as “too ordinary” or “too plain” to be a top star. I would argue that those things are exactly what endears him to the fans.
Much like Austin, the fans see a lot of themselves in Bryan. He’s one of them, from top to bottom. But unlike them, Bryan is really, really good at what he does. He may not have a chiseled physique or brightly-coloured tattoos, but does he really need them?
OVERALL – 4.5 out of 5
Bryan is already a breakout star, even without the push. It’s up to Vince and Co to decide if they want to make money off of this or let it slip away.
ROMAN REIGNS
He’s been groomed to be a major star since his debut in the company. But is he ready for the next step?
OVERNESS – 4/5 Punks
Being the “muscle” of the highly-pushed Shield, he’s had an aura around him from the very beginning. The powers-that-be have wisely pushed him as an unstoppable machine, having suffered only ONE pinfall loss since his debut, and even that was in a 11-versus-3 handicap match. Lately, the crowd have been giving him a lot more of a babyface push, and he’s primed for a major singles run whenever Vince is ready to pull the trigger.
IN-RING ABILITY – 4/5 Punks
For a big man, Reigns is a pretty decent worker. His Superman Punch is one of the best-looking spots in wrestling today, and his Spear looks like it actually hurts, unlike some of the limp tackling we’ve seen over the past few years. The kick to the head on the apron is an unusually agile spot for a man his size. He’s even impressed the IWC crowd, who are notoriously hard on taller wrestlers.
CHARISMA & MIC SKILLS – 3/5 Punks
Much like Bryan, this is Roman’s weakness. His early work with The Shield was nothing short of cringe-worthy. It has gotten better over time and should keep improving, as some of his more recent stuff would testify. His body language is perfectly fine, however. It will be interesting to see how he works as a vulnerable babyface, as we’ve not really seen the guy look like he’s in trouble before. That will be the real test to his future success.
“IT” FACTOR – 5/5 Punks
Reigns pretty much ticks every box when it comes to what Vince wants in a superstar. He’s big, he has a good look and he has a connection with the crowd. It’s not a matter of “if” with Reigns, but “when”.
OVERALL – 4.5 out of 5
Roman Reigns is proof positive of what you can do when you book someone the right way. Now, they’ll pay dividends when they decide to pull the trigger on him.
CESARO
We’ve all known for quite some time that the former Claudio Castagnoli is awesome. But it seems that the powers-that-be have only noticed recently. Is he primed to be the next breakout star?
OVERNESS – 3/5 Punks 
Cesaro was building momentum as a heel with his US Title run, but soon fell out of favor with Vince because he was labeled “boring”. Afterwards, he bounced around the midcard until being placed in the “We The People” stable with Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter. He’s gained a newfound respect as of late, with his aesthetically-pleasing Cesaro Swing and his Danny Hodge-esqe strength.
Last week he had a legitimate Match of the Year candidate with John Cena that won him a lot of praise from both sides of the stage.
IN-RING ABILITY – 5/5 Punks
Much like Bryan, Cesaro is a natural in the ring. Seldom has he wrestled a bad match, and even when he has, it was more the product of booking and opponent selection. Not to mention it takes a lot of skill, strength and werewithal to pick up the 500-pound Khali in a Giant Swing.
CHARISMA AND MIC SKILLS – 2/5 Punks
Maybe it’s because of the lack of opportunity he’s been given on the stick, or maybe it’s that horrendous yodeling gimmick he was saddled with for a while, but Cesaro hasn’t exactly cut a memorable promo yet. Of course, when you have a promo natural like Colter cutting promos for you, what difference does it make?
I think Cesaro needs a lot more of an upper-level push before we really get the full picture of what he can do. Give him an honest-to-goodness feud with someone like Sheamus or Dolph Ziggler and see what he can do.
“IT” FACTOR – 3/5 Punks
Cesaro is a large guy with a good physique, and he’s able to pull off feats of strength that some gym rats couldn’t pull off on their best day. But Vince has been reluctant to push him based off his alleged “boringness”, so that’s been detrimental to him so far.
OVERALL – 3.5 out of 5
I think Cesaro could be a big star someday, but I don’t necessarily think it’s his time just yet, not like Bryan or Reigns. He needs to get some legitimacy first, have a couple of good feuds and really showcase his body of work. It’s going to take a little time and a little support from those with power, but it could happen.
