The Post’s Joseph Staszewski brings you around the world of professional wrestling every Tuesday in his weekly column, the Post Match Angle.
Jade Cargill will be WWE’s first star-making test of the TKO era – one that could have a ripple effect in the pro wrestling world.
Cargill made it very clear why she made the jump from AEW to WWE. She believes she has megastar potential and this is the best way to achieve it as the first homegrown AEW talent to make the move.
“Where else can you go to get the best quality training? Nowhere else,” Cargill told ESPN. “The PC [WWE Performance Center] here is one of one. There is nothing else like it. The machine is behind you. The platform, the overall history, the legacy, I’m creating a household name. I could go on and on.”
WWE has already put the machine behind her and will continue, from her ESPN rollout, the barrage of content about her on social media and putting a package about her on SmackDown and Raw last week.
Cargill has all the attributes of a star: her looks, her athleticism, her charisma, her personal story as a mom and being married to former MLB star Brandon Phillips. She has just two years in the business, so there is plenty of in-ring ability to unlock.
All the pieces are there as well as fan interest based on the numbers her arrival did on social media. Can WWE and TKO use their might to get her across the finish line where she is not just one of their biggest stars – as that feels almost like a given – but more?
We throw the term megastar around a lot without putting it into context. In reality, there are only a handful of pro wrestling megastars: Hulk Hogan, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Ric Flair, The Rock, Batista and John Cena, and you can make the case for Chyna at least for a short time. They had or have a sustainable and recognizable place in pop culture and entertainment where the average person knows who they are or would recognize a picture of them.
Can Cargill get to a Ronda Rousey level of fame with WWE’s help?
Can WWE get her to where she’s all over magazine covers, talk shows and eventually staring in action movies, Marvel and DC content or other programming with the added reach of Endeavor now?
If they can, it certainly might open other wrestlers’ eyes and shine a light on what AEW needs to improve on – from its promotion of stars to casual fans to a better way to train and get younger talent more ring reps at house shows or in Ring of Honor.
“The hard part is getting the reps and getting training she needs, getting to go out there,” Bryan Danielson told The Post last week when asked about Cargill. “We don’t have a ton of live events in AEW and that sort of thing.”
If you look at Cargill’s quote from ESPN, it’s clear she is looking for the next level of in-ring training and reps and WWE’s resources to raise her visibility.
Cargill went 60-2 and had a TBS championship reign that went a little stale in AEW. The best creative around her was the creation of the Baddies Section and Nyla Rose stealing her title. Cargill, whose first match included Shaq, never got to wrestle against the top women on the roster or get an AEW women’s championship opportunity.
She is already being treated as one of WWE’s big stars out of the gate. That will likely continue, potentially skipping NXT or maybe being the one to end Becky Lynch’s reign as NXT women’s champion – which is the route I’d go because she could get extra reps and be featured on multiple brands.
If WWE succeeds with Cargill, does that reverberate to free agents or those in AEW like a Ricky Starks, Sammy Guevara, Wardlow and maybe down the road a Julia Hart or Skye Blue if they hit a ceiling? If WWE fails with her, does it destroy the idea of the machine, leaving star-making more to chance and slows down wrestlers from thinking all they need is that one WWE push to make it big?
Cargill will put WWE’s might to the test, one the company needs to pass.
I can’t remember the last time we left a Dynamite episode with so many questions and wrestling fans looking for any clues they could to support their theories about who was attacking Jay White and who was under MJF’s devil mask at the close of the show.
Kudos to Tony Khan and Co. for tapping into that story device so effectively because you can make a strong case for MJF himself, Adam Cole as fans found the mask in his locker at All In, Rodrick Strong and The Kingdom.
The Righteous and others said even a potential female based on the size of the attacker. This type of cliffhanger has been largely absent in AEW. All we need now are some QR codes.
It supported what was a strong potential pivot with Cole needing to get surgery because of a broken ankle. Their fishing vignette was hilarious and MJF and White, who has not been pinned or submitted in AEW, delivered the type of heated back-and-forth promo worthy of two top guys. White being finally unleashed on the mic in AEW will be a blast.
The biggest takeaway for me from NXT No Mercy is how well the developmental system is working. Tiffany Stratton and Lynch put on a stellar no-holds-barred match in the main event that kept an incredibly high pace with a mix of violence. Stratton, even in defeat, looked as confident as ever and showed off her strength and agility. Carmelo Hayes, The Creed Brothers and Bron Breakker look main roster ready and they went about elevating its next star in Trick Williams with a North American title win in a match that actually could have used a touch more drama.
Are there two more logical heel turns than what Drew McIntyre is in the process of doing and what Nick Wayne pulled off Sunday?
I’m not sure two other men alive could have given us the technical classic Bryan Daniel and Zach Sabre Jr. gave us at WrestleDream. Let’s hope we get to see it again in England or Japan as they teased.
Shinsuke Nakamura doing a 10-count on the video screen while he beat down Seth Rollins in person was a savage maneuver.
Does Brian Pillman Jr. have a better chance of taking off in NXT/WWE than AEW because they can tap into his dad’s legacy more because of all the archive footage? We will find out.
I think Charlotte Flair heard Bron Breakker say he had the best spear in WWE. That one she hit on Bayley was tremendous, so could the story they are trying to tell as Flair reminded her she is a Four Horsewomen and shouldn’t be playing second fiddle to Iyo Sky. Bayley making a triple-threat match for Sky’s title that no one asked for could finally have Damage CTRL turn on her should the champ lose. Bayley and Flair, who had a very good match, deserve some more promo time to flesh this story out.
I’ve always admired Court Bauer and MLWs commitment to expanding the promotion’s reach and talent pool in any way possible. Their new strategic alliance with New Japan and CMLL is the latest example.
Trinity facing Mickie James for Knockouts world championship at Bound for Glory is about as big of a match as Impact can make outside of her facing Jordynne Grace. The champ is going to have to bring her promo game with James and that is a good thing for her continued development.
LA Knight is officially a main-event player in WWE with John Cena wanting to partner with him being the cherry on top.
Dijak whipping and beating down eventual strap match winner Eddie Thorpe in front of his emotional 6-year-old niece and family on NXT is exactly how you make people care about wrestlers.
Raw just became that much better of a wrestling show with the reformation of Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano as DIY.
Extra: Good for Becky Lynch for standing up for the women’s division both publicly by calling out WWE for not building credible main-event challengers and between the ropes by using her TV time to get more women on screen in meaningful spots, like she did on Raw with Tegan Nox and Indie Hartwell.
Swerve Strickland, AEW
Strickland’s star is deservedly on the rise and he helped that cause in a major way at WrestleDream. In the most high-profile match of his AEW career, he had an absolute war in a win over former AEW world champion “Hangman” Adam Page. Strickland’s grizzled charisma, in-ring work and package with Prince Nana are all coming together as he looks to become the first black AEW world champion.
Honorable mention: Ilja Dragunov, Christian Cage
John Cena and LA Knight vs. Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso, WWE Fastlane (Saturday, 8 p.m., Peacock)
This match feels like it will dictate so much for WWE and Roman Reigns moving forward. Does LA Knight, in his likely first WWE pay-per-view main event, stay on track for a match with the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion? Uso and Solo need a win if they don’t want to feel the wrath of the Tribal Chief. While the match itself should be entertaining, the story that comes out of it might be more important than anything else that happens at Fastlane.
NXT Deadl1ne was announced for Saturday, Dec. 9 at Total Mortage Area in Bridgeport, Conn.