Was 2002 The Goat Year For WWE Rookies???
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Idiopathic Joker
Members, Moderators Posts: 45,691 Regulator
These gentlemen began their career in the WWE as rookies in 2002;
John Cena
Randy Orton
Batista
Brock Lesnar
Shelton Benjamin
Rey Mysterio (First time in WWE)
Not to mention great returns, and the second year in a 4 year stretch of dope Wrestlemanias
John Cena
Randy Orton
Batista
Brock Lesnar
Shelton Benjamin
Rey Mysterio (First time in WWE)
Not to mention great returns, and the second year in a 4 year stretch of dope Wrestlemanias
Comments
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Definitely. Cena, Orton, Batista and Lesnar all went on to be huge stars. It's by far the best group to come out of wwe developmental thus far.
They had another crop of guys that should have been top stars in 2006: Carlito, Mr. Kennedy, Umaga, MVP, Lashley.
The group that came up two years ago: Shield and Wyatts should be the future but they ? up on the wyatts.
I think the next group the Sami Zayns and Adrian Nevilles will be really close to that 2002 group. -
TheEyeronic1 wrote: »i wasnt watching it in 2002, so nah.
That time period was ? awesome loved every ppv that year. -
Raw on TNN was it's best years.
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that 06 crew is a damn shame
a lot of those guys in 02 helped make the best period of smackdown as well -
Yeah I don't think there's ever been a rookie year like 2002.
Some noteable years:
1987 - Ultimate Warrior, Shawn Michaels (I guess), Bam Bam Bigelow
1997 - Edge, Kane, Chyna, Steve Blackman, Ken Shamrock, D-Lo Brown
1985 - Ricky Steamboat, Randy Savage, Terry Funk, King Kong Bundy -
The next crop is too ? small. They should just reopen the crusierweight cards so dudes can shine. Like how Kevin Owens is being a powerhouse ass kicking machine in NXT works because ? there are small and short as hell. Once he gets called up, its no way he can maintain his persona against the likes of Cena, Reigns, etc. They really digging themselves a hole, no one wants to admit it, but not every wrestler can carry Adrian "Pac" Neville or Sami "El Generico" Sayn on the main roster. Their style is too quick, and they would have to change their pace and moves, which will hurt their image and talents. Seth Rollins had to do it, Daniel Bryan gets away with it because he is more of a technichian/brawler but the new guys coming in will have a tough time.
There needs to be a better balance, before all of the future NXT ? be midcarders or Tyson Kidd status. -
shawn michaels, rey mysterio, eddie guerrero
can we please stop with this size ? , PLEASE! -
Peezy_Jenkins wrote: »shawn michaels, rey mysterio, eddie guerrero
can we please stop with this size ? , PLEASE!
So what will they do with Mini Brock Lesnar, Kevin Owens huh bruh? How the hell do you even market him? And Rey Mysterio played the underdog his whole career. Shawn Michales did not wrestle small, he was a technichan as the same was Eddie. Plus Eddie was built proper and didnt look as frail as a Sami Zayne or Kenta does. One thing i salue Adrian Neville for is at least he knows this so he even went to work in the gym.
If that ? doesnt matter, then tell me why as talented as Chris Hero was, why did they let his fat ass go? You do know he was supposed to orignally be apart of the Shield right? Leakee (Romain Reigns) was given the spot because of his image. I dont care how ? this ? sound bruh, the WWE is looking at this ? from a buisness standpoint of marketing "superstars" not lyrical cold fudamentally sounded indie wrestlers. Thats my concern for the likes of Sami Zaynes them ? dont have no type of draw, only with the IWC smarks and true wrestling fans. But as a buisness, every fan is not like that. -
wat do u mean hbk didnt wrestle small, he was smaller than damn near everyone he faced, he wasnt out there hittin power moves, and he didnt have to, and neither do any of the new guys. u see zayn and pac out there throwin steen around dont u, hell cesaro dont even look that big yet, look at him
wats wrong wit the way they pushing steen now?
