10 Best Options To Be WWE's Next Poster Child
2. LA Knight
This is not Shaun Ricker's first time in WWE, though as LA Knight he is primed for success. A 2008 dark match team-up, and a 2011 role as a security guard, looked as if it was building up to an NXT run in 2013, but he was released in 2014 following reported disagreements with disgraced former NXT head trainer Bill DeMott. However, this unfortunate bump in the road was the impetus for his Eli Drake gimmick.
Ricker's time with TNA/Impact wrestling (2015-2019), was an apprenticeship in the way of the narcissist heel heel:
Own talk show segment? 'Fact of Life' CHECK
Novel way to insult your opponents? 'The Namer of Dummies' CHECK
Hulking bodyguard to aid cowardice? Tyrus (best known as Brodus Clay) CHECK
Seizing a World Championship via questionable methods? CHECK
Though he goes under a new name, LA Knight is a fully accomplished heel expressed via his technical prowess, mic skills, and ability to tell a coherent story. The rub of Ted DiBiase, one of the all time great heels, has set Knight in good stead for the future.
While people can dismiss this brand of heel as a poster child contender, The Miz's outside success proves there is a draw to these larger-than-life jerks.