Let's say you can sign any 5 wrestlers.....

[Rollermacka]

So let's say you started your own professional wrestling company, had more or less "limitless funds" and could sign any main stream active professional wrestler today. Who would be your first five wrestlers you would announce and why would you sign each one?

[Ruien]

Angle
Cena
Reigns
Rollins
Ryback

[Rollermacka]

Angle
Cena
Reigns
Rollins
Ryback

Good opening line up, who would be what in your company (main face, main heel, tweener, monster, etc)

[Rollermacka]

Prince Devitt- Main babyface
Austin Aries- rebel babyface
EC3- Main heel
Brian Cage- Body/ powerhouse
Cesaro- arrogant heel

[Wishbone]

Cena (top star that all the young bucks are striving to replace)
Ryback (monster face and top non-heel rival to Cena)
If he counts CM Punk (top heel)
Bray Wyatt (tweener leaning toward heel)
Dean Ambrose (tweener underdog)

If Punk doesn't count then Sheamus takes his place.

[Simple Fan]

Brock Lesner - Bad ass destroyer of all things
Randy Orton - Face of the Company
Bobby Roode - top contender babyface
ECIII- Dirty heel and a top contender.
Adam Cole - future of the company

[Maluco]

Cena - take their only genuine star to grab the attention right away

Ryback - future top guy, back to the no nonsense guy he was when he debuted. Build him up to be the champ

The Shield - Bill them as the future of wrestling and make it clear they have chosen to jump to where the action is.

[Vastardikai]

John Cena (Top Heel)
Luke Harper (The Monster Heel and blocking pad for the top heel)
Ryback (Top Face)
Dolph Ziggler (#2 Face)
Cesaro (Workhorse tweener)

[#1-norm-fan]

John Cena (Top face/special attraction with the potential for a Hogan-esque heel turn when the other faces get built up)
Ryback (The new top face challenging Cena)
Johnny Curtis (The upper-midcard star on his way to being the face of the company)
Brock Lesnar (Top heel/special attraction)
Bray Wyatt (Top full-time heel)

[Heyman]

John Cena - biggest draw to kids
Brock Lesnar - Star Power
Dean Ambrose - Great wrestler + Great charisma + Ability to be a great face and a great heel, still young with a lot of mileage left in him.
Dolph Ziggler - see above
Seth Rollins - terrific wrestler, terrific worker.

[Bad News Gertner]

Cena
Ryback
Uhaa Nation
Kalisto
Rollins

[Schlomey]

AJ Styles
Seth Rollins
Dolphins Ziggler
CM Punk
Cesaro

[Dukelorange]

Ceasro
Dean Ambrose
Sami Zayn
Sasha Banks
Charlotte

[youreSAWFT]

zack ryder (next john cena)
Robb Banks( top face)
hornswoggle(top heel)
zach gowen (midcard jobber)
kevin steen to package piledrive all those cunts for 2 hours.

[Clerk]

slik- The kids love him and he's the face of the company!
clerk- You either love or hate him but you always respect him!
#1-wwe-fan- Kind, funny, orgasmic and an all around great competitor and always gives it his all!
Jazzy Foot- Chief Operating Officer for all things tits!
TripleA/owenbrown whatever you want to call him. Crook Owner who plays a mock draft that always tries to screw slik.

[Seth82]

Kazuchika Okada
Shinsuke Nakamura
Finn Balor/Prince Devitt
Hideo Itami/Kenta
Karl Anderson

the reason: they are all fantastic wrestlers who deserve a spot on any roster

cue the ridicule for picking Japanese superstars in 1...2..3....

[Rollermacka]

Kazuchika Okada
Shinsuke Nakamura
Finn Balor/Prince Devitt
Hideo Itami/Kenta
Karl Anderson

the reason: they are all fantastic wrestlers who deserve a spot on any roster

cue the ridicule for picking Japanese superstars in 1...2..3....

