6 WWE and AEW Stars Most Likely to Become a Champion This Year
A handful of young talent and fresh faces have made their mark on WWE and AEW so far in 2023 and have breathed new life into both products.
Damian Priest and Iyo Sky becoming Mr. and Ms. Money in the Bank respectively earlier this month indicates the company's belief in them to be top stars. They've held gold in the past but are ready to take that next step toward super stardom.
Meanwhile in AEW, Kris Statlander has made the most of her first opportunity to reign as a champion. Ricky Starks, a former FTW champ in his own right, is on the verge of becoming the 2023 men's Owen Hart Cup winner and has racked up several high-profile victories as of late.
There are many others who have the potential to break out and be the top talent of tomorrow. Having been a banner year for wrestling already, the next six months should be equally unpredictable.
Who will rise to the occasion in the remainder of 2023 and earn the honor of calling themselves a champion for the first time?
LA Knight
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It's safe to say LA Knight is among WWE's most over Superstars at the moment, and his sudden surge in popularity should not go unnoticed by management.
The former Million Dollar champion started the year feuding with Bray Wyatt, and although he lost their one and only encounter at the Royal Rumble, he surprisingly emerged from the feud better off than he was previously.
Despite largely being directionless since then, Knight has become a massive fan favorite and routinely gets one of the loudest reactions of any show he's on, particularly Money in the Bank in London.
At this rate, it would be booking malpractice for him to be left off the SummerSlam card. Austin Theory would be the perfect opponent for him at the event considering he makes more sense than anyone to dethrone him as United States champion.
Knight's too beloved to remain a heel going forward, and if Theory needs a babyface foil, he fits the bill. Not winning the men's Money in the Bank briefcase could prove to be a blessing in disguise if he goes on to win the star-spangled prize in traditional fashion in the not-too-distant future.
Ruby Soho
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In the many years she has spent in WWE and AEW, Ruby Soho has yet to win championship gold of any kind. She's received nearly a dozen different title shots across the companies but has fallen short on every occasion.
Given the immense amount of talent she possesses, that's egregious.
AEW was where fans figured she'd finally be utilized at that level, and although she's had her fair share of opportunities, a title reign hasn't materialized. The closest she came to clinching a title was against Britt Baker for the AEW Women's World Championship in the main event of Grand Slam Dynamite 2021 and she was unsuccessful.
Her recent run with The Outcasts, however, has made her more of a player in the division that she's ever been before.
Although it's unlikely she unseats her stablemate Toni Storm as AEW Women's World champion, the AEW TBS Championship could realistically be in her sights. She has unfinished business with reigning champ Kris Statlander, having been booed against her despite being a babyface at the time.
This would be an excellent program for the final few months of 2023. Soho beating her for the belt would put Statlander in chase mode, something she was robbed of prior to her TBS title win due to her injury.
Zoey Stark
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Of all the recent main roster call-ups from NXT in the 2023 WWE Draft, Zoey Stark has shined the brightest and has gotten acclimated to the Raw roster quite quickly.
In addition to having a standout showing in the women's Money in the Bank Ladder match, she picked up the biggest win of her career this past Monday night on Raw when she beat multi-time champion Becky Lynch. Already, her alliance with Trish Stratus is paying dividends.
With that victory to her credit, nothing is stopping her from eventually challenging for the Women's World Championship. Stark vs. Rhea Ripley would be a fresh match and it's not as if Ripley has an abundance of challengers waiting in the wings right now.
It's possible Stratus sticks around after her program with Lynch is over and continues teaming with Stark. They'd be a big boost to that division, and instantly they'd become the number one threats to those twin titles.
Stark is too terrific in the ring to be out of championship contention for long. She's working her way through the ranks and should be holding gold before the year is through.
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Eddie Kingston
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Eddie Kingston's very first match in AEW was for the TNT Championship, a losing effort against Cody Rhodes. He challenged Jon Moxley for the AEW World Championship twice later on in 2020 but was unsuccessful on both occasions.
In the years that followed, he received multiple shots at the TNT title, the AEW World Tag Team Championship and even the ROH World Championship. He fought valiantly each and every time but never walked away with gold.
There is something to be said about Kingston being the perennial underdog and being a better challenger than a champion, but all of these shortcomings should be building to him finally capturing a championship, specifically in the second half of 2023.
Kingston being the one to ultimately defeat MJF for the AEW World Championship would be nothing short of stellar, but it's much likelier that he take the title that has always alluded him, the TNT Championship, from Luchasaurus within the next few months.
Johnny Gargano
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Regular viewers of Raw will know that Johnny Gargano has been M.I.A. for the better part of 2023. He wrestled at the Royal Rumble and took part in the United States Championship Elimination Chamber match, but he's maintained a low profile on the red brand otherwise.
This is mostly due to the shoulder injury that has sidelined him on and off since his comeback to the company last summer. Per a recent report from Fightful Select, he's completely cleared and ready to return to the ring any day now.
Gargano is a phenomenal performer, and while his second stint with WWE has underwhelmed so far, it can still be redeemed. The easiest way for the promotion to do that would be to simply put him in the ring and let him work his magic.
Gunther vs. Gargano would be an absolute barn burner, but there's a strong chance Gunther will lose the Intercontinental Championship to Drew McIntyre before that bout can become a reality.
Instead, Gargano would be better suited for the time being in the tag team division alongside his longtime frenemy, Tommaso Ciampa. They're the best possible options to beat Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship.
Jay White
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Jay White was heavily touted by fans to be one of AEW's biggest signings in recent memory when he put pen to paper with the promotion in April. He was considered a highly-sought-after free agent prior to that thanks to long list of accomplishments in New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
Unfortunately, he didn't make a major splash right away, through no fault of his own. His feud with Ricky Starks played out logically, but he simply was presented as the same star he was elsewhere.
That changed when Collision came along and he's been consistently killing it ever since. This includes a Match of the Year candidate with FTR on last week's episode, earning them an AEW World Tag Team Championship opportunity on the July 15 show.
Switchblade being a selection on this list may be short-lived if he and Juice Robinson dethrone FTR for their coveted championship as soon as Saturday. If not, he should be in line for a run with the AEW International Championship, currently held by the seemingly-unstoppable Orange Cassidy.
If anyone can hand Cassidy his first singles loss of 2023, it'd be White. Either way, he shouldn't be without a title for much longer, and there isn't a shortage of championships to fight for in AEW.
Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.
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