What if The Elite raided WWE?

For the first time since WCW competed with WWE, a non-WWE wrestling entity sold out a major arena this fall. With Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks at the helm, All-In was a phenomenon, selling out a 10,000 seat arena in the Chicago area before they promoted a single specific match. By all accounts, it was a PPV and streaming success story. As such, All-In suggested reason to believe that non-WWE wrestling could not only survive in WWE, but under the right circumstances even compete.

WWE purportedly offered big money to top talents involved with Rhodes to come aboard as not only hot acts in wrestling but as rising thorns in the side of the company from a business perspective. The latest word is that at least the key players declined, and are rumored to be starting their own promotion, All Elite Wrestling.

There are a lot of unanswered questions about what All Elite Wrestling might be. If it does come to fruition the way many pundits anticipate, there’s the intriguing possibility that Rhodes and company may go recruiting for talents who felt like Rhodes did when he was under WWE contract—underused or misused, and worthy of a better showcase for their talents. So what if The Elite does raid WWE? This article looks at five talents they may target.

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#5 Daniel Bryan

Daniel Bryan may fit better with The Elite than he ever has with WWE.

Daniel Bryan is the biggest star on this—a guy with a lengthy tenure, a loyal fanbase, and the clout of currently reigning as WWE Champion. However, an uncomfortable question remains on the backburner: is Bryan really a fit for WWE?

Prior to WWE finally clearing Bryan to return to the ring this past spring after a two year medically required retirement, it was clear Bryan thought he could safely wrestle, in the face of what WWE medical personnel suggested. Rumors ran rampant that Bryan would defect to a company like Ring of Honor or New Japan to ply his trade. Those companies were arguably better fits for him anyway, with their greater focus on work rate and a lot less of WWE's goofier antics.

It’s tough to imagine Bryan jumping to one of those other promotions now, if only for the pay cut and drop in notoriety it would entail. The Elite represent a unique opportunity to be a start of something new, though, Bryan could work his purest style while being treated as a main event talent in that context.

#4 Finn Balor

Finn Balor would not only be a prime recruit for The

Elite,

but a realistic one.

Finn Balor already has ties to The Elite, as the group is derived from the Bullet Club, which he once led in its early days. A guy with Balor’s Club pedigree, a Universal Championship and WWE name recognition under his belt, not to mention his raw talent and that he’s still in the prime of his career, has to be considered toward the top of The Elite’s wish list if they try to recruit talent out of the WWE fold.

Better yet, Balor may be one of the get-able upper tier stars The Elite would be interested in. Though he was pushed as the top star in NXT for an extended run and got the beginnings of a big main roster run when he won was crowned the first Universal Champion, he has since festered in upper mid-card purgatory. While All Elite Wrestling can’t realistically offer a platform competitive with WWE, it may nonetheless offer a unique opportunity for Balor to be the man in front of a US-based audience of hardcore fans.

#3 Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson

WWE may not miss Gallows and Anderson, but they could be real assets for All Elite Wrestling.

When fans hear the names Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, they don’t necessarily think of top of the line stars. However, Anderson and Gallows were a top-notch team for New Japan Wrestling, and more specifically the Bullet Club, before WWE signed them away. The duo got to skip NXT (perhaps owing in part to Gallows already having had main roster experience) and debuted as a dominant force. However, when the dust settled, they were quickly lost in the tag team shuffle, first on Raw and then on SmackDown.

That Anderson and Gallows wouldn’t be the best-featured team makes a degree of sense when you consider them alongside The Usos, New Day, and The Bar, which are all highly entertaining units in their own right. Gallows and Anderson could be proper tag champs for an upstart promotion, though, particularly given their proven capacity to work as faces or heels as the circumstances demand it.

#2 Shinsuke Nakamura

Shinsuke Nakamura could be instrumental to All Elite Wrestling's international appeal.

Shinsuke Nakamura came to the US for the opportunity to max out his star potential on the biggest stage possible with WWE. After a run on top of NXT, it looked as though WWE might go all the way with him on the main roster, given a Royal Rumble push en route to a WrestleMania world title shot. Whether WWE lost confidence in him, or never fully had it, to begin with, Nakamura didn’t win a WWE Championship. A heel turn and the gimmick of constantly giving low blows to his opponents didn’t necessarily do him any favors and now Nakamura looks stuck in the mid-card for the foreseeable future.

The King of Strong Style could thrive in All Elite Wrestling, working talents he has thrived opposite before, and ones better accustomed to his style of ring work. Moreover, should the company strike a partnership with New Japan, as would make some sense given the foundational talents involved, Nakamura could provide an optimal bridge and instant star who appeals to a crossover audience.

#1 Sami Zayn

Sami Zayn could have a higher ceiling with The Elite.

Sami Zayn has become a prime example of the differences between NXT and the main roster. His story of rising through the ranks and attaining glory, only to have it stolen from him was positively riveting in developmental and made him one of the NXT audience’s favorite performers. He got over well on the main roster, too, first as a face and then surprising well as an annoying heel character. Nonetheless, time and again WWE has under-served his considerable talent and connection with the crowd, to the point that while his return from injury should be one of the most eagerly anticipated in WWE, most of his fans are now pretty jaded about his prospects.

Zayn arrived at WWE after honing his craft in a variety of smaller promotions, and most notably Ring of Honor. His style of work would mesh nicely with the core Elite talents. Additionally, his babyface character could be a near perfect foil opposite The Elite as a heel faction—if they push themselves as such—and allow Zayn to operate as his white meat, underdog best against them.