Something a little bit weird’s been going on in WWE, and, more specifically, on Raw, recently.
The stars of WWE‘s cruiserweight division that compete regularly on 205 Live seem to be a bit lost and confused.
Two weeks ago, Drake Maverick appeared on-screen dressed as an AoP member, and announced that he was the new manager of the former Authors of Pain.
And, just a week later, Lio Rush appeared in a pre-recorded segment in a gym, motivating Bobby Lashley during the latter’s workout routine.
These events have filled my mind with two things. The first being complete and utter confusion, and the second being inspiration.
If we were to look at the current WWE roster, which wrestlers could be the next to go from in-ring star to manager? In this feature, we’re going to countdown 10 of those prospects, with some pretty shocking suggestions coming your way.
Without further ado, here are 10 surprising WWE wrestlers that would actually make great managers.
10. Titus O’Neil
Titus already has the perfect setup to become a manager.
He’s the founder of Titus Worldwide, and led former client Akira Tozawa to the WWE Cruiserweight Championship in the summer of 2017.
The ‘Big Deal’ has next-to-no credibility as an in-ring performer in WWE. This doesn’t mean to say he’s bad, but can anyone name the last time he actually won a match that meant something? Let’s be honest, he’ll be remembered for that time he fell over.
He’s decent on the mic, and if he could build up a decent batch of talent in Titus Worldwide, could have the potential to go down as a great manager.
9. Aiden English
This one is a little bit cheat-y as we’ve already seen it play out, really.
English is not really anything special in the ring, he’s not bad, but I wouldn’t put him in the upper tier of talent in WWE.
This is why he was put with Rusev, as his hype man and personal singer. While Aiden does still have a lot of time left in the ring, we all know how entertaining he can be, and some would even go as far as claiming that he is the reason that Rusev Day got over in the first place.
Of course, Rusev also played a massive part in that, but we’ve already seen the benefit of English being paired with a Rusev. The Bulgarian participated in his first ever one-on-one WWE Championship match a couple of months ago.
If English can do that for Rusev, why can’t he do the same for other floundering acts?
8. Tyler Breeze
Tyler Breeze was amazing in NXT. Then Vince happened.
‘Prince Pretty’ has pretty much no credibility left as an in-ring performer. At no point in the recent past or near future has anyone believed that Tyler Breeze might win a wrestling match. And that’s quite a big issue.
But, now the damage has already been done, why not use Breeze’s talents in another role?
Less so on the main roster, but back in NXT, Breeze’s shtick was essentially that he was a model. His entrances at TakeOvers often turned into catwalks, and he had the swag to back it up. Now he just dresses as a policeman and looks completely stupid.
What if Breeze was to start a new group of fashionistas? He could provide the fashion tips and then parade them around, and… I don’t know if you can tell, but I’m clutching a little bit here.
7. Elias
Elias is great.
By simply sitting in the ring with a guitar, and insulting whatever city he happens to be in, Elias has become one of the most popular stars in WWE today.
So, what if this heat could rub off on someone else? Elias is known for being arrogant, and more often than not, gets his comeuppance. But what if the ‘Sinister Songsmith’ had someone to hide behind?
This is a bit of a weird entry in this list. All the others are designed to make a bigger star out of their respective clients, but making Elias someone’s manager could actually benefit him a hell of a lot more.
With every passing insult, the heat would grow and grow, but with someone like, for example Lars Sullivan as protection, he wouldn’t have to pay for his ways.
Elias could literally sit in the ring, sing a song about how Apollo Crews sucks, and then watch in happiness as Lars kills Crews, and rinse and repeat.
The more heat built on Elias, the bigger a deal he becomes, and the bigger a deal it is when he gets his comeuppance.
6. Mandy Rose
Mandy Rose is very much a throwback to the Attitude Era in terms of WWE‘s female talent.
Her whole character is that she’s a blonde bombshell and she takes pride in that very fact.
Her in-ring skill has come into question at times though, and while I don’t think she’s as bad as can sometimes be made out, I do think that she could potentially be better used as, for want of a better and more modern phrase, eye candy.
Mandy would be perfect paired with an NXT-esque Tyler Breeze, or a 2013 Fandango.
