WWE: 7 Young Superstars Who Could Become Main-Eventers

The WWE roster is always a controversial topic. 

Wrestling fans, including myself, love to compare today’s roster to rosters of the past and to debate which one is more talented from top to bottom or which one had more major stars. 

Like most, I tend to think that the rosters of the Attitude and Ruthless Aggression eras put today’s to shame, but that doesn’t mean that the current WWE roster is full of a bunch of scrubs. 

In fact, it’s pretty damn talented, with a solid mix of established veterans, borderline main-eventers and up-and-comers. 

There are plenty of young rising stars who could prove to make the roster even deeper and better in the near future, too, depending largely upon how their pushes play out and how the audience responds to them. 

And right now, these guys seem like potential candidates to join the likes of John Cena, CM Punk and Sheamus in the main event scene down the road. 

Here are seven young WWE superstars who could become main-eventers. 

Note: To be considered “young,” a superstar must be 30 years old (or younger) and/or have made his debut within the last two years.

7. Michael McGillicutty

Given that he’s largely been relegated to NXT and Superstars for a while now, Michael McGillicutty probably isn’t a name that jumps out at you. 

But it is a name that jumps out at one very important WWE executive, Triple H. 

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (via WrestleZone.com), Triple H is high on McGillicutty and views him as a potential future main-event star.

Many of you might only remember McGillicutty for his rather forgettable stints in the New Nexus and as a tag team champion, but he’s drastically improved since then and has become one of the top overall talents on NXT. 

Check out any of McGillicutty’s fantastic NXT matches with Tyson Kidd, and you’ll see that he’s made tremendous leaps as an in-ring talent, which shouldn’t be that much of a surprise given his pedigree. 

For me, the one worry about McGillicutty has always been his ability to portray a memorable character, but he’s improved in that area as well. 

So, when you combine the strides he’s made in the ring and from a character developmental standpoint with the support he’s receiving from Triple H, McGillicutty might make some noise in the near future. 

It’ll be impossible for him to live up his father, but it won’t be impossible for him to become a future World title contender.

6. Kofi Kingston

Way back in the fall of 2009, it looked like Kofi Kingston was just one small step away from winning his first World title. 

Yet, here we are almost three years later, and Kingston is in a considerably worse position on the card now than he was then. 

That being said, I’m not going to give up on him just yet. 

Kingston is still only 30 years old, he’s one of the better in-ring performers in the company, and there’s always a chance that he breaks through that glass ceiling to become a full-time main-eventer for the first time in his career. 

Why do I think so? Because of Christian. 

Many fans had pretty much given up all hope of Captain Charisma ever winning a World title, but early last year, he shocked the world when he won his first World title in WWE and found himself feuding for it for much of the year. 

I could see something similar happening with Kingston. 

Both he and Christian are great tag team performers who had won a number of midcard and tag team titles, while Christian just had to bide his time (a lot of time, obviously) until he could call himself World Heavyweight Champion. 

Maybe one day Kingston will be able to do the same.

5. Antonio Cesaro

It was only a few months ago that Antonio Cesaro made his WWE debut, and after some rough patches early on, the WWE now appears to be firmly behind him as a midcard star. 

Cesaro has been getting a lot more TV time lately, has picked up two non-title wins over United States Champion Santino Marella and has shown a lot of promise along the way. 

The next logical step for him is a US title run that helps establish him as one of the WWE’s top midcard heels, which is something that I could see happening in the not-so-distant future. 

But from that point, it will be Cesaro’s performances that determine just how far he can go in the WWE.

Anyone who watched him perform as “Claudio Castagnoli” in Ring of Honor knows that he’s great in the ring, so if he can get over as both a character and a wrestler, then the sky truly is the limit for him. 

He’s been put in some great situations lately and appears to be getting a sizable push, and although it’s probably too early to make any definitive judgment on him, he appears to be headed in the right direction.

4. Ryback

Love him or hate him, Ryback appears to be a big part of the WWE’s future. 

At one point, it was rumored that Vince McMahon viewed Ryback as the potential No. 2 baby face in the entire company, and earlier this year, it was still clear that WWE officials are high up on him. 

That should be pretty obvious with the way he’s booked on TV, too. 

Ryback squashed wrestlers for months, only recently started showing any sort of weaknesses and still hasn’t lost a match yet. 

Clearly, the creative team is protecting him and building him up to be a top-tier baby face, and the crowd finally seems to be supporting him more recently, as the “Feed Me More!” chants seem louder and louder by the week. 

Ryback obviously has the look that Vince McMahon drools over, he’s getting over as a baby face, and he seems to still have the support of the right people in the WWE. 

A lot of fans will continue to question Ryback’s abilities in the ring (he’s still yet to have a lengthy match), but that apparently doesn’t matter. 

He seems to have just about everything else going in his favor

3. Jinder Mahal

When Jinder Mahal debuted in 2011, he received a decent push that the WWE obviously hoped would establish him as, at the very least, an upper midcard heel. 

That push failed to do much for Mahal, who soon found himself working as a jobber and hasn’t had much of a role on TV over the last year or so. 

But it appears that the WWE is pulling the trigger on a second push for him. 

Mahal has had a much bigger presence on TV as of late, and he’s getting his first feud since I can’t even remember when right now as he battles Ryback. 

There’s apparently a purpose behind pairing these two together, too. 

According to the Wrestling Observer (via SEScoops.com), WWE officials are very high on Mahal and view him as someone who has the potential to become one of the top heels in the entire WWE. 

That’s obviously good news for Mahal. 

He appears to be in line for a big renewed push, and as long as he’s got the support of McMahon, he’s certainly got a chance to become one of the biggest bad guys in the company. 

After all, the guy is still just 26 years old.

2. Damien Sandow

Out of all the WWE’s recently debuting stars, Damien Sandow might have the best chance of making it to the top of the company. 

He’s got a great look, some very good mic skills and a gimmick that really stands out in a WWE that doesn’t have many. 

Perhaps most importantly, though, Sandow has the support of one of the most powerful people in the WWE, Triple H. 

Prior to Sandow’s main roster call-up, the Wrestling Globe Newsletter (via WrestleNewz.com) reported that Triple H was very high on Sandow, and that’s been pretty obvious since he came to the main roster. 

Triple H has interacted with Sandow on-screen (at Raw 1000 in the DX segment), and Sandow is undefeated in singles action so far in the WWE. 

Like with Sheamus a couple of years ago, it appears that Sandow is Triple H’s “pet project” and will get all the opportunities in the world to succeed in the company. 

That’s great news for Sandow, who looks poised to jump up the card much quicker than most.

1. Cody Rhodes

There has been a lot of chatter about what’s going on with Cody Rhodes lately, as he doesn’t appear to be much of a priority for the creative team. 

Regardless of what’s going on with him right now, though, he’s undoubtedly a huge part of the WWE’s future. 

At just 27 years old, Rhodes has already been on the main roster for five years, and along the way, he’s developed into one of the best all-around performers in the company. 

He has made multiple gimmicks work (Legacy, “Dashing,” psychotic and deranged, etc.), he’s consistently delivered on the mic and in the ring, and he’s feuded with some of the biggest names in the business, such as John Cena and Randy Orton.

Rhodes has already accomplished a great deal in the WWE, but he’s only getting better and will continue to do so. 

Even if he’s not getting pushed at the moment, he has all the time in the world to rebound and win multiple World titles before he’s even 30 years old. 

Many expected Rhodes to be a World title contender by now, but patience is the key. 

There’s no need to rush a good thing and screw it up.

Drake Oz is a WWE Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter and ask him any wrestling-related questions on Formspring.