Nah, he gotta ridicule this guy first for picking a GIRL....

Ceasro
Dean Ambrose
Sami Zayn
Sasha Banks
Charlotte

[Evil Vito]

John Cena (Top face/special attraction with the potential for a Hogan-esque heel turn when the other faces get built up)

Ryback (The new top face challenging Cena)

<font color=goldenrod>Gonna just quote those two because I'd pick them as well for the same reasons listed. Like him or not, Cena is the most over man in wrestling and will attract viewers out of the gate. Ryback will go back to how he was in 2012 before they horribly botched things up.

Also:

Sami Zayn: Consistently over babyface that can always work a great match and who the crowd loves. Can float around the top of the card and maybe even get a run with the title at some point even if he never necessarily becomes the "face of the company". Would have penciled in Bryan for this role if not for the injuries.

Bad News Barrett: I've always loved this guy. He's probably never going to get past the midcard in WWE due to getting injured at some of the worst possible moments, but I'd happily take a flyer on him as the top heel right out of the gate. A Cena/Barrett feud where Cena actually takes him seriously would be good.

Dean Ambrose: Can work in any role and, again, work great matches. Probably would start him off as an unhinged heel, could so some wonderful promo work right out of the gate.</font>

[What Would Kevin Do?]

Off the top of my head...

Sami Zayn
Cesaro
Kazuchika Okada
Shinsuke Nakamura
Big E. Langston (torn between him and Uhaa Nation)

[Shisen Kopf]

Conquistador #2
Villano IV
El Dandy
#HABM
The Patriot

[drave]

pfft... El Dandy........

[Emeye]

Brock Lesnar (w/ Paul Heyman) - Top Heel/Monster
Ryback - Top Face/Monster
Randy Orton - Main Event Face
Wade Barrett - Main Event Heel
Kevin Owens - Midcard Heel

... If Punk returned, swap him with Barrett. Honorable mentions go to Ziggler, Rollins, and Cesaro. Divas would start with Paige, Charlotte, and Natty.

[CSL]

Kazuchika Okada
Shinsuke Nakamura
Finn Balor/Prince Devitt
Hideo Itami/Kenta
Karl Anderson

the reason: they are all fantastic wrestlers who deserve a spot on any roster

cue the ridicule for picking Japanese superstars in 1...2..3....

yes Seth, because nobody here likes Japanese wrestling do they

You get ridiculed for saying daft things like this, not because you like Japanese wrestling

[CSL]

also:

John Cena
Brock Lesnar
Dean Ambrose
Kazuchika Okada
Hiroshi Tanahashi

maybe

[CSL]

If I was to do it "realistically" taking into account age, injuries/"body state" etc, it'd probably be a bit different, Okada is the only "cert"

[Innovator]

Kazuchika Okada
Brock Lesnar
Uhaa Nation
Finn Balor
Roman Reigns

Would go with Cena but realistically, don't know how much longer he can go full time.

6th Man:

Tomoaki Honma

[Seth82]

yes Seth, because nobody here likes Japanese wrestling do they

You get ridiculed for saying daft things like this, not because you like Japanese wrestling

you're taking it way too seriously.

I just expected for someone to chime in with their stupid comments as usual about Japanese wrestling.

I was just getting it out of the way for them.

[CSL]

lol I make a pretty simple and obvious observation and you cry on my rep sheet yet I'm the one taking it "way too seriously"? Silly Seth

[Emperor Smeat]

Cena - Start right off with a big marketable star for the initial period.
Sami Zayn - Groomed to be the future big star
Paige - Focal point of the Women's division
Rusev - Top heel
Cesaro - Showcase for the mid-card


Was considering Rollins over Rusev but Rollins works way better at the moment when attached to something (ex. Shield, Authority, J&J Security) than on his own.