DOLPH ZIGGLER
Ziggler has gotten a reputation as a guy who works hard and goes out of his way to sell for his opponent. But does he have what it takes to be one of Vince’s top draws?
OVERNESS – 3/5 Punks
Dolph’s star has dropped a lot over the past year, due to no real fault of his own. Injuries and poor booking decisions have really took their toll on Dolph’s bottom line. When he beat Alberto Del Rio on the first Raw after ‘Mania for the World Heavyweight Championship, the crowd was nothing short of electric.
But as the story goes, they didn’t capitalize on the momentum, and it has left him in a precarious position, doing jobs on a regular basis. Despite that, he still has a good connection with the crowd, who see his true potential.
IN-RING ABILITY – 4/5 Punks
Ziggler has a very pleasing in-ring style, which puts emphasis on making the other guy look good. It’s that sort of psychology that has been long forgotten in today’s wrestling market. By making your opponent look good, it makes you AND the match look good as well. His offensive repertoire isn’t too shabby either. Some would liken him to a poor man’s Shawn Michaels, and that isn’t faint praise!
CHARISMA & MIC SKILLS – 4/5 Punks
Ziggler has a natural body language which resonates with live audiences. His mic work is pretty good as well, although it probably won’t be remembered as one of the all-time best. It’s just the utter lack of mic time he’s gotten as of late that’s been his main issue.
“IT” FACTOR – 3/5 Punks
Ziggler has a decent look, but sometimes falls into the “too small” pratfall that seems to pigeonhole most talented workers. We may not like it, but until the powers that be get away from the “Bigger is Better” mantra, it’s a sad fact of life.
OVERALL – 3.75 out of 5
It all really depends on getting the right push and the right support from those in power. His reputation in the ring would need some rehab, he’d need some key wins and big matches. But they could do a lot worse than Ziggler.
WADE BARRETT
I was legitimately surprised to see Barrett’s name keep popping up in my informal survey, but a lot of fans see a lot in Barrett and feel he deserves much more than he’s gotten. Are they right?
OVERNESS – 2/5 Punks
Barrett has received a pretty lousy push since his removal from The Nexus. He’s been pulled off the shelf and repackaged more times than a re-gifted Christmas fruitcake. Recently he’s been saddled with the sub-par Bad News Barrett gimmick, where he essentially reads a badly-written script from a failed children’s show writer, but has been making the best of it.
IN-RING ABILITY – 3/5 Punks
Overall, Barrett isn’t too shabby in the ring. He has certainly shown he’s more capable than a lot of the bigger wrestlers Vince has tried to shove down our throats. Thing is, when is the last time you saw the guy in the ring? I couldn’t tell you when his last match was! I don’t know if he’s suffering through some sort of injury or what, but they really need to get him back in the ring somehow. Otherwise, the fans aren’t going to buy him as a wrestler, and he’ll be that guy who cuts promos on a scissor lift.
CHARISMA & MIC SKILLS – 4/5 Punks
For all the ill I speak of the Bad News gimmick, Barrett has really been making the best of it. The lines are cheesy and badly written, but he delivers it in such a way that you can’t help but laugh at whatever bad joke Vince’s Puppet Squad wrote. That little smirk before delivering the go-home line? You can’t teach that. That’s just natural performance there.
“IT” FACTOR – 3/5 Punks
Blame it on whoever you want, whether it’s Vince or the writers or Barrett himself, but he just hasn’t quite clicked with the audience as a whole yet. A lot of our British readers connect with him right away as a fellow countryman, but speaking as a dirty American myself, he just hasn’t leaped out to me.
It’s much the same way I’m sure my British friends probably don’t see Dusty Rhodes in the same light as I do. He just needs more of an universal appeal that we just haven’t seen yet. Could we eventually see that? I’m sure of it. The Nexus angle was catching some momentum before his involvement in it was written out. I think could surprise some people if given a proper push.
OVERALL – 3 out of 5
There’s potential for Barrett, especially since he’s gaining a cult following with his #BNB work. They just need to do more than have him cut quirky 30 second promos for it to happen.
Questions? Complaints? Have the readers chosen the wrong guys? Don’t keep it bottled up, let us know!
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