Wrestlers you feel could have made it but never did.

Caovyn Lineah

As the title says......

What guys do you think could have made it as solid main eventers but for whatever reason, never quite made it?

I have 2 guys in mind at the minute so I'll kick it off.

Sean O'Haire - He had absolutely everything you'd expect a WWE main eventer to have, I really feel they missed the boat with him as a monster heel, he even looked like an evil genius. A shame how his life ended up considering the talent he had and how successful he was in WCW.

Low Ki - Now I know he got his run, which was pathetic but I just don't understand why he wasnt picked up years before he was. One of my favourite indy guys for years, I always imagined him main eventing WWE PPVs for years with CM Punk but for some reason it never happened. Maybe it was his size that went against him in the days of Khali etc, maybe it was because he worked too stiff.

Sirsok

Paul Burchill..... Remember first seeing him in the FWA on the wrestling channel and was completely blown away. They presented him like Goldberg as he was big but he could move like a cruiser weight. Had many runs as OVW champ with the ripper gimmick but alas he came into WWE at the wrong time. A time where they didn't really care about developing talent. A pirate turned incesteous brother..... 'Twas a real shame

Ken Shamrock

Dolph Ziggler
Raven
RVD (Was there for a very brief time)
Rick Rude
Mr Perfect

gimmick

Bob.Carcass wrote: »

Dolph Ziggler
Raven
RVD (Was there for a very brief time)
Rick Rude
Mr Perfect

Rick Rude and Mr Perfect very much did "make it". They may not have won World Championships but they were top of the card attractions for years.

Too early to say for certain re Ziggler. Still has time on his side.

Raven did very well for himself given his limited talent. He was a great promo man, but that was it.

My input here would be Test in the late 90s. He had the crowd with him and was in decent matches. I felt they needed to put him up top around then, but it never happened.

That said a few years earlier I couldn't understand why Ahmed Johnson wasn't world champ, so what do I know!?

Liam McPoyle

Mike Awesome was such wasted potential.

Moneymaker

Mr.Kennedy
Barry Windham
Razor Ramon(he obviously had a great run but he should have been WWE Champ)
Marty Janetty
Jake Roberts
Teddy Hart
Shelton Benjamin
John Morrison
MVP

Obviously some of these guys can still change this but right now i'd say all of the above underachieved for one reason or another.

Ken Shamrock

gimmick wrote: »

Rick Rude and Mr Perfect very much did "make it". They may not have won World Championships but they were top of the card attractions for years.

Too early to say for certain re Ziggler. Still has time on his side.

Raven did very well for himself given his limited talent. He was a great promo man, but that was it.

My input here would be Test in the late 90s. He had the crowd with him and was in decent matches. I felt they needed to put him up top around then, but it never happened.

That said a few years earlier I couldn't understand why Ahmed Johnson wasn't world champ, so what do I know!?

I'd disagree with Rude and Perfect being a solid main eventer goes hand in hand with holding the strap at least once IMO.

Test is a decent shout But opposite to Raven I'm not sure he'd have the charisma and mic skills to hold onto a top spot, although a mouth piece could have worked. You're on your own for Ahmed :pac:

cagefactor

Roman Reigns - Could have made it but never will/did. :-D

But seriously....

I used to love Razor Ramon, couldnt understand why he wasnt in the world title hunt

Blue_Dabadee

MVP circa 2006-2008 when he was a heel on Smackdown.

Chip Whitley

Loved Shelton Benjamin. Should have won more and been in the WWE longer.

Me_Grapes

Magnum T.A.

Had all the tools needed to be a main eventer, and was all set to rival Ric Flair and Sting as WCW's marquee guy, until a car accident ended his career. Possibly the biggest example of 'what could have been' in pro wrestling.

Ruu

Used to think Tom Zenk in WCW could have done really well.

Ken Shamrock

Ruu wrote: »

Used to think Tom Zenk in WCW could have done really well.

You mean the Z-man :pac: Yeah he was unlucky with Injury and I think If he had of stayed in WWF he might have reached a fairly high level.

Clareman

Moneymaker wrote: »

Razor Ramon(he obviously had a great run but he should have been WWE Champ)

I don't think he was ever in the picture for a WWE Title run, when he left he was top of the mid-card and about to move up to the main event, moving to WCW propelled him to the top of the card and should have gotten the strap at some stage, FFS David Arquette got a run with that belt.

RedemptionZ

Bobby Lashley?

Agent Coulson

Monty Brown I think he could have been huge.




I'd put Ahmed Johnson in the list as well.

LeeJM

Matt Cappotelli by all accounts had a bright future until he discovered that brain tumour (I think thats what it was)

irs

Monty Brown was great and should have had a run as World Champ around 05-06. He had a shot at the title against Jarrett who had held the belt for about nine months at that point and was completely stale and they still jobbed him before then turning to join up with Jarrett. A huge waste of potential as he had serious charisma and was far ahead of the ex WCW crocks alongside him in the main events.

