QUESTION - In your opinion, what should the "life cycle" of a WWE Wrestler be?

[Heyman]

EDIT - Short version of my post:

For those that actually are interested in what I wrote, here is a SHORT summation of my initial post...to some extent.

Originally Posted by Hunter Heyman Hindu ECW - Should be full of rookies and mid-card vets that never amounted to anything...or will never amount to anything. Smackdown - Should be full of mid-carders and main-event guys that are no longer in their prime. RAW - Should be full of rising mid-carders that have a serious chance of main-eventing within the next 12 months, and main-eventers that are currently in their prime and still rise to new heights (i.e. by either a heel turn or a long awaited face turn).

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QUESTION - In your opinion, what should the "life cycle" of a WWE Wrestler be?


:::Preface - This post will probably be a semi-long read. I thought of this topic in light of a post I made yesterday:::::

Originally Posted by Hunter Heyman Hindu http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthrea...37#post2433437

Basically - what I feel is this:

The three WWE shows (ECW, Smackdown, RAW) should be "interconnected" somehow so that it allows for a wrestler to 'naturally progress' to a higher level...or main-event level.

In an effort to make things more clear, I think wrestlers should be 'categorized' into 1 of 6 categories that fit the above descriptions. Please Keep in mind that '1' does not necessarily jump to '2' and '2' to '3' (and so forth). These are just vague descriptions. Keep in mind that at any point, a wrestler can get a new gimmick and/or creative direction and switch categories


1) 'Greenhorn': A 'greenhorn' is someone that is just starting out in the WWE has had no 'big company experience' prior to this. So for example, a guy like Jack Swagger is a greenhorn. Someone like Booker T or Scott Steiner however (i.e. when they first debuted in the WWE) would NOT be 'greenhorns' due to their prior *storied* histories in other MAJOR wrestling promotions. D.H. Smith will be a 'green horn' when he debuts.

2) 'Veteran': These are guys that have been around for a LONG time and have pretty much ZERO chance of becoming a main-eventer one day. These are guys that through time, have built up a recognizeable name/gimmick for themselves. People like Mark Henry, Fit Finlay, Tommy Dreamer, Hardcore Holly (when he was employed) and even William Regal could be considered 'Veterans.' A category 2 guy can also be someone that has ZERO chance of being a long-term main-event guy (i.e. '5' or a '6') and could help make a 'category 1' guy look by doing jobs. These category '2' guys are often huge in size (i.e. Vladimir Kozlov, Umaga)

3) Mid-carder: These are guys that have an outside shot of having a 'main-event run' one day...not to be confused with being a main-eventer for the long term however....more of a 'transitional champ at BEST (and even then, this is pushing it). Furthermore - these guys won't have a legit chance of main-eventing on a main show for atleast 18 months...if that). A mid-carder can also be someone that was formerly a rising star, but has been 'held back' for various reasons (i.e. didn't seize the opportunity, size disadvantage, etc.). Guys like this include Carlitto, Mr. Kennedy, Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, etc.

Some of these guys, due to their size, can be 'jobber to the stars' (i.e. Great Khali).


4) Rising Star: These are guys that have either graduated from categories '1' and '3' , OR have been completely re-invented from a category '2' guy. Either way - these guys have a MAJOR chance at having a main-event run within the next 12 months. Furthermore - a lot of these guys have a DECENT chance at becoming a main-event guy for the long-term. Some of these guys may have already won a world title (i.e. have been a 'transitional world champ), but are still in a good position to become main-eventers for good. Guys in this category include MVP, Jeff Hardy, CM Punk, Matt Hardy, Santino Marella, Christian, and Shelton Benjamin.

5) Main-Eventer (growth stage): This is the place where everyone wants to be. THIS stage is the stage where wrestlers are bona-fide main-eventers (non-transitional), and are the center piece of the company. These wrestlers are wrestlers that are at their peak, and can still garner huge (serious) reactions if pushed right (i.e. a shocking heel turn or a long awaited face turn). In my opinion, these guys include John Cena, Dave Batista, and Randy Orton. Chris Jericho and Edge are close to this category as well (some might argue that they are 'category 6' however).
Basically - a category '5' guy is a current main-eventer that still has the potential to take the company to new heights (to a certain degree) if pushed correctly. A category '5' guy, if pushed a certain way, can help bring in fans.

6) Upper-card (peak/maturity stage):

These are wrestlers that have been main-eventers before, have won the world/WWE title atleast once, and have been BOTH heel and face for long periods throughout their careers. For the most part - these guys have reached their peak....and barring any unforseen or sudden character changes, these guys will most likely not bring in any new fans as main-eventers.

For the most part - these guys often get 'nostalgia' face pops (i.e. an extreme example of this being Hulk Hogan and Steve Austin). In some cases, these guys are simply too old and too worn to be 'category 5 guys' (i.e. Shawn Michaels, Undertaker). In other cases - guys have simply been around too long and have had the same character for too many years to draw in new fans (i.e. Big Show, Triple H, John Bradshaw Layfield, Kane). And lastly - some of these guys have simply peaked to the point that even a heel/face turn may not do much for them (i.e. Rey Mysterio).

