There’s a reason Stone Cold Steve Austin is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time: whatever he did as a heel, the crowd still cheered him. With that in mind, here are three guys currently wrestling in the top 3 wrestling countries, who are doing just that, and will continue to become more successful over the next few years:
Kevin Owens (USA) – A hugely successful and talented indie wrestler for years, who made a smooth transition to NXT, and ended up becoming champion. He was then promoted to the main roster where he beat John Cena on his debut, had a years worth of good matches whilst capturing the IC title, culminating in recently becoming the second ever Universal Champion. He’s played a heel throughout and as seen in his title win on Raw, is still way over with the crowd.
Kenny Omega (Japan) – A mainstay of New Japan who has often existed in the shadow of Bullet Club stable mates AJ Styles and Prince Devitt, yet has been producing consistently good matches throughout his career. After capturing the IWGP Middleweight Championship last year he has now become leader of the Bullet Club, and has made a smooth transition to heavyweight by becoming the first international wrestler to win the G1 climax, where despite being a heel and booed throughout, he had the crowd eating out of their hands, cheering for his victory. He will now go on to headline Wrestle Kingdom and fight for the heavyweight belt.
Marty Scurll (UK) – The current two time champion of leading UK promotion PROGRESS, he has been a strong player in the UK scene for years. He is now one of the top dogs in the UK, is soon to debut in Ring of Honour, and has been part of Evolve. Despite playing the heel, the crowd cheer him and love his ‘villain’ character. I can see him being in NXT/WWE within the next couple of years. What better acknowledgement if he walks away as the 2016 winner of the PWG Battle of Los Angeles?
A loveable rogue is one thing that Chimera Rouge loves.