While some wrestlers are lucky enough to stay with the WWE for the entirety of their career, those wrestlers are few and far between, especially these days. With so many professional and semi-professional wrestling promotions in existence, it is not unheard of to hear of wrestlers jumping from promotion to promotion, with WWE being the be all and end all for almost every wrestler.
Some wrestlers have joined the WWE, left, and returned to much success, like Tye Dillinger. Some work in the WWE first and spend their waning years running around on the indie scene. Others still work for their entire career to get to the WWE and never make it into the big leagues. Some of the most successful wrestlers might say that they do not need the WWE or even wish to go back, but, for the right price, almost everyone would eventually find their way onto Vince McMahon's payroll. Despite the belief of some wrestlers, the WWE is still the best place to work in the world of wrestling. WrestleMania is the biggest stage in the wrestling world and every wrestler dreams of having a marquee match at WrestleMania. No other wrestling company has as many loyal fans and reaches as many people worldwide as the WWE.
For some of the wrestlers who have worked for years, their time to wrestle in front of millions of people might finally be coming, and sooner rather than later. They will finally get an opportunity to wrestle for the company they grew up on. For others, it may be time to finally hit the independent scene, or rejoin it.
20 Indie Bound: Apollo Crews
The former Uhaa Nation could have been the next biggest thing. When he signed his WWE contract in 2014, men of his build and athletic ability were few and far between. Finding a wrestler who could both hold a full grown man above his head and do a standing shooting star press was rare, to say the least. However, Apollo Crews never really reached his full potential.
Apart from a brief feud with The Miz over the Intercontinental Championship, Crews never came close to capturing gold in the WWE.
With WWE hiring more independent wrestling stars than ever, they may have to make some cuts in their budget, and Apollo Crews might be the first to go.
19 WWE Bound: Adam Page
Adam “Hangman” Page is one of the Bullet Club members who competed at this year’s All In event, and it's likely that he was not on WWE’s radar until that performance. Hangman Page joined the Bullet Club in 2016 after the departure of Doc Gallows, Karl Anderson, and leader AJ Styles. He put on a career-making match with Joey Janela, and was part of one of the strangest storylines of the entire show, when Joey Ryan came back from the dead. Additionally, Adam Page released a shirt as a part of the new Bullet Club merchandise, saying that it will be his last Bullet Club shirt. This could be a sign that he is WWE bound.
18 Indie Bound: Kassius Ohno
The former Chris Hero was one of the biggest names on the independent circuit. After his initial signing with the company, his weight was a constant issue with upper management, with WWE releasing him in 2013 due, in part, to his weight.
He has since returned to the WWE, albeit much slimmer, making his return to NXT in 2016.
However, he has not done much of anything of note in NXT, losing to the likes of Lars Sullivan, Adam Cole, and Velveteen Dream. Due in large part to the way he has been treated in the WWE, Kassius Ohno may make his second return to the independent circuit soon.
17 WWE Bound: Fred Yehi
Fred Yehi made his wrestling debut in 2012, wrestling at Evolve 51. Evolve is a company with a well-known connection to the WWE, working almost as a feeding ground for NXT. In Evolve, Yehi wrestled the likes of Lio Rush, Tony Neese, Drew Gulak, and T.J. Perkins, all of whom have signed a contract with the WWE and are currently competing on 205 Live as a part of the cruiserweight division.
With Yehi’s good relationship with Evolve wrestling, and with WWE looking to bolster 205 Live’s ratings and roster, Yehi may be making his WWE debut soon, with the plans of making him a regular part of 205 Live.
16 Indie Bound: Eric Young
As a member of Sanity, Eric Young was a major player in NXT. Before signing a WWE contract, Eric Young was one of Impact Wrestling’s biggest stars as their seventh triple crown champion and fourth grand slam champion. He even played the part in TNA’s version of the Daniel Bryan story of an underdog defying the odds and becoming the top champion. However, since being promoted to the main roster, neither he nor Sanity have done much. They defeated The New Day in a Tables Match at Hell in a Cell, but that is their only victory on the main roster. Eric Young might decide that he was better off with his former employers.
15 WWE Bound: Bandido
Bandido was a relatively unknown wrestler until late 2018 when he participated in the main event at Bullet Club’s All In event.
