WWE Royal Rumble 2023: 10 Surprise Entrants We Could See

7. Grayson Waller

Road Dogg
WWE.com

WWE - whether it's ran by Vince McMahon or Triple H - favours a certain breed of heel.

Tall, telegenic, and incredibly obnoxious, they are patterned after The Miz, who is still around in a featured position. They are smooth talkers, they are chicken sh*ts, and they are more likely to draw groans than actual heat. Drawing earnest heat is a lost and perhaps unrecoverable art, but it's better to try, surely, than to relentlessly list off one's Wikipedia page.

These exposition-happy "next big thing" types are the worst heels, so it says rather a lot of Waller's immense talent that he can pull it off.

He's effectively mastered the role on NXT. He has the perfect smug face for it, he's dynamic both in the ring and in promo segments in which he bounces off the walls, high on his own ar*ehole charisma. He doesn't bask in his greatness with a detached, methodical pose. He vibrates off it. He's a hyperactive narcissist, grating in a way that you actually want to see him lose, and his work is little like the bland, smoothed-off Austin Theory's.

Waller embodies what WWE likes, and even as a sneak preview of a performer who is guaranteed to win about 11 midcard titles, he could and should enter the Royal Rumble match.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!