10 Hypothetical WWE Signings (And Whether They'd Have Succeeded Or Failed)
Could they have made it in WWE?
WWE has a habit of looking to other promotions for talent at times. Though they've succeeded at building their own stars, more often than not, their biggest draws started off somewhere else before making it big in WWE. Examples include Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan, Daniel Bryan, and Seth Rollins, among countless others.
Today’s WWE, in particular, appears to rely heavily on foreign stars to bring in viewers. With the notable exceptions of John Cena, Randy Orton, Sheamus and Roman Reigns, the overwhelming majority of WWE’s most important draws in the last decade made a reputation for themselves elsewhere and were offered big money contracts to perform in WWE.
Given this approach, many people have wondered how certain wrestlers would’ve done if they had signed with WWE. For every 'outside' wrestler that WWE does sign, there are two others that they might sign as well in order to make their roster more impressive.
However, not every major signing from other promotions works out well in WWE. Guys like Hideo Itami and Solomon Crowe had impressive reputations outside of WWE, but have so far failed to make their mark.
How would these ten (hypothetical) signings have worked out for the company?
10. Austin Aries
As one of the most outstanding wrestler to ever come to TNA, Austin Aries made a career out of being a ‘complete’ wrestler. He can work virtually any style, has a wide variety of maneuvers under his belt, has excelled as both a babyface and as a heel and he carries himself as a true World Champion should.
Success or Failure in WWE: Failure
Despite Aries’ obvious talent, his size works against him. He'd most likely end up wrestling in NXT with the other smaller wrestlers, as the main shows are still, for the most part, centered on larger superstars.
Aries would be working with wrestlers with similar body types and wrestling styles, but since he doesn’t stand out in the eyes of WWE’s most powerful figures (especially since he tried for, and was cut from, WWE Tough Enough 2011), the highest point he’d reach is either the NXT Championship or a mid-card title on WWE’s main programs.
While there has been an increase in smaller wrestlers gaining widespread acceptance in WWE (Bryan, Zayn, Neville, etc.), in Aries’ case, unless he were to have some special gimmick or theatrical uniqueness à la Finn Bálor bestowed upon him by WWE’s management, his chances of reaching the highest echelons in WWE would always be slim at best.