Five WWE Superstar acts on the rise
With the Summer of 2023 in full swing, a handful of WWE Superstars have stood out as talent to keep an eye in the coming months.
It’s been one year since Triple H took over as head of WWE creative. In that time, many Superstars who had either been released or departed were brought back into the fold, and a crop of new faces from NXT were introduced.
Unlike call-ups of the past, however, Triple H largely maintained what made those characters popular in NXT, and gave them opportunities to sink or swim.
These are the five wrestling acts clearly rising above the tide.
1. Maxxine Dupri
All you need to do is listen to the crowd every week on Raw to know Dupri has a bright future ahead. There’s something magnetic about her on-screen presence and audiences appear to be invested in her journey.
Take, for example, her first match this month.
As you can see above, the WWE rookie got a huge pop for simply hitting a suplex! That’s how you know people are invested in what she's been doing with Alpha Academy since they were paired on-screen together.
It wouldn’t surprise me to see Dupri make waves in the women’s division by the start of next year.
2. Grayson Waller
Waller has been one-to-watch since he first started appearing in NXT.
He’s got everything you need to become a star in WWE: charisma, in-ring skill, good looks, confidence and more.
Edge returns to challenge Grayson Waller in Waller's first-ever main roster match
"The Grayson Waller Effect" has also been a fresh new addition to SmackDown, and his debut match against Edge in the main event of SmackDown inside of Madison Square Garden made it clear the company has high hopes for the young Superstar.
As Edge told him after the match, Waller can swim, and I'm confident it’s only going to be upstream.
3. LA Knight
I recently wrote about the groundswell of support surrounding LA Knight, but even after failing to win the Money in the Bank briefcase, his reactions remain as loud as ever.
If this maintains, a case could be made to inject Knight into the Bloodline story, so he can challenge Roman Reigns for the Undisputed Universal Championship at some point in the future.
He’s one of the few Superstars on SmackDown getting huge babyface pops, and taking advantage of that in some way would be wise.
4. Pretty Deadly
These two Brits were a standout act in NXT and their momentum has continued to ramp up since hitting the main roster.
Case in point: Elton Prince and Kit Wilson earning a tag team title shot last month in only their third match on SmackDown (after defeating five other more established teams).
Pretty Deadly clutch their victory against the Street Profits
Then, after that, they held their own against two of WWE’s most popular wrestlers in Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens on a huge show in the UK.
They also have boatloads of charisma and a great catchphrase, so it’s simply a matter of time before the WWE Universe is shouting "YES BOY!"
5. Zoey Stark
Stark becoming backup for Trish Stratus has quickly gained the newcomer tons of TV time in a prominent position.
Zoey Stark and Trish Stratus embarrass Becky Lynch on Monday Night Raw
In addition to that, she gets to sit under the learning tree of a legend every week, while also getting opportunities to wrestle top stars such as Becky Lynch, as well as compete in matches like Money in the Bank.
Zoey showed a lot of promise in NXT and Triple H was clearly a fan of her work.
Gaining more experience in this position will surely bode well for her future.
Ryan Satin is a WWE analyst for FOX Sports. Satin previously appeared on FS1's "WWE Backstage" and founded Pro Wrestling Sheet, where he broke countless news stories as editor-in-chief. Follow him on Twitter @RyanSatin.