I'm not sure if Test had enough to be a main eventer but every time he had a bit of momentum it was wasted. Not having a feud with Triple H in late 99 and having his year of immunity being wasted. I never got the feeling he could ever be put over someone like the Undertaker which he needed.

Raven was at a fairly decent mid-card level for his first 6-8 months in WWF, even getting a spot alongside Kane and the Big Show at WMXVII. He seemed to getting over as a face around that time and could have had some decent angles over the next couple of years, even if he was never going to be troubling the main event. But he was turned into a glorified jobber in the space of a few months and never recovered.

Caovyn Lineah

I watched the 2000 Royal Rumble last night and I'd completely forgotten about Taz, it still irks me to this day how his career went after ECW. I was such a huge fan and it genuinely annoyed me to see him being destroyed in WWE, feuding against Lawler ffs .

Lance Storm is another one, if he was around today I think he could be an upper level guy but instead he got lumped with that "boring guy" gimmick. I was a big big fan of his in WCW and he was probably the guy I was most excited for during the Invasion.

johnruns

The Von Erichs so close but just one tragedy after another:(

Palo Alto

Trent Acid, was sad when he overdosed.

Nick Mondo too, he had the charisma to be a Jeff Hardy type but took too many ridiculous bumps in CZW.

Blue_Dabadee

Curt Hawkins, I thought he was incredible when he was with Tyler Reks on NXT.

thebostoncrab

Brent Albright is one that always stands out to me. He never would have been an Austin or Rock, but he has the look and skills needed to become a major player

Curt Hennig
Rick Rude

Never got the big one.

Cianan2

I'd go with Jody Fleisch, he was something spectacular to watch and I never understood why WWE never signed him. Years later I found out (probably through our very own Rovert!) that he had an awful time with injuries

Moist Bread

Blake Norton :pac:

martyos121

Bobby Lashley
Mr. Kennedy
John Morrison
Muhammad Hassan

In my opinion, the first three guys were destined to be main eventers, but one thing or another got in their way. Real shame about Morrison, he was mega-over around the time he feuded with King Sheamus and again with the Miz.

Hassan certainly would've made it as a top heel had he been around in 2003-04. Unfortunate timing was his downfall.

Cheese Wagstaff

martyos121 wrote: »

Mr. Kennedy

In my opinion, the first three guys were destined to be main eventers.

Randy Orton got in the way here, a real shame. His gimmick was amazing. If it hadn't been for injury causing him to give up the MITB, he might have been non-expendable. We'll never know.

Rock Lesnar

Sheldon Benjamin should have done better then he did, i'll always remember a match he had on raw against HBK, it was brilliant, and HBK's superkick as Benjamin jumped off the top rope finished it perfectly

Lord TSC

thebostoncrab wrote: »

Brent Albright is one that always stands out to me. He never would have been an Austin or Rock, but he has the look and skills needed to become a major player

Wow, there's a name I had written out of my memory...

token101

Where to start!

Chris Harris. Don't know if he would have ever main evented Wrestlemania but I definitely feel he had a lot of potential.

Nathan Jones would have been a monster if he stuck around and actually learned to wrestle.

Mike Awesome was the biggest misuse of talent I've ever seen in WWE. He was the ideal fit for WWE; a big guy who was really good in the ring. With a good manager (even Heyman himself), matches with the Undertaker, Kane, Brock, Batista would have been classics.

Kenny Dykstra, Renee Dupree are probably two that many feel should be on this list. Personally never saw much in either guy apart from the body.

I think Cesaro is going down this road. I really want him to make it but after seeing Vince's podcast with Austin, I feel he never will which is a shame.

Caovyn Lineah

Cianan2 wrote: »

I'd go with Jody Fleisch, he was something spectacular to watch and I never understood why WWE never signed him. Years later I found out (probably through our very own Rovert!) that he had an awful time with injuries

Oh god, I used to love watching his matches on the wrestling channel on Sky. I was convinced he was destined for greatness despite his size. I must have a look to see where he ended up.

Caovyn Lineah

token101 wrote: »

Where to start!

Nathan Jones would have been a monster if he stuck around and actually learned to wrestle.

Mike Awesome was the biggest misuse of talent I've ever seen in WWE. He was the ideal fit for WWE; a big guy who was really good in the ring. With a good manager (even Heyman himself), matches with the Undertaker, Kane, Brock, Batista would have been classics.

Nathan Jones, I strongly disagree with. He had the look and not much else.

Mike Awesome though, I couldn't agree anymore. His stuff in ECW was incredible, the match against Tanka at Heatwave is probably in my top 10 of all time.

Palo Alto

I don't see Mike Awesome as a safe worker particularly, he had a pretty rubbish gimmick too. Super athletic for a bigman but he would have needed an almost Undertaker level of re imagining to make him a huge star in my opinion.