Bandido was easily the least known wrestler in the 6-Man match, as his partners were Rey Fenix and Rey Mysterio, former Lucha Underground Champion and WWE Champion, respectively.
The three of them stood across from the Golden Elite, the team of The Young Bucks and Kota Ibushi. However, WWE was reportedly very impressed with his performance in the match, and they are very interested in recruiting Bandido, especially since they have been looking for the next big lucha sensation ever since the departure of Rey Mysterio.
14 Indie Bound: The Colons
Primo and Epico Colon have been a part of the WWE since 2011, and it has been a rollercoaster of a career for them. Over their 7 years in the WWE, The Colons were also Los Matadores, a comedy duo with the gimmick of two bullfighters. They were repacking in 2016 as The Shining Stars, a team of timeshare salesmen. Primo and Epico are also former Tag Team Champions, however, as they won the titles from Air Boom in 2011. WWE seem to have no plans to split them up, and, with The Shield and The New Day at the top of the tag team divisions, The Colons might be better suited to the indie circuit.
13 WWE Bound: The Young Bucks
On the other hand, The Young Bucks have done everything that there is to do on the independent circuit. They are 11-time Tag Team Champions in NJPW, and 5-time Tag Team Champions in ROH. They also have a mind for business, as they have undoubtedly made much money from the lucrative merchandise deal they have with Hot Topic.
Even non-WWE fans know who The Young Bucks are, shown by 2K Games when they reached out to The Young Bucks for motion capture for the WWE 2K line of video games. Just like Adam Page, they also released a new Bullet Club shirt, saying that it will be their last, and this could mean they are heading to the WWE.
12 Indie Bound: Sin Cara
The name of “Sin Cara” has been passed around a few times in the WWE, but the man behind the mask is currently Hunico, the former tag team partner of Epico Colon.
Sin Cara is not a part of 205 Live, despite currently being billed at 205 lbs, the same weight as current Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy.
Instead, Sin Cara is wasting away in the lower mid card, as he hasn’t appeared on WWE television since his feud with the debuting Andrade “Cien” Almas, where Sin Cara was used as glorified enhancement talent. Outside of WWE, Sin Cara has a fairly successful career in Chikara, so he might be on his way out the door shortly.
11 WWE Bound: Pentagon Jr.
Pentagon Jr. is another extremely successful luchador on the independent circuit. Penta EL 0M is a former Impact World Champion, AAA Latin Champion, and former Lucha Underground Champion. As with many other performers on this list, Pentagon Dark competed at All In in a high profile match against the IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega. Due in large part to his significant role in Lucha Underground, Pentagon Jr. has become one of the biggest names in lucha libre since Rey Mysterio. The WWE have recently expressed interest in Pentagon Jr., and, while he has not said that he is interested in the WWE recently, he has expressed a previous interest in them, so he could be heading there shortly.
10 Indie Bound: Sami Zayn
In Ring of Honor, El Generico was one of the promotions biggest stars, winning the Television Championship and the Tag Team Championship with Kevin Owens, known then as Kevin Steen. However, during his debut match on RAW against John Cena, Sami Zayn injured his shoulder. Additionally, Zayn is currently on the shelf after a lackluster feud with Bobby Lashley, as he had to recently undergo surgery to repair both of his rotator cuffs. WWE have problems with wrestlers that they see as “injury prone”, and, with this being Zayn’s second injury on the main roster in only a few years, this could lead to Zayn’s release sooner rather than later.
9 WWE Bound: Shane Strickland
Shane Strickland is another huge Lucha Underground star, currently wrestling under the name Killshot in the promotion.
Strickland has recently gained notoriety working for Evolve, where he is the current Evolve Champion, after defeating Matt Riddle in August of 2018.
As stated earlier, Evolve has a very friendly relationship with the WWE. Former Evolve champions have frequently made their way to the WWE, with former champions being Kassius Ohno, Drew McIntyre, and the aforementioned Matt Riddle all signing contracts with WWE. After a successful run as Evolve Champion, it's very likely that Strickland makes his way to the WWE as well.
8 Indie Bound: Tyler Breeze
Tyler Breeze is yet another wrestler who was extremely successful in NXT, yet has been unable to replicate that success on the main roster. The closest thing that he ever got to that was a Tag Team Championship match against The Usos shortly after the first brand split, yet they were soundly defeated. Recently, Tyler Breeze was tweeted at by Cody Rhodes about having to seize your opportunity instead of letting opportunity come to you, and many are seeing this as current NWA Worlds Champion attempting to recruit Tyler Breeze to the independent circuit, and, possibly, even the Bullet Club.
