WWE and AEW Midcard Talent Ready for a World Championship Title Feud
Even with all of the departures, as well as other names rumored to be arriving soon, the WWE and All Elite Wrestling rosters are bursting with young, exciting talent who could break out at any moment.
AEW has done an excellent job of featuring the faces of today while also building the foundation for the future. The AEW World Championship and the AEW Women's World Championship have been held by only a handful of people who have successfully embodied what the promotion is all about.
Although WWE has been lacking in the star-making department over the last year or so, there are several Superstars who could well win either the WWE or the Universal Championship in the coming years. The women's division is also filled with plenty of promising prospects.
Heading into WrestleMania 38, WWE has stacked its main event scenes with the biggest stars possible: Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, Bobby Lashley, Ronda Rousey, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair. However, it wouldn't hurt to start elevating some midcard competitors in the coming months and see if they'll sink or swim when the lights are brightest.
The same can be said for the top title pictures in AEW, with Revolution and Double or Nothing fast approaching. Adam Page and Lance Archer are having a fine feud over the AEW title, but there a number of names the company has already begun to prepare for a push at the main event level who can realistically oppose Hangman sooner than later.
Here are seven stars who are ready to contend for world championship gold in their respective promotions.
Adam Cole
1 of 7
Despite losing a Lights Out match to Orange Cassidy on the Beach Break edition of Dynamite, Adam Cole is still positioned as No. 1 in the AEW World Championship rankings.
That also allows him to contend for the TNT Championship if he desired to do so, but the main event scene is where he belongs right now. He's put together a stellar string of wins since arriving in AEW in September and should have his sights set on the top title come Revolution on March 6.
Adam Page currently finds himself embroiled in a rivalry with Lance Archer over the AEW World Championship, but that should culminate with their Texas Deathmatch next week. Cole can step in from there and pose an immediate threat to the title.
After all, the longest-reigning NXT champion of all time has gone unbeaten in the promotion so far (with his loss to Cassidy not counting against his record). He should be taking the next step toward superstardom instead of toiling away in the midcard feuding with comedy acts.
Cole likely wouldn't walk out of Revolution as champ, but at least he could prove he's a perennial main event player with his performance.
Damian Priest
2 of 7
For the many NXT alumni WWE has bungled over the years, Damian Priest is the one of the very few it has managed to nail so far. His main roster run has exceeded all expectations, which is especially impressive considering he was never NXT champion and is pushing 40.
From an in-ring standpoint, he's knocked it out of the park with the matches he's had against the likes of Sheamus, The Miz, John Morrison, Dolph Ziggler and Kevin Owens. His character could use some work, though, as WWE has hindered his momentum a bit with the split-personality gimmick it's seemingly going for.
Other than that, there's no reason why he can't be in contention for either the WWE or Universal Championship within the next few months.
WWE could desperately use some fresh faces on top of Raw and SmackDown, and Priest would be the perfect person for that type of role. He has size on his side in addition to being a skilled talker and wrestler.
The Archer of Infamy is about to hit the six-month mark as United States champion. Once that title reign has come to an end (presumably at the hands of someone such as Austin Theory at WrestleMania 38), he should be plugged into a prominent position on the Raw roster.
Darby Allin
3 of 7
The connection Darby Allin has with the AEW audience can't be denied. It's more a matter of when than if his immense popularity will take him to the main event scene, though it should be coming sooner rather than later.
Interestingly, he was the first person to challenge Chris Jericho for the AEW World Championship on the October 16, 2019 edition of AEW Dynamite. It was at a time when he was still relatively unknown, but the strong showing he had that night caused his stock to skyrocket.
The 29-year-old has had quite the run since then between becoming an apprentice of sorts for Sting and holding the TNT Championship for a six-month period. He's also headlined multiple episodes of Dynamite and is a proven ratings draw, per Marco Rovere of WrestlingInc.com.
Needless to say, Allin has been ready for a top spot on the AEW roster for some time now. He has yet to logically factor into the world title picture, but it would be asinine for him not to be contending for the prestigious prize by the end of the year.
AEW needs to find a stable direction for Allin and have him win his next major feud (following his recent pay-per-view losses to CM Punk and MJF) in order to continue climbing the ranks toward title contention.
