What I said about WWE Superstars in 2010

I wrote this on August 18, 2010. I wrote about where I thought the RAW superstars will be in 5 or 10 years. I only wrote about RAW superstars so no CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Christian, Dolph Ziggler, Kane, or Rey Mysterio. It's not five years yet, but let's see which of the predictions could be correct in 2015 and which predictions are already wrong. In a few weeks, I might write a new prediction column about today's superstars. New comments will be in bold.

I wish I had done something like this 10 years ago because back then I thought guys like Edge and Jeff Hardy would never make it as single wrestlers and that Big Show and Kane would win several WWE titles. These predictions will be interesting to look at in five years and ten years.

Chris Jericho (age 39)- Right now I see Jericho coming close to the end of his career. I think he could have three or four more solid years with the WWE but I think he will have no more than two more major title reigns. (Jericho has not won a World Championship since I wrote this.)

In 2015 (five years)- Jericho will be retired.

Daniel Bryan (age 29)- I think Bryan has a lot of potential.

In 2015- I think Bryan will have won multiple major titles. (One-time World Champion as of right now.)

In 2020- I think Bryan may still be in the WWE and will be seen as a future HOFer.

           

Darren Young (age 30)- I'm not impressed by Darren Young at all.

In 2015- I think Darren will be out of the WWE. (Right now he's still in the WWE.)

David Hart Smith (age 24)- Doesn't impress me much now but he's very young.

In 2015- He will be a singles performer by then and I think he will have won either the IC or US title.

In 2020- He may be still in the WWE but I think he'll be like Christian in terms of accomplishments. (None of these predictions are likely to happen because he is no longer with the WWE. I thought DH Smith would have a long career in the WWE. He might return at some point, but I don't see that happening right now.)

David Otunga (age unknown but I think he is either 29 or 30)- Otunga has the mic skill. If he just develops some in-ring skill, he could be a solid wrestler.

In 2015- I see him as one of the top heels but not quite worthy of the WWE title. (Otunga is not quite a top heel right now, but he is on TV every week. This prediction could be correct in three years.)

Edge (age 36)- Like Jericho, Edge might have three or four solid years left but I think he'll be retired by 2015. (Edge did retire by 2015, but he definitely didn't have three or four years left.)

Evan Bourne  (age 27)- He's got great skills but I think by 2015 he'll be in TNA because I think the WWE will not find a good enough way to get him over because of his size. There's a possible chance he could become the new Rey Mysterio when Rey leaves in a few years...we'll see. (Evan Bourne is currently injured and missed a lot of time due to suspension. There's a very good chance he could end up in another wrestling company in three years.)

Ezekiel Jackson (age 32)- He's an interesting RAW superstar but I don't think he's interesting enough to be successful with all of the other promising superstars in the WWE. I'll say in five years he'll be with another company. (Jackson got a good push when he was the Intercontinental Champion, but now he is rarely on TV. I could see him getting released soon.)

Goldust (age 41)- Goldust seems to have a lot left to offer but unfortunately the WWE doesn't seem to want to use him. I say by 2015 he will be either gone from the WWE or making a brief appearance every six months like Hacksaw Jim Duggan would do. (Goldust is gone from the WWE, but right now it does not look like he will be making guest appearances in the near future. I don't know what Goldust did, but he might have burned his bridges with the WWE.)

The Great Khali (age 37)- Khalil is getting old and the WWE seems to have no interest in giving him a push. By 2015, he'll be 42 and I think we will no longer be in the WWE. (Nearly two years later, The Great Khali still hasn't gotten a push, but he's still on TV. He was on Smackdown last Friday. I still don't think he has a lot of years left so this prediction could be correct.)    

Heath Slater (age 27)- Heath Slater seems to have some potential. He's a hard guy to predict. He's not a bad wrestler.....I think he may have the potential to be WWE Champ after five years but not as a face. ("Potential to be WWE Champ after five years"?!  LOL!)

                       

John Cena (age 33)- In 2015, I think John Cena may still be the face. By then several stars like Undertaker, Triple H, Rey Mysterio, Kane, Big Show, Edge, and Jericho may be gone so they might still need him as champ if the WWE are unable to push the younger talent. Stone Cold was still headlining WrestleMania at 38 years old. In 2020, I think Cena at 43 will still be in the WWE but he'll be like Triple H is now and willl be taking many breaks and will rarely have the WWE belt. Great time to experiment with a brief heel turn. (I don't see anything wrong with this prediction. Two years later, Cena is still the Face of the Franchise and no one seems very close to taking that title away from him anytime soon.)         

John Morrison (age 30)- I still think Morrison has great potential. Once the old guys finally retire within five years, Morrison will have an opportunity to be a main event superstar and I am sure by 2015 he will have won the WWE title at least once. (I got this one wrong. Morrison is gone from the WWE right now and may or may not return. If he does return, I don't think he will win the WWE Championship.)

Justin Gabriel (age 29)- Justin Gabriel looks like he is the next Matt Hardy. By 2015, I think he will have won the IC title one time but he won't be WWE Champ. (Gabriel doesn't get used much right now. Good people are getting the IC title these days like Big Show, Cody Rhodes, and Christian. Gabriel needs to improve a lot if he's going to be the IC champion by 2015.)

