3. Big Cass & Enzo Amore
There’s only one word to describe Big Cass and Enzo Amore since debuting on the WWE main roster, and I’m gonna spell it out for you: O-V-E-R! The incredibly popular NXT tag team made the jump the night after WrestleMania, and crowds have been falling in love with them all around the world.
After an unexpected injury literally knocked Enzo out of a tag team title tournament, Big Cass got a few weeks to show off on his own, putting his size and growing charisma to the test, wrestling alongside the New Day, and picking up singles wins over both the Dudley Boyz. Since then the two have had a shot at the WWE Tag Team Championships in a big PPV four-way, and will wrestle alongside the biggest star in the game, John Cena, taking on AJ Styles and the Club at WWE Payback. Not a bad couple of months for the self-proclaimed “realest guys in the room” (how you doin?).
2. Sami Zayn
Sami technically made his main roster debut in mid-2015 in an incredible match against John Cena live on WWE Raw, but an untimely injury put him on the shelf for the remainder of the year. He then rebounded as a surprise name in the 2016 Royal Rumble match, eliminating career-long rival Kevin Owens. Two months later Zayn returned to Raw and begin his main roster career full-time. His program with Owens has spilled in and out of mid card title pictures, a WrestleMania ladder match, and the annual Money in the Bank ladder match, with the two finally putting things to rest (for now) at WWE Battleground next weekend.
For all the guys and girls that have come up from NXT and failed to make a name for themselves on Raw and Smackdown, Sami Zayn is a blueprint for exactly how you want to build a star on the main roster. His presence on WWE programming has drastically elevated the career of Kevin Owens, on track to become a foundational piece of the main event landscape, and the two have produced some of the best television of 2016.
1. AJ Styles
I mean really, was ANYONE else taking the number one spot for WWE debut in 2016?
After being the face of TNA Wrestling for a decade, dominating the layout of Ring of Honor, and completely taking over New Japan Pro Wrestling as a leader of the Bullet Club and two-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Styles made the unthinkable jump to WWE and has been a main event star since debuting at the Royal Rumble.
Since crossing the line, Styles has performed at WrestleMania, beaten Chris Jericho on PPV, pushed Roman Reigns into potentially the best match of his career, and picked up a win over John Cena in an incredible PPV bout at WWE Money in the Bank. Now with the WWE Draft approaching, the “Phenomenal One” is among the top choices for both Raw and Smackdown, as he will become a major main event star, leading whichever brand he ends up on.