7 WWE Bound: Jeff Cobb
By now, it's no secret that the WWE is very high on Jeff Cobb. With an amateur wrestling background and a decorated champion on the independent circuit, Cobb also has history with the WWE’s latest high profile signing, Matt Riddle, as he is Matt Riddle’s former tag team partner as the team The Chosen Bros. Cobb is also the current ROH Television Champion, a championship that has been held by current WWE superstars Adam Cole, Roderick Strong, Sami Zayn, and current NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa. Jeff Cobb is also on record as stating that he would definitely consider jumping to the WWE after the current season of Lucha Underground is finished.
6 Indie Bound: Hideo Itami
Kenta Kobayashi is, without a doubt, one of the most influential modern wrestlers that the casual WWE fan has never heard of. The reason for his influence is the fact that he was the first wrestler to use the GTS, a finisher that would be adopted by CM Punk, and Kobayashi also invented the Busaiku Knee, the flying knee strike adopted by Daniel Bryan.
When he signed a WWE contract and was rebranded as Hideo Itami, many fans had high hopes.
However, the former New Japan star has been effectively neutered after a stale run in both NXT and 205 Live. Recently, Itami made an appearance for Noah, so perhaps Itami would be used more effectively on the independent circuit.
5 WWE Bound: WALTER
At one point, many people thought that Big Daddy Walter was going to be one of the only big men to never sign a contract with the WWE. Walter’s commitment to his wXw home as a huge hindrance to any possibility of wrestling in the WWE. However, recent reports have said that he is currently being offered a contract to compete as a part of NXT UK, a contract that would allow him to also continue to compete in wXw. This is a huge game changer for the big man, and the possibility that WALTER goes to the WWE has just increased exponentially.
4 Indie Bound: Travis Banks
Coming out of the 2018 WWE UK Tournament, the man on everyone’s lips was Travis Banks. He failed to win in the end, but Banks did make it to the finals and he put on an incredible match as an underdog babyface that the UK fans were in love with, and Banks seemed to be set for stardom in NXT UK. However, in July of 2018, Travis Banks was injured during a PROGRESS show, and his injury was projected to keep him out of NXT UK for quite some time. As stated before with Sami Zayn, the WWE do not like “injury prone” wrestlers, and it is probably worse when they get injured by a different promotion.
3 WWE Bound: Cody
The story of Cody Rhodes is a wrestling journey that no one predicted. Ever since his departure from the WWE in 2016, he has set the independent wrestling scene on fire, giving it new life and showing wrestlers that the WWE is not the only way to make a living.
However, Cody was yet another Bullet Club wrestler to release a new design, saying that it would be his last Bullet Club style shirt.
Along with many other Bullet Club members, his NJPW contract is set to expire shortly, and, due to the frequency of these “last Bullet Club” shirts, many are predicting a mass exodus of Bullet Club members to the WWE, including the grandson of a plumber.
2 Indie Bound: Shelton Benjamin
The story of Shelton Benjamin’s second WWE run is interesting. He was advertised as part of the Smackdown Live! brand during the 2016 brand extension. However, a routine test showed that Benjamin was actually injured and he would not be able to return to the WWE immediately as he hoped.
When he did return, he was paired with Chad Gable, a team that many fans liked, but, since Chad Gable has since moved to RAW, Benjamin has been on his own.
Interviews before his return showed that he was very excited to show off his new style and skills, and he has yet to be given the opportunity. Perhaps a return to Japan is in the cards for Benjamin.
1 WWE Bound: Kenny Omega
Kenny Omega is the worst kept secret in the world of pro wrestling today. He is perhaps the greatest wrestler on the planet today. Just like his fellow Bullet Club members on this list, he has released a new Bullet Club shirt, advertising it as the last one, and his contract with NJPW is also ending. He and other NJPW wrestlers have been very open about their dislike for NJPW’s new management, Harold Meij, as he is more of a businessman and less of a wrestling-minded person. Many are seeing all of these signs as pointing to a Bullet Club exodus and fans are once again chomping at the bit in hopes that Kenny Omega is WWE bound.