10 Wrestlers Whose Stock Has Risen In 2017
6. Samoa Joe
Few wrestlers have ever transitioned as seamlessly from NXT to the main roster as Samoa Joe. Having lost the NXT Championship to Shinsuke Nakamura in December, the former TNA man finally showed up on Raw in January, attacking Seth Rollins at Triple H’s behest. The brutal assault legitimately injured Rollins, leaving Joe feeling ruthless and dangerous, and establishing relationships with two of the company’s biggest names on his very first night.
From there, Joe defeated Roman Reigns in his debut match, then overcame Cesaro and Sami Zayn over the weeks that followed. He lost his feud with Rollins, but has stayed in the Universal Title hunt throughout, and will clash with four other Superstars in a number one contender’s bout at Extreme Rules this coming weekend.
The oddsmakers have Finn Balor walking away from the victory, but the fact that Joe is even in the match is a success in itself. Joe has very quickly become one of the red brand’s top heels, and while he’s not the wrestler he was in his prime, he’s still very capable of going toe-to-toe with anybody. From developmental monster to legitimate main roster threat, Joe’s 2017 has been very successful indeed.