[Emperor Smeat]

Observer on the theme the WWE was using when picking out the finalists and why its better to have a strong showing or get eliminated near the end than actually winning the competition based on past history.

Instead, the competition is loaded with tall bodybuilders and bikini and fitness models, with a few football players and two MMA fighters, neither of whom have ever had a professional fight. We were told that WWE is right now looking for pretty women MMA fighters, which makes sense with the TapOut brand ownership and the popularity with sponsors right now of Ronda Rousey, Miesha Tate and Paige VanZant. I was told by someone affiliated with the project that they were looking for television characters picked for a reality show more than good wrestlers, but at the end of the day, two people are getting one year deals at $250,000. A lot of wrestlers were very unhappy with the lack of wrestlers being picked because tons of indie guys, including some with fairly good names and genuine ability, sent in applications.

Right there guarantees a problem because the winners will not only have a spotlight on them, but will have a hard time not being heavily resented by their co-workers. It may be a lot worse for the female winner, because she'll be making multiples of what all the women in NXT earn. The top NXT women have worked hard to up their games to the level they have. The male winner will also be making more than the rank-and-file guys, but also, unless the touring brand takes off and salaries increase greatly, he'd be making far more than even the guys like Finn Balor and Hideo Itami who were legitimate major league international superstars for years with a proven track record. Essentially, unless the male winner is a Lesnar monster that nobody would dare screw with or that they are greatly fear and respect, placing in the top five and getting a standard developmental contract may be better long-term than winning due to less resentment and less pressure from above to progress quickly.