5. ASUKA
We’re in the top five picks now, so everyone from here on out is not only a recommendation, but someone WWE desperately NEEDS on their main roster heading into this Brand Split.
Asuka is one of the best women’s wrestling acts currently performing anywhere in the world today, hands down. She’s brilliant inside of the ring, and her character is fierce, dominant, slightly terrifying, and sexy. But like, sexy in a way that she’s probably luring you into a trap to kill you and display your bones on her wall like a trophy. Yeah… Asuka deserves a spot on the main roster, especially considering how many of today’s top stars in the division she hasn’t locked up with yet (basically all of them, since she came in to replace Charlotte, Becky and Sasha on their way out). One minor problem I could see getting in the way, with so many potential call-ups, will she get lost if WWE tries to put all the spotlight on Charlotte and Sasha Banks, and fail to give the rest of their women anything substantial to do?
Personally I don’t care what WWE Creative does with her, just don’t change a damn thing, and put her in the ring with Paige, please.
4. SAMOA JOE
I shouldn’t even have to make this argument. Samoa Joe is one of the best wrestlers in the industry, not just currently active, but of the last two decades. I challenge you to go find a match of his that you can label “bad” that wasn’t due to time restraints or terrible TNA creative decisions. Go. Do it. Have fun wasting your time, because it doesn’t exist. Put Samoa Joe on the WWE roster. Period. He should already be there. That is all.
3. Bayley
Comparisons have been made calling her the female John Cena, and… well, they’re not entirely wrong. She has a massive following among kids and is basically rallying young girls to wear her wristbands and t-shirts much like John Cena has young, impressionable boys for the past decade. Everyone loves her. Even those who roll their eyes at Bayley, purely because they dislike John Cena and feel the need to constantly draw that comparison, don’t really dislike her because she has this undeniable charm and cuteness that makes everyone fall in love with her. Bae-ley, if you will.
If WWE intends to have two different women’s divisions on Raw and Smackdown after the Brand Split, they’re going to need Bayley. Charlotte and Paige should hold down WWE as the top heels, on different brands, while Bayley, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch fight back as the top babyfaces.
Now, because the Cena comparisons are there, there’s a potential issue in bringing her to the main roster. We have no idea how the bigger audiences will receive her. It’s quite possible that there will be Cena-like backlash just for the sake of that backlash existing. It’s impossible to tell. For some reason, the internet likes to take anything lawful good and hopeful in the world and crush it in its creepy little fingers.
2. Finn Balor
It’s very unlikely fans are ever going to get the “Demon vs. Deadman” match between Finn and the Undertaker (even though a Balor Club feud totally writes itself heading into WrestleMania 33, but whatever) but that doesn’t mean we still don’t desperate need this debut to take place already! The only reason Finn is still in NXT is because he wants to be there, and because – we imagine – Triple H wants to use his enormous talent as much as he possibly can before Vince takes him away.
Balor’s great. He’s a world class wrestler, he’s got a demon in his pocket (probably not a euphemism) and everyone loves him. There are no downsides to this. Make it happen.
1. Shinsuke Nakamura
Possibly a controversial pick for the coveted #1 spot, as many probably assumed it would go to Finn Balor or even Samoa Joe, but we feel confidently that Shinsuke Nakamura is not only the best pick to head to the main roster from NXT, but a world class star that can dominant and change the landscape of any promotion he works for.
Simply put, Nakamura has more charisma than anyone working today. It’s not a competition. He just does. Go back and watch tape from New Japan; hell just go back and watch some of his entrances. He is also in the conversation for best active wrestler, when he’s given the time to go all-out, and can easily work a decent match with literally anyone in the world, regardless of potential language barriers. He’s okay at English and working on getting even better, but even without amazing promos, he’s still the biggest asset WWE currently has that they’re not utilizing. And with the years and the mileage that man has put on his body, and with the deal that he had to turn away from in New Japan to come to the US, they better damn well put him on that main roster soon, rather than later. YEAOH!
