Call them the “King/Queen of Prospects” (the K/QoP). Basically, a belt reserved for wrestlers 25-or-under. Here’s a list of men and women who would qualify:
Men: Daniel Garcia, Dante Martin, Darius Martin, Action Andretti, Hook, Komander, Kyle Fletcher, Lee Johnson, Nick Wayne, Parker Boudreaux, Cole Karter.
Women: Anna Jay, Julia Hart, Billie Starkz, Skye Blue, Leyla Hirsch.
(That info comes from https://www.thesmackdownhotel.com/roster/aew/ and is likely incomplete).
PROS:
- Acts as a great way to start long-term rivalries between top prospects.
- Shines a spotlight on young talent. Could be good for the demo?
- Gives insight into who Tony likes and wants to push down the road.
- Offers new story-telling devices. Example: A 24-year old has 3 months before they turn 25 to make good on their promise of one-day becoming the K/QoP.
- Could make Forbidden Door matches between AEW / NJPW’s top prospects more interesting.
- Could act as a recruiting tool for top prospects. “Come to AEW and we’ll let you have a run as K/QoP.”
CONS:
- There are too many belts. Enough with the belts.
- Without Dark/Elevation, there isn’t enough time to feature green wrestlers.
- There aren’t enough prospects under-25 to make it interesting. Especially on the women’s side.
What do you think?
I think it could be worth trying but they’d need to sign a lot more women to make it work. And without Dark/Elevation, I think a chunk of the stories/matches might have to take place in RoH…or maybe even the indies? That could be fun.