5 AEW Homegrown Stars That Would Fit in WWE

If you listen to my weekly TWC Show podcast, you know for a fact that I think Jade has the presence of a star. Although Cargill has had the tools to be a top star since she made her debut interrupting Cody Rhodes, there is room to grow for her still. The first-ever and current TBS Women’s Champion continues to be undefeated in All Elite Wrestling at 25-0. That all being said, Jade’s matches have mainly been short squash matches outside of a few more recent matches which went longer and she’s been paired up with Mark Sterling to assist her with her promos.

If Jade Cargill decided to one day give WWE a shot again, I think she would fit right in. Imagine Jade versus Charlotte Flair? Think about all she could learn working with those women and the trainers of that women’s division. Cargill would grow those skills that are seemingly missing from the overall presentation to be someone we look back at as one of the greatest women of all time. 

 Listen…I hate to make comparisons so this isn’t a comparison because they are two totally different people and athletes, but Wardlow gives me all the Evolution era Batista vibes. Maybe it’s because they both have great bodybuilder physiques, Wardlow being well dressed while paired up with MJF as his bodyguard, or the similarities in the relationship Wardlow has with MJF that Batista had with Triple H during that era.

All comparisons aside, we’re all just waiting for Wardlow to break out on his own and be the star we all know he could be. He previously had a WWE tryout and was devastated when he didn’t get the call to return. Kurt Angle also once told Wardlow that “it wasn’t a matter of if but more a matter of when” in giving his opinion of WWE signing Wardlow in the future. Before that could happen, the offer from AEW came first and Wardlow was sold on their vision. However, I still think if AEW drops the ball on unleashing Wardlow, he’d still make a great fit for the WWE. The potential is limitless.

I first saw “Absolute” Ricky Starks on the National Wrestling Association’s show, Powerr. Starks just had that it-factor and could back it up in the ring and on the mic. He became the NWA Television Champion while in the NWA. When Starks appeared on All Elite Wrestling to answer Cody Rhodes's open challenge for the TNT Championship, I was ecstatic. I felt like he was a future top star in the company and someone who could definitely be a future TNT Champion if not even a future AEW World Champion one day.

Starks quickly aligned himself with Team Taz. Although he became the holder of the barely recognized FTW Championship, he doesn’t seem to be talked about in the same conversation of the other pillars considered as the future of the company. That being said, I feel he would thrive in NXT 2.0 and on the main roster of the WWE. Ricky Starks got this natural charisma and that would work to his benefit in the sports entertainment company.

Brian Cage has been on the wrestling scene since 2004 but has grown over the years. If you look at Brian Cage in the early portion of his career, he’s almost unrecognizable considering the fact that he looks like Wolverine with Incredible Hulk’s body these days. He’s had a great level of success in the independents, Lucha Underground, and Impact Wrestling. Cage is even a former Impact Wrestling World Champion. Therefore when he made his debut last May at Double or Nothing as the last surprise entrant of the Casino Ladder match with Taz in his corner, it felt like a big deal. Cage would even win the match earning him a title match.

Cage would unsuccessfully challenge for the title when Taz threw in the towel because the company was still trying to protect Brian at this point. He would move on to feud with Darby Allin, Sting, Hangman Page, and lastly his own Team Taz teammate Ricky Starks. The last time we saw Brian Cage was in October. The consensus is that he won’t be resigning when his contract expires. This being said, I feel like Brian Cage would be a great fit for the WWE if he made his debut directly on the main roster, similar to AJ Styles in 2016. He has the look they love and the experience to back it up but is also a little bit on the older end to be an NXT 2.0 star.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman is only 25 years old and already one of the most controversial and talked about wrestlers in the business. He has crossed paths with some of the biggest names in the business from Cody Rhodes, Chris Jericho, Sting, and now even CM Punk. He’s proven he could hang with them all. He’s a throwback in the ring and master on the mic. MJF is considered one of the four pillars of AEW’s future along with Jungle Boy, Sammy Guevara, and Darby Allin. Although he's considered the future of the company that really gave him his first opportunity to showcase his talent and wit on national television, he has no issue flirting with the idea of working for the WWE in the future.

It’s been reported that the WWE has been interested in MJF too which the arrogant kid played up on social media by claiming there’ll be a bidding war in 2024 when his contract with AEW is set to expire. Even though many fans worry that MJF would suffer in a more family-friendly, sponsor-friendly, publicly-traded, and corporate company such as WWE where all of his promos would be heavily scripted or toned down, I still have faith that MJF would find a way to make it work. He’s always found a way to make it work and I think he’s the future of any company he’s with 5 years from now whether that’s AEW or WWE.