Just to bring up Trent Acid again as a lot of you probably don't remember him, in terms of athleticism I thought he was amazing, especially his CZW work when in his early 20's.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trent_Acid

He had a great feud with Ruckus too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYcLZH2eTj4

token101

Rock Lesnar wrote: »

Sheldon Benjamin should have done better then he did, i'll always remember a match he had on raw against HBK, it was brilliant, and HBK's superkick as Benjamin jumped off the top rope finished it perfectly

I think he overachieved to be honest! He was good in the ring but he had zero charisma. He was dull.

Reebrock

Wasn't the knock on Awesome that Undertaker said he didn't have a clue what he was doing. It's a case of not fitting the WWE style. At the end of the day, Mike Awesome was a giant in ECW, in WWE not so much.

D-FENS

Bam Bam Bigelow’s 1st run in WWF was cut way too short due to an injury / being let go – they did a unreal job building him up with the top managers trying to sign him in ’87, followed by outlasting Hogan and almost being the sole survivor at the 1st Survivor Series main event. He would have been a brilliant heel opponent for Macho in his ’88 title run and would have added much more to the Twin Towers feud with the Mega Powers than Akeem did (Pretty sure I read before he was scheduled to be in the TT tag team originally, can’t find a source though and think it was actualy Bossman he would have been in for, not One Man Gang/Akeem). I know he main evented WM in his 2nd run and had great matches with Bret but that run was wasted with a lot of crap too.
Basically the 1st Heyman guy too, pity he never managed him on screen.

And as much as CM Punk might disagree, I thought Elijah Burke had potential to achieve a lot more than he did, arguably better mic skills than MVP at the time and I always liked his ring style. The Pope gimmick in TNA was brilliant too.

riffmongous

Awesome Kong, I just saw her on a tna show on tv last night and was thinking how good (relatively speaking as a wwe womens wrestler) she could have been with her original wwe gimmick

The Strawman Argument

Me_Grapes wrote: »

Magnum T.A.

Had all the tools needed to be a main eventer, and was all set to rival Ric Flair and Sting as WCW's marquee guy, until a car accident ended his career. Possibly the biggest example of 'what could have been' in pro wrestling.

Did you actually feel that though or are you just going on what people like Dusty (who has something of a vested interest in propagating this story) have said?
I've seen absolutely nothing of Magnum T.A. but I'm always extremely skeptical when I hear people waxing lyrical about his potential.

RobbingBandit

Owen Hart

gerrybbadd

I was full sure Ahmed was gonna be the guy at one stage.

Then there's the likes of Ken Shamrock, had a great legit background, and I loved his "Snapping" gimmick. Was sure he was destined for greater things.

ricero

gerrybbadd wrote: »

I was full sure Ahmed was gonna be the guy at one stage.

Then there's the likes of Ken Shamrock, had a great legit background, and I loved his "Snapping" gimmick. Was sure he was destined for greater things.

Most defiantly could of made but as far as i know he got pissed off with the whole scene and decided to go back into mma.

chrysagon

Tom Magee in the mid 80s.. had the looks and the power, just not the talent, Vince mc admitted a lot of time and effort was put into Magee making it.. never happened, and it opened the door for a guy called Jim Hellwig, and the rest is history..

token101

RobbingBandit wrote: »

Owen Hart

Totally disagree on this. He was fast tracked to the top of the card with Bret and didn't exactly set the world alight. Even in an era when talent was thin on the ground he never really main evented again after SS 94. He was a mid card guy who found his level, nothing more or less.

RollieFingers

Chances are this pick will be roundly ridiculed, but I always thought Michael Tarver had potential during the NXT invasion

Sean O'Haire, Waylon Mercy and Blitzkrieg would also make my list

dodderangler

Never post here but I just seen the thread pop up. I do watch the old shows from attitude ( bring back the childhood)
Whatever happens to Nathan jones??
He was a fcukin monster ( couldn't wrestle ) but he had the size and strength to be basically a 6"11 Goldberg.
He appeared few times on wwe but disappeared. Did he feck off to tna or eve?
Seen him in the condemned and troy

Caovyn Lineah

dodderangler wrote: »

Never post here but I just seen the thread pop up. I do watch the old shows from attitude ( bring back the childhood)
Whatever happens to Nathan jones??
He was a fcukin monster ( couldn't wrestle ) but he had the size and strength to be basically a 6"11 Goldberg.
He appeared few times on wwe but disappeared. Did he feck off to tna or eve?
Seen him in the condemned and troy

He was discussed earlier in the thread, as you said he had the look but just couldn't wrestle. He was written out of his Wrestlemania match which will tell you all you need to know about his obvious lack of wrestling ability.

ricero

I always thought heidenreich could of been big when he came back with heyman as his manager. Brutal in the ring though but had a great look and decent gimmick.

diusmr8a504cvk

Test, before I even say anything else about him he was 6'7 and anyone that size should be at least flirting with the main event.

diusmr8a504cvk

Mordecai should have at least got a feud with 'Taker, shame.

degrassinoel

The Brooklyn Brawler, that guy was hilarious, he managed a win against triple H too iirc