We wanted to create a list that would highlight the stars of AEW Dark and AEW Dark: Elevation. AEW’s YouTube shows have created a great platform for independent wrestlers to show off their talents against wrestlers signed to the company. Many of the young stars within the company today started off by being scouted through AEW Dark and AEW Dark: Elevation. We saw new roster members like Daniel Garcia, Lee Moriarty, Wheeler Yuta, Dante and Darius Martin, Jungle Boy, and others get signed due to their performances on Dark.
We have split up the list based on gender, tag teams, and signing status. We have also ranked these future stars, but a majority of them are interchangeable as they all have their own, unique upside. Some of these stars may be currently signed to a part-time deal that we are unaware of. We have listed stars that we believe should be signed to full-time deals by the company. However, it could be possible that they are signed and that information is not available to the public yet. Our qualifications for this category were simply that you cannot be on the AEW Roster page on their website.
- Diamante – @DiamanteLAX
First Match: 1/15/2020
Number of Matches: 51
Number of Wins: 32
Intangibles:
- Always delivers when given the opportunity
- Great Three Strikes match with Big Swole
- Crucial heel staple in the women’s DARK division
- Baron Black – @TheEmpBruh
First Match: 4/29/2020
Number of Matches: 46
Number of Wins: 0
Intangibles:
- Great in-ring ability
- Strong chops on the mic and undeniable drive
- Evident passion for wrestling by hosting Terminus event
- KiLynn King – @KiLynnKing
First Match: 5/20/2020
Number of Matches: 47
Number of Wins: 17
Current Championships: GWA Women’s Champion and CCW Champion
Intangibles:
- Has the full look, strength, and all the skills she needs to go far
- Incredibly useful powerhouse face,
- Recently received a lot of praise online from many signed wrestlers
- Kiera Hogan – @HoganKnowsBest3
First Match: 8/11/2021
Number of Matches: 9
Number of Wins: 4
Current Championships: RCW Women’s Champion
Intangibles:
- Former two time Impact Knockouts Tag Team Champion
- Already appeared on Dynamite, Rampage, and the All Out pay-per-view
- Has the whole package; the look, the confidence, and the skill set
- Skye Blue – @Skyebyee
First Match: 4/7/2021
Number of Matches: 13
Number of Wins: 3
Current Championships: LLT Chicago Women’s Champion and the AAW Women’s Champion
Intangibles:
- Memorable moment where Tony Khan came out to offer her a spot in the Casino Battle Royale
- Extremely natural and classic babyface
- Easy star for the crowd to get behind
- Dani Jordyn – @DaniJordyn
First Match: 11/13/2019
Number of Matches: 18
Number of Wins: 0
Current Championships: IWE Women’s Champion
Intangibles:
- Well-developed character, unique personality, and strong mic skills
- Hard-hitting wrestler that would be very useful within the division
- Strong wrestler with a great character
- Dean Alexander – @DeanAlexanderNF
First Match: 3/3/2021
Number of Matches: 23
Number of Wins: 0
Intangibles:
- Is able to switch from face to heel as needed by the company
- Brings character and personality to any role he is playing
- Amazing psychopath character on Sammy Guevara’s vlogs that displays his character skills
- Anthony Greene – @alternative_ag
First Match: 9/11/2021
Number of Matches: 7
Number of Wins: 1
Current Championships: FIP Florida Heritage Champion
Intangibles:
- Has exposure through NXT
- Great match against Adam Cole
- Very talented in the ring with a string character and personality
- Carlie Bravo – @CarlieBravo
First Match: 2/3/2021
Number of Matches: 19
Number of Wins: 0
Current Championships: IWE Mayhem Championship
Intangibles:
- Great tag team wrestler (partners with Shawn Dean)
- Engaging character and promo work
- Incredible self-branding and marketing
- The Wingmen (Drake, Bononi, Nemeth)
JD Drake — @RealJDDrake
First Match: 2/17/2021
Number of Matches: 28
Number of Wins: 3
Cezar Bononi — @CezarBononi_
First Match: 9/23/2020
Number of Matches: 39
Number of Wins: 10
Ryan Nemeth — @ryrynemnem
First Match: 1/20/2021
Number of Matches: 34
Number of Wins: 9
Group Intangibles:
- Strong tag team/group chemistry (including Peter Avalon)
- Odd couple group with a diverse skill set
- Unique identities that work extremely well together
This list has been composed and ranked in good fun. We at Bodyslam support all of these wrestlers and are excited to see how their journey continues.
We would also like to issue a huge thank you to Ryan Sullivan of The Mark Order Podcast for helping us scout and curate this list. Please follow them on Twitter and check them out on YouTube!
Follow Jaychele Nicole on Twitter @jaychelenicole.
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