TIME IS TICKING...

[davidian13]

So with the recently departed JBL and the news that several key veterans in the company are planning on hanging up their boots within this next year i.e. Kane, HBK, Batista and possibly The Undertaker, its safe to say that the WWE is in a period where the need to build up the newest crop of wrestlers, who are going to carry the company over the next few years is as imperative as its ever been. Obviously this isnt the first time this scenario has come up as the most recent transitional period ocurred a few years ago when they brought up Orton/Cena/Edge/Batista more or less around the same time but they had the veterans to help carry the workload and and to help smooth out the transition. So now i dont doubt the WWE will be able to produce stars i do think they need to get serious about it and push the future stars NOW! So who are the primary candidates to be pushed. Not just wrestlers you want to see at the top but those that realistically have a shot and are going to be good for the company.

Here are my top 3

CHRISTIAN
I think Christian will be a world champion it may not be anytime soon but it will happen. I think Christian will find success similar to that of his buddy Edge, as the next great heel in the WWE. I havent had a problem with him as a face b/c he hasnt really been involved in any serious programs since his return but the only way hes going to be considered as a top player in the WWE is if hes a heel. Simple as that.

CM PUNK
Punk had a great year in 2008 and while his title reigns may not have been that great the fact that he won nearly every title there is to win shows me that the WWE likes this kid. Add to the fact that hes now won 2 consecutive money in the banks its evident that the office intends to do something big with Punk this time around. Now as much as i would love to see a heel Punk the WWE desperately needs another top Face main eventer and i think Punk is the perfect guy to step into that spot.

MVP
As a heel MVP can and should be main eventing with the top players in the company. Ive felt this way since his feud with Chris "he who shall not be named" Benoit. The guy is great on the Mic, has a good look, and plays the cocky, larger than life, T.O. athlete gimmick to a tee. Much like Christian i dont see a future in the event for MVP as long as hes a face.

 

[noumenon]

Don't forget Batista has said this will be his last year as well...

Anyway, yeah I agree with those three. However, Punk didn't really catch on too well back in 2008. I think it partially had to do with the fact that he had to contend with the new addition of Batista to RAW as top face and also the return of Orton. Hopefully a move to Smackdown or something will help him become a legit main eventer. We know we'll see him in the title picture in some fashion this year due to his MITB win...again.

MVP is a given. Hopefully they find a decent way to transition him away from that US title without hurting his momentum too much. As a face I really can't see him lasting in the main event for too long...he definately needs a heel turn.

As far as Christian goes I really think had they wanted to put him in the main event this year they would have given him MITB. I know there are plenty of other ways to build him but sadly WWE is notorious for lazy booking and that's their free pass to the main event lately.

I really feel that before HBK and Taker retire they both need to put over at least one guy each. EVERYONE (or mostly) is salivating for a Morrison/HBK program so I'de be quite pissed if we don't see that happen sometime before HBK retires.

 

[seX-Power]

The future needs to step up. Christian is already pretty oldish I think (late 30s?) so he won't be around THAT long, but in the recent future he should be elevated along with the crop of young guys consisting of:

MVP- Speaks for himself, also a little old but there's still time.

Kennedy- Build him back up on ECW, but only if he stays out of injury.

Bourne- Give him a mouthpiece and he is main event material.

Punk- Has been tested as a Main Eventer, so we know he can do it.

Rhodes/DiBiase- Push them as a team until they are huge, and the have the potential to be World Champs one day.

Morrison- :

Miz- On ECW at least, this guy has potential to main event sometime.

Carlito/Primo- After a tag team push for the next 3 or so years, have these two split up and be elevated to upper mid card/main event.

 

[JimmyD]

The future needs to step up. Christian is already pretty oldish I think (late 30s?) so he won't be around THAT long, but in the recent future he should be elevated along with the crop of young guys consisting of:

MVP- Speaks for himself, also a little old but there's still time.

Kennedy- Build him back up on ECW, but only if he stays out of injury.

