Who Should Cody Rhodes Sign For AEW?

Unless you’ve been too hungover to look on Twitter over New Year’s, then you know that The Elite are bringing us an entirely new promotion in 2019. All Elite Wrestling is going to be massive, if the overwhelming success of All In is anything to go by. With very little information to go on as of writing, other than The Young Bucks being granted the title of head bookers, it’s hard to predict who and what is going to occur in the brand’s infancy. But nevertheless, let’s have a go at finding a few names to slot into our dream rosters.

Looking back on the card for All In gives us a pretty good indicator on who’s game for sticking it to WWE and going out for themselves. Again, not much has been said about whether stars would be signed to exclusive AEW contracts so it’s hard to say whether these names would appear indefinitely as part of the roster, or just as a one-off.

With the independent scene being a very lucrative and flexible place to work in, there’s never a better time to start poaching names for your big shows. Two of the biggest promotions to start with would either be NJPW or ROH, two brands who have been very present at big independent flagship productions – i.e. All In and the Jericho Cruise. So it’s safe to assume we’ll be seeing some crossovers.

My first pick for the roster would be Kazuchika Okada, the former and most prolific IWGP champion since the rise in interest in Japanese wrestling. Okada, who has been involved in a feud with Jay White, was taking somewhat of a backseat heading into Wrestle Kingdom, which considering his titanic reign at the top of the card, is something worthy of respect. Okada could make waves by appearing at AEW shows, taking advantage of that mainstream attention and bringing more eyes from not only Western audiences but also from the Far East. Okada has been given the title of ‘the modern day Ric Flair’, so the idea of seeing him against some of the brightest stars from the US and UK scenes would be a huge draw.

Another current name making waves in NJPW is Chris Jericho. The previous Intercontinental Champion of New Japan has definitely shown his colours as an indie fanatic, taking strides away from his ties to WWE to continue to reform himself elsewhere. Jericho appeared at All In as a surprise run-in against Kenny Omega, to help promote his cruise that took place in October. Jericho’s willingness to do that in spite of his connections to Vince McMahon speaks volumes to what he’d probably do for this budding brand. Bringing Jericho in would certainly help them get off the ground.

Of course there’s a litany of names that could make big news should they choose to appear on an AEW branded show. Imagining the likes of Tetsuya Naito, Hiromu Takahashi, Minoru Suzuki or Hiroshi Tanahashi choosing to regularly wrestle in the United States would be a huge draw for their cards. It’s fortunate that New Japan has a working relationship with some of the bigger indie promotions across the world in the US and UK, so long as they keep away from the exclusive contracts, we’re likely to see potential dream matches in the coming year.

Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix are two names that are expected to potentially jump ship to NXT pending their due contract signings. However, both are probably going to make tons more money if they chose to remain free agents and appear as and when they please across different independent shows. Penta and Fenix are both individuals who can win a crowd over, and stand out as two names to keep your eye on. They’d make for ideal names to throw into the AEW tag division, or perhaps even let them run as single competitors and let them shine in their element.

With few marquee British names left unsigned to NXT UK contracts, it’d be worth cherry-picking some of the rising stars and notable characters that are still hanging around. Jimmy Havoc, Mark Haskins, ZSJ and Will Ospreay are all names that are still available for bigger promotions to snap up. Haskins has recently confirmed his signing with ROH, so if that connection stays strong then there’s definitely opportunity for him to become a leading name in the roster. Sabre and Will are both of course heavily linked to NJPW, which leaves only Havoc that needs to be snapped up.

But looking at the more lesser-known members of the BritWres crew, there’s an abundance of wrestlers that just need that bit of mainstream attention to rocket-strap them into superstardom. Chris Ridgeway, David Starr, CCK and Aussie Open are all still budding talents that could certainly hold their own as part of AEW.

I wouldn’t even put it past some of the more grizzled WWE stars to start considering their options if and when AEW makes it to become a competitor. Even though I would be somewhat let down by Cody relying on former WWE talent to make his roster stand out, a la TNA circa whenever, it would be great to see some of the wrestlers left with a hint of passion start letting loose on another show. For those that follow the likes of Cody, Marty and The Bucks on social media, you’d know that they’re quite tight with some current WWE stars. Which, you know, of course they’d be.

Think of huge names with that ‘WWE label’ still stuck to them like Johnny Mundo, Austin Aries, and maybe even CM Punk if he ever came out of his cave. These guys still hold that presence of being a former superstar, whether you like them or not. Mixing that potential with names that would perhaps consider a change in lifestyle after complacency, e.g. Zack Ryder, Tye Dillinger and Dolph Ziggler, it could be very interesting to see them mix it up with some fresh faces. They all have the chance to be super-over once again.

However, the focus of this brand should be on international talent being brought together to shine in America, the mainstream stage of Professional Wrestling. Having that diversity would definitely help allow AEW to stand out amongst all the other independent brands. So long as they don’t go down the road of exclusive contracts, this can only mean big things for the entire industry. Looking outside of the typical scenes, it could highlight talent that are doing great things over in Germany, Australia, New Zealand and more.

I, for one, can’t wait to see who Cody brings in to be part of this new venture. Might we be on the verge of a new civil war amongst wrestlers? Who knows. But keep your eyes peeled for more information in the coming weeks.

What are your thoughts on AEW and who would you like to see make the jump to appear on their shows? Let us know in the comments.