Some guys in category '6' are also jobber to the stars' (i.e. Kane...JBL?).


So basically - if it was up to me, here is how I would 'categorize' each show.

-ECW would consist of 'Greenhorns' and 'Veteran's ('1's and '2's)

-Smackdown would consist of 'Mid-carders' and ' Peaked Main-eventers' ('3's and '6's).

-RAW would consist of Rising Stars and Main-event growth guys ('4's and '5's)

If I was in charge of a 'life cycle' of a wrestler, it would be as follows:

CATEGORY 1 - GREENHORN: New 'generic' guy starts out in ECW. If he shows limited or no potential, he stays in ECW. If he shows promise, he moves to category 3. In the rare case that he shows a LOT of promise (i.e. like Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle did), he moves to 'category 4' and skips 'category 3' altogether. If this 'generic' guy continues to show limited or no potential and manages to stay employed, he becomes a category '2' guy (i.e. like Steve Richards was for many years).

CATEGORY 2 - VETERAN: This guy's sole purpose is to 'put over' guys in category 1 in ECW (i.e. Dreamer putting over Swagger). More likely than not, these are have no chance of moving beyond category 2. If God (i.e. Vince McMahon is nice to them), perhaps he can make them into category '3' guys and move them to Smackdown.

CATEGORY 3 - MID-CARD: A wrestler is on Smackdown and gets to wrestle 'Category 6' guys. The main purpose of a category '3' guy, is to look GOOD against a category 6 guy so that he can become a category '4' guy very soon....and put himself in a position where he can get a SERIOUS main-event push.

For example - If Carlito ('3') or Kennedy ('3') get into sustained feuds with Shawn Michaels ('6') and Triple H ('6') and look good at 'get over', then they get elevated to category ('4'). If they shit the bed however (i.e. like Billy Gunn did after he won KOTR), then he stays at '3'....perhaps forever. furthermore - he gets demoted to '2' (i.e. like Val Venis and Test did).

CATEGORY 4 - RISING STAR: These guys are now on RAW....the main show. These 'rising stars' have a serious chance of doing something big if they prove themselves. Category '4' guys will wrestle against themselves on RAW...and perhaps after a TREMENDOUS feud, BOTH guys can get elevated (i.e. The Rock vs. Triple H back in 1998). For example - if Jeff Hardy and CM Punk got into an awesome feud, perhaps it would give both men that much needed credibility to be taken seriously as a 'category 5' guy. Once a '4' has proven himself by feuding with other '4's', he can then wrestle some of the '5's (when they are not feuding with fellow '5's).

The WWE can get creative here as well, and allow for some "interpromotional" feuds on random occassions (i.e. a '4' guy fighting a '6' guy....i.e. CM Punk vs. Triple H).

CATEGORY 5 - MAIN-EVENT GROWTH: These guys are the "king pins" of RAW. While some of these guys may be getting stale, a shocking heel turn...or heel turn of any kind (i.e. John Cena, Batista), OR a long-awaited face turn (Randy Orton) could really explode their characters to new heights.

The danger here for creative, is to turn a guy face/heel too many times. If this happens, then these guys can easily become 'category 6' guys.

Category '5' guys should also be looking to help put over Category '4' guys, so that the '4's can also become '5's (i.e. Austin putting over Angle, back in 2001, Triple H putting over Batista in 2005, etc.).

Category '5' guys can also have "interpromotional" feuds on occassion with 'category 6' guys (i.e. Randy Orton vs. Undertaker).

Category 6 - MAIN-EVENT PEAK:

The sole purpose of these guys is to put over category '3' guys on Smackdown, and put over category '4' and '5' guys from RAW (i.e. Interpromotional feuds). If someone from '3' or '4' is in the dog house however...or isn't ready to be elevated, then the guy from category '6' goes over.

Heyman's proposed rosters....a few examples of people that I can think of...not everyone will be included:

ECW:

-William Regal
-Jack Swagger
-D.H. Smith
-Tommy Dreamer
-Mark Henry
-Umaga
-Vladimir Kozlov
-Chavo Guerrero

Smackdown:
-Triple H
-Edge
-Undertaker
-John Bradshaw Layfield
-Shawn Michaels
-Big Show
-Rey Mysterio
-Kane
-Ken Kennedy
-Carlito
-Kofi Kingston
-R-Truth
-The Brian Kendrick


RAW:
-John Cena
-Randy Orton
-Dave Batista
-Chris Jericho
-MVP
-Santino Marella
-CM Punk
-Ted Dibiase
-Cody Rhodes
-John Morrison
-The Miz
-Shelton Benjamin


I hope you have enjoyed this report, and I thank you for your time.