Bourne- Give him a mouthpiece and he is main event material.

Punk- Has been tested as a Main Eventer, so we know he can do it.

Rhodes/DiBiase- Push them as a team until they are huge, and the have the potential to be World Champs one day.

Morrison- :

Miz- On ECW at least, this guy has potential to main event sometime.

Carlito/Primo- After a tag team push for the next 3 or so years, have these two split up and be elevated to upper mid card/main event.

I agree with every one of those. These guys are the future of the business and I would put money on at least half that list (with the exception of Miz and Primo Colon) competing for a world title in the next five years.

 

[kingovkings]

1st Cena
2nd Orton
3rd Edge
Then it would be
Morrison
Dibiase
MVP
Rhodes
Bourne
Id say Carlito or primo but somthing is holding me back. Id say primo would make it more so than Carlito.
More than top 3 i know but thats who i see az the future of the company in that order,

 

[CenaMark54]

Every five or six years or so, the WWE makes it a point to really push 3 or 4 guys into the main event. The last time we saw this was in 2003-2004 when Orton, Cena, Lesnar, and Batista were beginning to receive their pushes to be the next crop of guys to lead the company. Five or six years before that it was The Rock, Foley, Triple H and Austin.

Its time to start pushing new people. The short list right now was to be;

Punk
MVP
Rhodes
DiBiase
Morrison

Those guys will all be given a shot over the next year or two.

 

[MikeRaw]

Punk- Now that he got MITB, I think WWE realised they need him. This time, whether they keep him face or turn him heel, he'll get a good run as a main eventer I think, and I think they'll look to him to be a top guy. I think they'll wanna use every bit of potential he has, to appeal to new fans, who may not have been into WWE before (indy fans) and ad dhim as a capable main eventer.
Morrison- If he can just harness his mic skills a bit, he can be a top, top guy. His look is great, his ring skills are almost unmatched in WWE, and he has great lines, he just needs to work on his delivery. I see him being the breakout star of 09.
Kennedy- Once he gets back, WWE is going to have to give it their all to push him. They have to realise it's make or break tiem for him, and in a time that they need new main eventers, Kennedy is a guy with the potential to be a big name. Not an Austin, Cena, Hogan, Rock or Triple H type main eventer, but a guy who can fill a Jericho, Foley or Mysterio type main event role, where they're a main eventer, but not carrying a company. I think they'll really push him though.
MVP- Same as Kennedy

I don't see Rhodes and Dibiase being ready to main event for probably 2 and a half years. Not only have they not established their characters enough, but they haven't made any groudn in the tag team division, and they also havent had midcard runs yet. They're going to have to have some runs like Orton and Batista did as IC champ before main eventing. The rest that I mentioned should put WWE in good hands though.

 

[Luke Flywalker]

I haven't heard "news" that HBK or Undertaker are planning a retirement in the next year. The only time I heard of an Undertaker retirement was the possible storyline they leaked for WM25. HBK, as JR said, probably is just feeling the aftermath of WrestleMania and wanting to spend some time at home again, not quite retiring.

I'd imagine MVP retiring before he's really considered a full-on contender, seeing as it's the WWE and they don't use hot-commodities until the flames are dying out.

But who I feel they should push:

Matt Hardy; yeah, he's kinda getting up there in age, but he's preserved himself pretty well, shockingly. He'd be a great addition to the scene in coming years if they push him correctly.

Randy Orton; he's still young, and still has some development ahead of him. I think they need to give him what he needs to be fresh in a match. We all knew he wasn't going to control Triple H, so to call that boring is like saying you were shocked to see Christy Hemme had a pair of tits on her chest. Orton, in the right feuds, with the right competitor, IS the future of the WWE.