[Sepholio]

Brock Lesnar - THE BEAST INCARNATE/comes with built in Heyman
Bray Wyatt - Super Heelius Maximus
Dean Ambrose - Psycho tweener who just wants to cause a little chaos.
Dolph Ziggler - The Face of the company. Great skills in ring and on mic and limitless charisma.
Finn Balor - Up and coming face with a bit of extra wow factor. Leaning kind of towards being a tweener, but still mostly a face.

[Bad News Gertner]

Cena
Ryback
Uhaa Nation
Kalisto
Rollins

To elaborate

Cena: turn him and make my Number 1 heel
Ryback: Number 1 facr
Uhaa Nation: IC type face. Draw in the African American fans. Feud with Rollins
Rollins: my Jericho type heel. Feud with Nation.
Kalisto: draw the Hispanic audience. Exciting high flyer. Can market merchandise like Rey Msyerio

[Dukelorange]

Nah, he gotta ridicule this guy first for picking a GIRL....

You say that, but you need to look, at all angles before you post or ask why I do what I do.

The question was to start a promotion that I feel would draw money. I chose those guys because they are young enough to be there for a lengthy period while still have some star power. They have proven themselves in every role as a heel, face, tag team, etc.

I chose two divas to build a nice rivalry until I would add more women to the fold. I'm looking at having a main, tag, and diva title in my promotion and people to support each division.

If your promotion doesn't have a women's division or it's not a priority for you than so be it.

[Nicky Fives]

This is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be when I read the thread title.....

Bobby Roode - Top Heel #1
Seth Rollins - Top Heel #2
Sami Zayn - Top Face #1
Cesaro - Top Face #2
Jim Ross - Best Announcer of all-time to make everyone's shit that much better simply by talking

(If JR doesn't count, Natalya as face of women's wrestling)

[Ultra Mantis]

* Chael Sonnen
* PJ Black
* Davey Boy Smith Jr
* Doc Gallows
* Karl Anderson

[CWK]

CM Punk
Cesaro
Brock Lesnar
Bray Wyatt
Shinsuke Nakamura

[Clerk]

Stop with these Japan wrestlers! They will never be in WWE and even if they will they will be jobbers now stop.

[Rollermacka]

Another "top 5" for me

Neville- Top Babyface
Bray Wyatt- Top heel
Uhaa Nation- Body/ powerhouse
Austin Aries- Tweener / "bad boy"
King Cuerno- Cunning heel (It was between him and Alberto, but I just love Cuerno's "style" in the ring)

[Lock Jaw]

John Cena - The Man
Sami Zayn (provided he can stay healthy) - The Future Man
Bray Wyatt - Top Heel
Dolph Ziggler - Can swing both ways as a mid-card face or heel
Heath Slater - The Jobber

[Mr. Nerfect]

You can't have a promotion with only five wrestlers, so I'm assuming that these are just my locks, cornerstones and probably the hardest five guys to sign.

1. John Cena
2. Brock Lesnar
3. Dolph Ziggler
4. Cesaro
5. Sami Zayn

Cena and Lesnar would be my attention-grabbers. I almost put Orton in there, but I feel that if people aren't going to tune in for Cena and Lesnar in a new company, then nothing will make them watch.

Ziggler is being signed in place of Orton, because he has got some star potential, and I think the idea of Dolph Ziggler being "freed' could gather some IWC headlines and even create a stir within the mainstream audience (if it exists). Plus, the guy's got a pretty radical real name even if I can't use his work one.

Cesaro is there because I fucking love the guy. I know he might not be seen by people as a "big name signing," but I really do feel like watching him is one of the most thrilling things you can do as a wrestling fan. Matches against anyone on that list are bound to steal the show. I don't want to risk missing him and then Vince making him a star in rebuke to me, once I took his Cena draw away from him. I want Claudio Castagnoli wrestling matches in my company.

