Outside of the rare example of Kurt Angle or Brock Lesnar, most pro wrestlers require a few years of seasoning and some good luck insofar as the creative process in order to truly catch on as top-flight professionals. In some cases, certain wrestlers are hamstrung in both their in-ring development and the execution of the creative ideas being used in their development, and take even longer than most to truly become established star grapplers. Regarding wrestlers who have improved over time in WWE, there is a list of these performers that is quite long. However, of that lot, there are 12 who truly have distinguished themselves.
12. Batista
There are certainly people who would happily make the argument that Batista is "Boo-tista" and terrible at everything he does both as a grappler and character. However, it's also possible that insofar as the classic model of what it once was to be a credible babyface or heel, Batista evolved into one of the best to ever do it. Trained by Afa the Wild Samoan, indoctrinated at Ohio Valley Wrestling by Jim Cornette and "Nightmare" Danny Davis, and working on TV with D-Von Dudley, Ric Flair and Triple H, he was groomed for nothing less than success by an "old school" standard. Once established, his work with the likes of Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero was truly engrossing. Now, returning after a four-year layoff, it's arguable that as he loses his ring rust that he's safer, smarter and more aware of how to execute as a heel character than ever before.
Besides having been an independent professional wrestling manager for a decade, Marcus Dowling is a Washington, DC-based writer who has contributed to a plethora of online and print magazines and newspapers writing about music and popular culture over the past 15 years.