Rhea Ripley
4 of 7
From winning the Raw Women's Championship at WrestleMania 37 to being demoted to the tag team ranks for a brief period, Rhea Ripley's chaotic rookie year on the WWE main roster has been well documented.
Now that her alliance with Nikki A.S.H. is officially over, it's time to put the Australian back in contention for a top title.
To the company's credit, Ripley has been booked decently on the red brand. Her reigns as Raw women's champion and WWE women's tag team champion weren't overly memorable, but she's been featured more often than not and has gotten over with the audience as a fan favorite.
There's still so much more for her to do and plenty of people for her to face. The Nikki A.S.H. storyline will serve its purpose as far as keeping her busy for the time being, but beyond that, The Nightmare should be back in the Raw women's title picture post-WrestleMania.
The 25-year-old is much more established than she was a year ago and has improved every aspect of her game. She always comes off as a star and should be utilized at the same level as women such as Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair and Ronda Rousey.
Any one of those women would be compelling opponents for Ripley coming out of The Show of Shows. Jumping ship to the blue brand is another possibility so she can rekindle her rivalry with Charlotte Flair and finally score that elusive win over her for the SmackDown Women's Championship.
Thunder Rosa
5 of 7
Thunder Rosa has been championship material from the moment she debuted in AEW in August 2020.
In fact, she came into the company as the NWA world women's champion and defended the title on Dynamite on a handful of occasions. She later lost the title to NWA's Kamille and joined AEW full-time soon after.
One of her first matches in AEW saw her unsuccessfully challenge Hikaru Shida for the AEW Women's World Championship at All Out 2020. She hasn't contended for the title since but did score the biggest win of her career over Britt Baker in a Lights Out main event on Dynamite in March 2021.
That massive victory hasn't been forgotten by fans and thus everyone is anticipating the day she steps up to Baker to challenge her for the title she won following their feud. The AEW TBS Championship is also a possibility, but she's arguably the only person who makes sense to dethrone Baker and that should be where all roads lead.
Until then, Rosa finds herself busy with Mercedes Martinez, who she will collide with this Friday on Rampage. La Mera Mera is a tremendous talent and should be one of the stars that division is built around.
AJ Styles
6 of 7
AJ Styles remains one of WWE's most popular performers six years removed from his debut, yet it's difficult to classify him as anything other than a midcarder with the way he's been booked as of late.
The only two times he's contended for a top title recently were at Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2020 in a TLC match with Drew McIntyre, and at Elimination Chamber a few months later. Beyond those one-off opportunities, he has mainly been relegated to the Intercontinental, United States and Raw Tag Team Championship scenes.
It's amazing to think The Phenomenal One has gone this long without being a main eventer on either brand, but WWE seems to have settled for him helping elevate younger talent at this stage of his career. However, he still has so much left to offer and can be a valuable asset at the top of the card right now.
WrestleMania 38 would be an ideal time for him to re-enter the WWE Championship picture. As exciting of an opponent as he'd be for Roman Reigns over on SmackDown, The Tribal Chief vs. Brock Lesnar is set in stone for The Show of Shows, which makes Styles vs. Bobby Lashley a legitimate possibility.
Styles should have at least one more major title run before he calls it a career. Even if that's not in the cards, a return to the main event scene is imperative to ensure he isn't underutilized any longer.
MJF
7 of 7
With wins over Cody Rhodes, Chris Jericho and Darby Allin to his credit, it's slightly surprising MJF isn't already a mainstay in AEW's main event scene. Then again, it's commendable that the company hasn't fast-tracked him to the top and instead has taken its time in building him up.
MJF's only opportunity at the AEW World Championship to date came at the All Out PPV in 2020 when he unsuccessfully challenged Jon Moxley for the gold in the main event. That marked his first singles loss in AEW and since then he's been pinned only one other time by Chris Jericho.
His near-flawless win-loss record is certainly befitting of a world champion, hence why his ascension to the main event scene on a permanent basis must be inevitable.
Aside from his pointless loss to Jericho last summer, he has been gradually building momentum over the last six months and has mentioned more than once that the AEW World Championship is in his sights. Surely he'll be next in line for a title shot once his program with CM Punk runs its course and he defeats him as well.
MJF has made the most of his midcard spot in the last three years, but he's more than ready for prime time. Regardless of when it is in 2022, he should be the one to take the title from Page and usher in an era of his own.
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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