they let hero go cuz he was outta shape and didnt wanna get into shape
eddie was no bigger than juventud when he first got there, pac and sami zayn are just as big as eddie ever was, zayn may not be as defined tho
we know wwe most of the time is looking for a certain prototype, but there is no reason these other guys cant succeed as well, its clear to see over the last 15-20 years. i mean damn, a skinny fat average joe lookin ass ? has had the longest title reign in the modern era, and wwe would never call him face of the company, but his product drew nearly as well as the prototype. u say these ? have no draw, or are at a size disadvantage..
what was the purpose of hiring them in the first place then? im sure they have enough green big guys down there that they the vanilla midgets arent necessary....
idk if u been consistently watching, but the day of over the top characters and everyone having to be a certain size has been dead, kane, goldust, undertaker, etc are exceptions to the rule
matter fact, outside of brock, cena and orton, who that fits the wwe prototype is doing just GREAT/being booked or marketed properly right now
ill wait.
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then we just saw skinny ass seth rollins show out in a match of the year at the rumble. he look like brock could have thrown him 20 yards, yet it didnt matter.
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I usually don't agree with the sizeism of certain people but he had a point.
Being a big fish in a small pond or a shark in the ring with guppies is impressive but it can go so far.
Owens is a perfect example too. He can go on a killing spree in NXT because he one of the biggest cats there. I think once he stands next to Cena or Orton he won't seem so big and that will affect his character tremendously.
I dont think these guys are getting TOO small though, I've always been a fan of the more agile performers and I prefer it. -
i mean he wont stand out size wise but he just as big/tall as cena and reigns
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2002 was dope.
Shelton really dropped the ball tho with his wack ass promos. -
HBK fought Giants. Height wise Cena would look small compared to Nash, Side, Taker, Vader, and Scott Hall 2.
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iKingGodGivBiz wrote: »HBK fought Giants. Height wise Cena would look small compared to Nash, Side, Taker, Vader, and Scott Hall 2.
But my ? is HBK Lol this man has more charisma in his left pinky then all of these NXT dudes. And Cena is not tall, but he is a stocky believeable superhero ass dude. I'm just saying man these ? need to hit the gym.
Btw that Sami Callaun/Salamon Crowe ? is laughable. My little brother who is 15 and is a wrestling smark even admit that he thought dude is a joke. My brother was legit ? bruh Lol . Crowe looking like a tan raccon with that weak ass finisher bruh. This man is like 5'4 AND out of shape? Like is this ? really happening?
Its no reason why El Generico or PAC can't make it. But they need to work on their image (PAC did) and character. They setting them selves for failure if they think wrestling skills alone matter. This is WWE superstars not wrestlers bruh bruh. I don't like it, but let's not forget this is the big leagues. They have to have the swag with the wrestling ability. That's what HBK had man, its ? HBK lol -
Roman Reigns. Ryback. Dean Ambrose.Peezy_Jenkins wrote: »wat do u mean hbk didnt wrestle small, he was smaller than damn near everyone he faced, he wasnt out there hittin power moves, and he didnt have to, and neither do any of the new guys. u see zayn and pac out there throwin steen around dont u, hell cesaro dont even look that big yet, look at him
wats wrong wit the way they pushing steen now?
they let hero go cuz he was outta shape and didnt wanna get into shape
eddie was no bigger than juventud when he first got there, pac and sami zayn are just as big as eddie ever was, zayn may not be as defined tho
we know wwe most of the time is looking for a certain prototype, but there is no reason these other guys cant succeed as well, its clear to see over the last 15-20 years. i mean damn, a skinny fat average joe lookin ass ? has had the longest title reign in the modern era, and wwe would never call him face of the company, but his product drew nearly as well as the prototype. u say these ? have no draw, or are at a size disadvantage..
what was the purpose of hiring them in the first place then? im sure they have enough green big guys down there that they the vanilla midgets arent necessary....
idk if u been consistently watching, but the day of over the top characters and everyone having to be a certain size has been dead, kane, goldust, undertaker, etc are exceptions to the rule
matter fact, outside of brock, cena and orton, who that fits the wwe prototype is doing just GREAT/being booked or marketed properly right now
ill wait.
