10 Wrestlers With The Most Breakout Star Potential Right Now
6. Yuka Sakazaki
Yuka Sakazaki has genuine Ace potential.
She is an enchanting, inordinately sympathetic babyface with an ability to dodge moves with a unique and witty counter game, graduate through story beats to make a respectful exhibition feel like a war down the stretch, and, given her frame and aesthetic, she is fantastic at wrong-footing the audience. To look at her, you might think her offence would look flimsy or that her act is too fun and wholesome to really get over at a main event level. This isn't the case; she's a very well-rounded worker.
The evidence for the argument is slight, but that almost works in her favour. She has appeared in front of AEW fans just twice in two years - versus Penelope Ford at AEW Fyter Fest 2021 Night 1 and against Riho on the May 6 Rampage - and on the second taping in particular, she drew a big reaction from an exhausted crowd that hadn't seen her in a year.
The Magical Girl is an irresistible act. Two of the biggest TV franchises of all time, Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad, were sold on the captivating premise of the unexpected badass. Yuka Sakazaki isn't going to seep into the mainstream consciousness like Anya Stark nor Walter White, but AEW has an enchantress on their hands.
A longer spell is surely all she needs to make magic.