I think pairing Mandy with someone like NXT‘s Kona Reeves would work a dream.
5. Carmella
It’s no secret that Carmella isn’t exactly Bret Hart. But, I do think her run with the SmackDown Women’s Title did get a bad rap that it didn’t entirely deserve.
The highlight of ‘Mella’s reign was, undoubtedly, her promo work. Her cocky-yet-cowardly attitude came across perfectly, and she did everything she could do to build interest for her matches.
With her apparent babyface turn and alignment with R-Truth, we’ve already seen a little bit of ‘Mella in this particular role, guiding Truth to victory in the mian event against The Miz a couple of weeks ago. Sort of.
The ‘Princess of Staten Island’ also played a similar part with Enzo Amore and Big Cass in NXT. She fits the “hype girl” mold perfectly and would make a great manager for either a fun babyface or a cocky heel.
4. Goldust
If there was one thing we wanted to come out of the original season of the Mixed Match Challenge, it was for the partnership between Goldust and Mandy Rose to continue.
It didn’t.
Remember those weird vignettes that aired not too long ago with Goldust teasing the debut of a new ally? The ones that just disappeared out of nowhere? Yeah, so do I. I don’t think Vince does, though.
Goldust has had well-documented fitness issues recently, and, though he is still a very impressive performer, he isn’t getting any younger. A great way to transition him out of the ring would be to make him a manager of a new stable.
“Who would be in said stable?” I hear you ask in excitement and anticipation. Well, firstly, Mandy Rose. As touched on earlier, the two fit together perfectly in the Mixed Match Challenge, and there’s no reason why that couldn’t transition onto Raw or SmackDown Live.
The next member of this group, the Velveteen Dream. Think of the vignettes. Think of the promos. Think of the entrances. This threesome would make for fantastic TV, and the outside help of a veteran like Goldust would add a lot of credibility to the stocks of Rose and Dream.
A match made in heaven.
3. Corey Graves
Yes, I know Corey isn’t a wrestler, shut up.
Before Drake Maverick became the new manager of AOP out of nowhere, I always thought Graves would be the perfect fit for the duo.
He repeatedly demonstrates his intelligence on commentary, and mix that with his potential to be arrogant while hiding behind the massive Akam and Rezar, he would make a great accomplice for the former NXT Tag Team Champions.
Graves would also be a good fit for the Revival, who he shows constant admiration for on commentary. Again, he could play the mastermind behind the application perfectly.
The only downside to this is that it would probably mean Graves would have to step out of the commentary booth, where he so often excels.
2. Drew Gulak
Drew Gulak is one of my favorite acts in wrestling.
Whether he’s playing a comedy PowerPoint presenter, or a sadistic, vicious villain, he excels at everything and anything he is asked to do. Do you get it? Excels? Because Microsoft…
Back in the good ol’ days of 205 Live when Enzo Amore ruled the roost, Gulak was his main source of backup in the Zo Train. He was even given the honor of being Enzo’s spokesperson when he was suffering from throat issues.
Now, Gulak is a phenomenal wrestler, and I don’t want his inclusion in this list to take away from that fact one iota, but he would also be a fantastic mouthpiece to serve for one the more linguistically challenged members of the roster.
1. Jinder Mahal
Remember when Jinder Mahal was WWE Champion for about half a year? Yeah, that was fun wasn’t it?
Nowadays, Jinder’s main role is to play a part in backstage comedy skits, or to get battered by someone bigger than him. And, let’s give him his due, he’s pretty darn good at it.
One thing Mahal isn’t fantastic at though, is wrestling. That can be a bit of an issue when, you know, you’re a wrestler.
With his new inner peace shtick though, the ‘Maharaja’ would make for a very entertaining manager for a monster like Braun Strowman, Bobby Lashley, or even Lars Sullivan.
Obviously, it would likely end with him getting absolutely massacred, but it would be a fun road getting there. His meditation segment with Lashley a couple of weeks ago was great… until Kevin Owens returned and ruined everything.
Either which way, I think Mahal still has a very entertaining role to play on our TV screens, and ideally one that doesn’t involve him actually wrestling, so he fits the bill perfectly to top this here list.
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