10 Wrestlers Whose Rookie Years Exceeded Expectations

When Alberto Del Rio came into the company, he was doing so with quite the reputation—both in pro wrestling and mixed martial arts. He was also given the full treatment with a series of vignettes airing ahead of his 20th August, 2010 debut.

Often though, those vignettes aren’t necessarily a sign that the incoming name is going to be a huge star—just ask Kizarny, or the “Devil’s Advocate” Sean O’Haire. In fact, they’ve almost become the staple of a mid-carder rather than a main eventer. So in a strange kind of way, this almost lowered the expectations surrounding Del Rio’s WWE debut.

Del Rio’s rookie year however, very much fell into the main event category. First-off, he won the largest Royal Rumble in history, outlasting 39 others to earn himself a World Heavyweight title shot at WrestleMania 27. And although he was unsuccessful in his bid for the belt, he was back in contention shortly after, winning the Money in the Bank briefcase, and cashing in at SummerSlam to win his first WWE Championship almost a year to the day after making his debut.

In some ways though, Del Rio’s rise was also a contributor to his subsequent stagnation; he won so much in those first 12 months that there was little else left for him to achieve thereafter. Still, that doesn’t change the fact that this was indeed a rookie year to remember.