WWE is super thin right now. Like really thin on talents. Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler never had the HBK treatment, they get treated like ? and are booked as little underdogs. Look how they do Dolph ziggler. -
ill give u roman, even tho they pushing him too soon and is promos are SLOWLY improving. u cant be serious with ryback being booked right, and dean would prolly be cruiserweight champion in wcw. he has charisma but it dont matter when they got him out there wrestling with puppets and calling daniel bryan a ? . wwe has plenty talent theres just a lot they misuse or dont use at all, only reason the midcard lookin anywhere near decent is cuz its mania season.
ay i feel u on needing to add charisma, im just not worried about it, its gon come with time, and after that it depends on the writing, ? when it comes to zayn i think he almost there, just need to have a LIL more edge, i know pac and hideo and finn fightin an uphill battle due to they accents, but hideo the only one im worried about outta them 3, he hasnt gotten wwe wrestling style down pat, let alone charisma -
and u right about solomon, idk wtf they on wit that ? . talk about a let down.
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Dean is bigger than roman btw
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StoneColdMikey wrote: »Dean is biggertaller than roman btw
Dean is 6'4" around 225-230
Roman is 6'3" 260-265
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and even if you considered "small" i think in order to be taken seriously you just have to not look like ? lol.
best example has already been pointed out in Neville
Balor is small as well but he has a great physique(NH) at 185...im sure he will proly bulk up to about 200lbs and not loose any of his athleticsm...I actually think Neville got more explosive along with the gains. -
Looking back now in 2015 as long as I've been watching WWE I have to say with out a doubt that 2002 is the best class of rookies ever produced from WWE. Also, 2002 was a transitional year with The Rock moving on to Hollywood, Stone Cold walking out on the company, and HBK returning after a 4 yr hiatus to eventually wrestle 8 more years.
Brock Lesnar - Came out the gate and won the Undisputed WWE Title within 4 months of being called up to the main roster.
Randy Orton - Didn't look too hot out the gate until Evolution was started. Evolution did wonders for his career and beyond but he was a problem child until Vince made him get his ? in order.
John Cena - Became the face of WWE and the modern day "Hulk Hogan" and has numerous title reigns & accolades in his career.
Batista - Kind of old for his age at the time to be in wrestling but ended up being another successful product of Evolution and going on to be a main event star & World Champion.
Rey Mysterio - The exception to the "rule" that size shouldn't matter to whether you could be a World Champion. Fan favorite and merchandise seller for years in WWE but the last few years of his career he stayed injury prone.
Shelton Benjamin - Talented & athletic. WWE really misused and wasted his time in the company he should have been way more then a mid-carder. -
There were some other notables from that 2002 class.
Rene Dupri- solid tag team wrestler and he had an okay singles run.
Charlie Haas- most notable for his tag team run with Shelton.
Matt Morgan- decent mid carder on SD and had an decent run in TNA.
Victoria- solid run in the divas division.
Jamal- had a ? hum first run but then gets repackaged as Umaga.
Maven- most notable for eliminating Taker from the '02 Rumble.
Damien Sandow- debuted on the Raw roster and mainly appeared on Heat as Aaron Stevens before going through various repackaging.
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5th Letter wrote: »There were some other notables from that 2002 class.
Rene Dupri- solid tag team wrestler and he had an okay singles run.
Charlie Haas- most notable for his tag team run with Shelton.
Matt Morgan- decent mid carder on SD and had an decent run in TNA.
Victoria- solid run in the divas division.
Jamal- had a ? hum first run but then gets repackaged as Umaga.
Maven- most notable for eliminating Taker from the '02 Rumble.
Damien Sandow- debuted on the Raw roster and mainly appeared on Heat as Aaron Stevens before going through various repackaging.
No ? way Sandow was 2002 -
5th Letter wrote: »There were some other notables from that 2002 class.
Rene Dupri- solid tag team wrestler and he had an okay singles run.
Charlie Haas- most notable for his tag team run with Shelton.
Matt Morgan- decent mid carder on SD and had an decent run in TNA.
Victoria- solid run in the divas division.
Jamal- had a ? hum first run but then gets repackaged as Umaga.
Maven- most notable for eliminating Taker from the '02 Rumble.
Damien Sandow- debuted on the Raw roster and mainly appeared on Heat as Aaron Stevens before going through various repackaging.
No ? way Sandow was 2002
He is.