           

Mark Henry (age 39)- I remember Mark Henry ten years ago and they barely used him. Ten years later he is almost the same. It wouldn't surprise me if Mark Henry is still in the WWE in five years but he won't be any more accomplished than he is now. (I'm already wrong. Mark Henry will probably be retired in 2015, but he will retire as a former World Champion.)

           

Michael Tarver (age 32 or 33)- Tarver is interesting....he could be a solid heel in five years with the WWE possibly having a shortage of good heels. I don't see him as WWE Champ however. (Tarver is gone from the WWE so this prediction is already wrong.)

           

The Miz (age 29)- This is an interesting one.

In 2015- The Miz will be the top heel in the WWE. I really believe that. And he will have won the WWE Championship more than once. (I wrote this before The Miz won the WWE Championship, but after he won Money in the Bank. I'm not sure now if he will become a multiple time champion.)

In 2020- I think The Miz may be still in the WWE unless he leaves for Hollywood and he might be talked about as a guy who could reach the Hall of Fame someday. (Miz might leave for Hollywood by 2015. I don't think he'll be seen as a future Hall of Famer.)

Primo (age 27)- Maybe he can join a tag team but other than that I don't see him being much different in five years than he is now. (Primo DID join a tag team and he isn't much different right now. I might have gotten this one right.)

R-Truth (age 38)- Truth is too old. Wasn't that great as Road Dogg's buddy ten years ago and he isn't that much better now. Won't be anything special in five years. (I was wrong about R-Truth. Thanks to his "Little Jimmy" gimmick, he's more popular now than he has ever been during his entire WWF/E career.)

Randy Orton (age 30)-
In 2015- Will have added more titles to his accomplishments and will probably be the face of the company. (Orton is in big trouble right now. Currently, he is the #3 guy behind John Cena and CM Punk. I don't think he will be the WWE's cash cow in three years.)
In 2020- Might still be the face...if not he will still be a main event superstar. (Orton may not be still in the WWE by 2020. A lot has changed in two years.)

Santino Marella (age 31)- I don't know what to say about Santino. All I will say is that I don't see him as ever becoming anything more than his current comic gimmick. He may go heel again but it probably won't help that much. (Santino hasn't turned heel yet, but I still think he has a comedian gimmick for life. That's not a bad thing, but it's unfortunate that people don't take Santino more seriously because of his gimmick.)

Sheamus (age 32)- Sheamus is still young enough to have a good future. In five years, he'll be battling The Miz for the top heel spot in the WWE. I don't think he'll ever go face but I do think he'll win several more titles. ("Don't think he'll ever go face"...wrong about that.)

Skip Sheffield (age 28)- Skip...hmmm...I think he could really be successful as one-half of a great heel tag team or as part of a stable but I don't think he'll ever be a great singles superstar (I was right about Skip, but I might end up being wrong about Ryan Reeves. His Ryback gimmick has a lot of potential right now.)

Ted DiBiase (age 27)- In 2015, Ted DiBiase might still be heel if Randy Orton is still face but he should be one of the better heels in the WWE. If he's good enough, John Cena may have a much lesser role in 2020. By 2020, he will probably have won multiple championships and might be face with the possibility of Orton wanting to be heel one more time before he retires. Overall, I think Ted has a good future. (Ted is injured right now and has been disappointing. Back then, I thought he was in The Marine 2 because the WWE was going to give him a huge babyface push and that there would several Orton vs. DiBiase WrestleMania matches. I was wrong about Ted I think. He still can be a great WWE Superstar, but he doesn't look right now like a guy who is going to be a Hall of Famer someday.)

Triple H (age 41)- I don't think he has much left to prove. I think by 2015 he may still be able to perform but probably won't to spend more time with his family and to start his job as the new vice president of the WWE. (My prediction is already correct in 2012, so I think I got this one correct. But this wasn't a great prediction because I wrote this while Triple H was out of action after being injured by Sheamus. He hasn't been full-time since Extreme Rules 2010.)

Tyson Kidd (age 30)- I'm not sure what to expect from Tyson Kidd but I don't think he will be a big star in five years but of course I could be wrong. (I might not be wrong. Tyson Kidd isn't even in mid-card hell right now...he's in jobber hell. Best case scenario, he's the next Kofi Kingston.)

Vladimir Kozlov (age 31)- I still like Kozlov's potential to be a great heel. It depends on how quickly the old guys start retiring. By 2015, Kozlov could be one of the top heels in the WWE. Or he could still be a mid-carder. (Oops.)

Wade Barrett (age 30)- Another guy with great potential. I know he's one of many guys who are capable of being a top heel but chances are not all of them will still be in the WWE in five years so I will say that Barrett like The Miz, Sheamus, Ted DiBiase, and Kozlov can be a top heel in the WWE with multiple championships. (Wade still has great potential, but he hasn't accomplished much two years later.)

William Regal (age 42)- Wouldn't surprise me if William Regal is still in the WWE in 2015 but maybe as the GM for the 14th time instead of a wrestler. (Regal is currently still involved with the WWE. Another GM stint for Regal is definitely possible.)

Zack Ryder (age 25)-  Zack is young and has potential. He could win the IC title someday but I think there's too much talent preventing him from ever being WWE Champ. (This would have been perfect if I said, "U.S. title".)