Priceless; not necessarily ME, but a top tag team. But then again, WWE doesn't give a shit about it's tag division, sadly enough. They'd rather push a 21 second title-change squash match and a 15-minute Kid Rock performance than the unification of the tag team titles. Though I still think Priceless will win the Unified Tag Titles and use the Million Dollar Belt v.2 hat Ted referred to as the new titles; the WWE needs to realize this is a duo they can work with. And either guy, in the future, will more than likely be Heavyweight Championship material.

Jack Swagger; figure out a persona they can work with to make him a attraction on match-cards, and he can be one of the best in the business.

Shelton Benjamin; give him a fucking chance! He's been shitted on, much like Kane, Matt Hardy, etc. If the E can give him some big wins (because he gets pops on his spots), he'll be successful in the Main Event. And you can push him not talking as a character. It is kinda charismatic. Even Benoit's silent charisma spoke louder than most guys' vocal promos. Not saying Shelton is Benoit, but his natural in-ring ability is enough to put him over. Give him some big wins, and a WHC or WWE Championship, and Shelton can be a seller.



There's others who need to be pushed, but the above, I feel, can be a great attribute to the ME scene if used properly. Send Shelton back to Raw where he wasn't used in non-existing feuds/storylines, and he'll be fine. Some of these guys just reek of being able to be used in the ME or in big-time storylines.

 

[Next Big Thing]

I really don't think the WWE sees this huge urgency that some of you see. Even if those guys you mentioned do retire within the next year, they still have Cena, Orton, Edge, Triple H, Jericho, and Jeff Hardy. Some of them are getting up there in age, but I can't see any of those guys retiring for at least another 5 years. They also have Mysterio who is only 33 I believe, but given his injury situation, I think he is a bit of a question mark. Depending on how the fans take to him, it seems like they are really trying to push Matt Hardy right now.

Most of the guys that could become main eventers have been covered in this thread, like MVP, Morrison, DiBiase, Rhodes, Jack Swagger and CM Punk. I really don't know how many of those guys will catch on and become main eventers, but I think they still have a few years to improve their skills to get to that point.

 

[noumenon]

^Agreed. People seem to forget about the fact that it's going to be guys like Orton, Edge, Hardy, Cena and others filling the void of HBK, Taker, and whoever else may leave soon. And besides... how many of these guys who are retiring within the next year are still active in the title picture...not many. And with WWE becoming extremely title-centric over the past few years aside for the usual one decent side feud I don't think they really care.

 

[JimmyD]

But if we look at those people: two of them are heels and shouldn't change because they're the best the company has, and one of them is proven to be incredibly unreliable in terms of behaviour (That'd be you Jeff). Triple H and Jericho are great workers but both are getting on in years and are approaching the time when they should be thinking about retirement. This means that WWE has one proven main event face (Cena) on whose shoulders the company will rest. I'm not Cena's biggest fan, but even the most ardent supporter of thuganomics would have to admit that one main event face is not going to cut it.

 

[noumenon]

lmao..supporters of thuganomics.
Yeah, Jericho and HHH are getting up there but I think both have quite a few years left in them.

 

[PeepShow]

Christian is already pretty oldish I think (late 30s?)

35*

He has a good 5-10 years left. Probably closer to 5, but still a good career left to where he can make an impact a big for himself in the company if given the chance.

 

[Great One]

Every five or six years or so, the WWE makes it a point to really push 3 or 4 guys into the main event. The last time we saw this was in 2003-2004 when Orton, Cena, Lesnar, and Batista were beginning to receive their pushes to be the next crop of guys to lead the company. Five or six years before that it was The Rock, Foley, Triple H and Austin.

Its time to start pushing new people. The short list right now was to be;

Punk
MVP
Rhodes
DiBiase
Morrison

Those guys will all be given a shot over the next year or two.

Completely agree. I for one am anxious as fuck to see Morrison get a spot near the main event somewhere to see what he can bring. And of course, MVP, who's been borderline there and was outshining everyone in the entire company at one point, then sadly went downhill. I miss his heel character. =(

 

[phantomgerald]

Kennedy who? He can't even get on television and some of you guys expect him to become a maineventer. LOL.