5 IMPACT Wrestlers that AEW should sign
Wrestling fans around the world witnessed history recently as Cody Rhodes, The Young Bucks and the rest of The Elite crew announced the birth of All Elite Wrestling. Cody and The Young Bucks spent most of 2018 trying to figure out how to put together something fresh, entertaining and authentic for the common wrestling fan and thanks to the financial backing of billionaire philanthropist Shahid Khan and family, the ink is finally drying and the paperwork is complete. All Elite Wrestling is now a "thing" and this is something wrestling fans around the world should immediately get excited about.
At the recent press conference in Jacksonville, Florida, AEW introduced not only Cody and The Young Bucks as executives for the upstart promotion, but they also announced the first group of signees to the company. Chris Jericho, 'Hangman' Adam Page, Maxwell Jacob Friedman(MJF), Joey Janela, SoCal Uncensored and PAC(formerly known as Neville) are just a few of the names that were highlighted at this groundbreaking press conference. The company also announced their first two upcoming events as well. The first AEW event will be held in Las Vegas on May 25, 2019, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. AEW's second event will be held at a later date in Jacksonville, FL and it appears that Jacksonville will likely be the headquarters for AEW, considering it is also the home of the Jacksonville Jaguars NFL Football team, also owned by Khan.
AEW officials mean business. A lot of cash has already been dropped, without a single match taking place. The Khan family has already shown their faith not only in Cody and crew but also in the wrestling fans. If the product is good, the fans will hand over their hard-earned money, willingly and if the company proves that they really are dedicated to "listening to the fans," those same fans will make AEW a very successful company. Wrestling is better for the fans when there is competition and until now, the last real competition that WWE had, was WCW. With all due respect to the IMPACT guys, they never offered a true threat to WWE ratings. However, if all of the pieces fall into place, we could witness the beginning of something really special.
It appears AEW is serious about signing the best free agents on the market and if they are, who comes next? Cody mentioned during the press conference that AEW would pay all of their wrestlers a respectable wage and that alone is enough to attract the attention of the average free agent who feels they have been underpaid for far too long. With that said, which IMPACT stars should AEW go after? Better yet, which wrestlers on the current IMPACT roster should immediately pack their bags and make the jump?
In this column, we take a look at 5 current IMPACT wrestlers who should sign with AEW in the near future.
#5 Moose
We will kick this list off with one of the best pure athletes in wrestling today. Moose is someone who certainly has a lot of room for improvement, but in such a short time, Moose has already shown the discipline and drive needed to become a top-tier professional wrestler.
Like many of today's top stars, Moose came to the wrestling world from professional football, after a stint in the NFL. His presence and sheer athleticism make him a force to be reckoned with. While a talent-rich company such as WWE probably would not be a good fit for Moose, AEW is the perfect platform for Moose to start his next chapter.