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Perhaps the greatest honor that can be given to a WWE Superstar is when fans start asking who will be the next 'you'. For much of the 80s, it was Hulk Hogan leading the way with main event after main event and championship after championship. By the time 1993 came around and the Hulkster was gone from the company, Vince McMahon knew he needed to find the next Hogan - which, incidentally, did not turn out to be Lex Luger!
Just under a decade later, WWE found themselves in a similar problem. After relying on the drawing power of Stone Cold Steve Austin for so many years, 2002 was all about finding the next person to take over. While it is great for a company like WWE to have such a high profile name to depend upon, the company must always be looking towards the future in case the worst should happen.
For better or worse, John Cena has been that man over the past 15 years, but that doesn't mean Vince and the rest of the WWE Universe were not busy asking themselves who the next John Cena would be. Here are 5 men who were once given that important accolade:
#5 WWE's prodigal son: Cody Rhodes
The Cody Rhodes that left WWE was nothing more than a failed experiment. Even with exceptional achievements like re-introducing the classic Intercontinental championship and the feud with SHIELD, Cody never shattered that glass ceiling. However, the Cody that returned is the complete opposite. The American Nightmare has improved within the ring, has mic skills better than most wrestlers, and has very high merchandise sales.
Cody's heartfelt fan meets are already viral on social media, and given that he's one of the top babyfaces of RAW, rumors of him being the next John Cena will not surprise anyone.
However, Cody hasn't achieved Cena's level of popularity yet. The American Nightmare needs to represent WWE more outside the squared circle and should actively take part in Make-A-Wish campaigns to become the top babyface of not only RAW, but the entire WWE.
#4 Drew McIntyre
As wrestling fans, we've grown used to taking things we hear from WWE with a pinch of salt. The company, like any other in its position, will add hyperbole to almost every piece of media they put out in order to get fans excited. This might take the form of Michael Cole exaggerating over how good a certain match was, or hearing from management that the newcomer is going to be a huge star.
Which is why when Vince McMahon once introduced Drew McIntyre to the WWE Universe as the 'chosen one', a few of us were buying it. How could the owner of WWE, somebody normally so candid about his thoughts on superstars, make such a bold statement?
Perhaps it was out of hope more than expectation, but despite our suspicions, there were a few of us who thought McIntyre was perhaps destined for greatness. He had the WWE 'look' and wasn't too bad in the ring. Because of the boss's comments, we all watched his early career with huge intrigue, but eventually reality hit and we knew he was just going to be another guy who failed to live up to Vince's expectations.
With the Scotsman returning to the company to win the WWE Championship and being one of the top faces on SmackDown, McIntyre has finally become what Vince McMahon wanted him to be. However, given WWE's focus on younger talent and Roman Reigns' record-breaking reign, it seems highly doubtful that he will ever reach Cena's level of main event status.
#3 The Miz
After a lot of hard work and skepticism from fans, The Miz has managed to grow into one of the most effective heels the WWE has seen in a long time. His ability to work off a wide variety of opponents is truly impressive and nothing appears to be slowing him down.
However, for a brief time around Wrestlemania 29, The Miz turned face. While not a complete disaster, fans weren't really able to connect with him the way the company presumably hoped. He did have some useful screen time with Ric Flair and even adopted the Figure Four Leg Lock from the Nature Boy. But despite this, the plan didn't last too long and he was soon back to being a cowardly heel once again.
No doubt this experiment would have been WWE's way of testing out how the fans reacted to babyface Miz. If successful, they could have had another John Cena on their hands. Whatever you might say about his abilities in the ring, there's no denying he is one hell of a talker. If the fans had agreed, The Miz could have taken the reigns from Cena, particularly with the media/PR side of things.
In fact, The Miz already does more for the company in terms of interviews and guest appearances than most others. So, this would have been a role he would have found comfortable. However, in Vince's eyes, if you don't work as a face, you'll never be able to truly represent the company the way Cena does.
#2 Ted DiBiase Jr.
Looking at the current state of the three men involved in the Legacy faction, it isn't hard to understand why there was such an initial future promise for the group. Randy Orton is currently one of the most entertaining acts as part of RK-Bro, elevating the tag team division. We already talked about Cody Rhodes earlier. But Ted DiBiase, the one most people thought would one day be WWE Champion, is nowhere to be seen.
Obviously, the problems started as soon as the group broke up. In their WrestleMania 26 Triple Threat match, neither of the young lions came out on top, and instead, Orton picked up yet another pointless victory. After this, Rhodes and DiBiase stayed heel and struggled to do anything with what they had been given.
Despite all of this, many fans still spoke about Ted being a future player for WWE. He had a decent look, fairly good wrestling skills, and a Hall of Famer father. There were even rumors at one point of him being the man to end the Undertaker's WrestleMania streak.
Sadly, this did not come to pass. When he eventually turned face following a feud with Rhodes, it all felt too little too late. The Ted Jr. ship had all but sailed and even a 'DiBiase Posse' couldn't revive his fortunes.
#1 Mr Kennedy
Out of everyone on this list, Mr. Kennedy's story is perhaps the most unfortunate. Here is somebody who genuinely could have led the promotion throughout much of 2000s and beyond, but due to a series of unforeseen circumstances this was never allowed to happen.
Mr Kennedy clearly had a lot going for him early on in his career. When you saw his entrance, his look and his microphone dropping from the ceiling, you instantly took notice. He would go on to gain victories over some of the company's biggest names, including The Undertaker, Kane and Batista, which made his career look like an easy climb up the ladder to success.
Our suspicions seemed all but confirmed when Kennedy won the Money in the Bank briefcase at WrestleMania 23. Unfortunately, it would not be long before the bad luck started to pile. Just a few months after this victory, an injury forced him to drop the briefcase to Edge.
It was also around this time that the Vince McMahon illegitimate child storyline was taking place, and it was widely assumed that Kennedy would be revealed as the mystery man. Again, however, plans were changed as the promising superstar found himself caught up in various wellness policy violations - leading to a highly regrettable Hornswoggle angle.
Kennedy did receive a third opportunity in 2009 when he was brought in as the mystery team member on an edition of RAW. But even then, fans already had a sense that whatever plans were once in the pipelines had since been disposed of. Following a backstage spat with Randy Orton, Kennedy parted ways with the WWE along with any hopes of a new John Cena on the horizon.
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