Sami Zayn is my last choice. A few others flew through me mind -- Dean Ambrose, Luke Harper and even Roman Reigns -- but Zayn seems to be on good terms with the WWE, and again, if I miss him, then I will absolutely kick myself. His chemistry with Cesaro alone is enough reason to want him on my show. If I just did a one-hour launch show and had Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Dolph Ziggler and Cesaro vs. Sami Zayn as the two matches, I'd feel like I would have a Show of the Year candidate on my hands. Zayn can talk, and is a unique face presence in that he is lovable, but he isn't a push-over. Cena could believably turn heel against the guy and everyone would still cheer for Zayn.

Ideally, TNA would then fold and I could bring in Kurt Angle, Austin Aries and Bobby Lashley, but you know...

[Heyman]

Still wondering if The Rock, Brock, and Cena are the obvious Top 3 choices?

As much as we say stuff like, "Oh, I'd sign Rollins, Ambrose, etc., etc," I think a solid argument can be made that the Top 3 guys you sign should still be:


-John Cena
-The Rock
-Brock Lesnar


Why? Because - star power. Period. Cena owns the kid demographic, while The Rock is a Hollywood star. Lesnar is also a star in his own right.


As much as we'd want our Top 5 to be something like, "Rollins, Ambrose, Zayn," or whoever, the truth of the matter is that said promotion would have a difficult time even taking off if your immediate Top 5 signings was something to that effect.

[Wishbone]

Still wondering if The Rock, Brock, and Cena are the obvious Top 3 choices?

As much as we say stuff like, "Oh, I'd sign Rollins, Ambrose, etc., etc," I think a solid argument can be made that the Top 3 guys you sign should still be:


-John Cena
-The Rock
-Brock Lesnar


Why? Because - star power. Period. Cena owns the kid demographic, while The Rock is a Hollywood star. Lesnar is also a star in his own right.


As much as we'd want our Top 5 to be something like, "Rollins, Ambrose, Zayn," or whoever, the truth of the matter is that said promotion would have a difficult time even taking off if your immediate Top 5 signings was something to that effect.

Don't think I'd count the Rock in this. He's nowhere near a "full-time guy". Hell, he's not even a special attraction. I'd honestly put him more in the "celebrity guest" category at this point. At best you'd get him to do one match for you. Lesnar on the other hand I count since he does at least do all the big shows and is signed to a real multi-year contract. Rocky is a one and done deal.

[Vastardikai]

I actually did put Cena in my list, as a top heel. I would start the turn on the debut, when he comes out in a solidly smart mark city (Philly, NYC, or Chicago jump out right off the bat) to face Cesaro in the main event.

I personally added Harper and Ryback for the same reason. If you can't figure out how to make money off of a guy with Ryback's raw charisma, you're a complete moron. If you can't figure out how to book a guy like Harper, you're a complete moron (why he hasn't been booked to kill off the aging monsters to become the ultimate monster himself boggles my mind).

Ziggler is the number 2 face only because Ryback has to be #1. He'll certainly have his title runs, but his primary goal is to get heat on the heels and build them up for Ryback. Cesaro is in a similar role. The guy can go, he's an athletic freak of nature. He's the tweener workhorse until he can find the one thing that will put him on that next level.

I'd use Cena as the means to make the new stars.

[Nicky Fives]

I wouldn't waste a "signing" on Rock or Brock, as they would never wrestle full-time....after a few one-off appearances, you'd be left with only 3/5 star names and an empty bank account that could have been used to sign younger talent (Rollins/Ambrose/Roode/Aries/Reigns/Zayn/Barrett/whoever)

[Mr. Nerfect]

You wouldn't have a company featuring only those five talents, keep in mind.

[Heyman]

Another thing to ponder:

Let's say you sign

-Seth Rollins
-Dean Ambrose
-Neville
-Dolph Ziggler
-Roman Reigns

And another rival company signs The Rock, Cena, and Brock.

Who do you think is going to get a TV deal first? Given what the popularity of wrestling is at current (I.e. NOT attitude era), don't you think it would be extremely tough for that promotion with the 5 guys listed to gain any traction/fan interest?