WWE No Way Out 2012: Mid-Card Superstars Who Will Benefit Most from PPV

While most of the focus coming out of No Way Out was on John Cena's victory over Big Show, which led to the firing of general manager John Laurinaitis, there were several other superstars who picked up key wins on the pay-per-view.

With that in mind, let's take a look at three mid-card wrestlers who will benefit most from their showing on Sunday night. Getting booked well at one of the marquee events usually bodes well for the long-term upside of a character.

Ryback

Ryback has been destroying jobbers over the past couple months, and that continued at No Way Out as he defeated two local workers in a squash match. More important than the victory itself was the placement of the match right before the main event.

It shows the company is trying to showcase Ryback when the most viewers are tuned in. Pretty soon he'll need to start showcasing his ability against actual opponents to see how he holds up, but there's clearly a lot of faith in his ability to move up the ladder.

He has the look—there's no doubt about that. It's still going to take a little more time to get him over with fans, but his No Way Out performance proved he's on the right track.

Brodus Clay

The night started off for Clay with a countout win over David Otunga, who fled after the big man started showing off his tremendous power. It wasn't until the main event that Clay really made his presence felt, however.

He came out to make sure Big Show couldn't walk out of the cage, allowing Cena to escape first. Getting to play a significant role in the most important match on the card shows how much Clay's stock has improved in recent months.

Like Ryback, he's been mostly working squash matches, and that needs to change before he becomes a title holder. Otherwise, his placement in main storylines point to a rising star in the WWE.

Sin Cara

Sin Cara was pushed too quickly when he first arrived to the company. That caused his lack of experience with the American style to get exposed and put the character at risk almost immediately. Due to that, his injury might have actually been a blessing in disguise.

Since his return, he's been using a far more conservative move set to avoid the countless botches that plagued him originally. And it's working. He put on an impressive match with Hunico and finally seems to be getting the slow push he needs.

A rash of injuries has caused most of the WWE's high-flying superstars to miss time. So if Sin Cara can continue to show in-ring improvement, his rise can become meteoric over the summer.