The road to the WWE is different for every Superstar. Ideally, they are found or discovered early on in their careers and ascend through the ranks of the world’s premier wrestling promotion. However, there are several prominent wrestlers on the main roster that spent years and years in the Indies or with other companies before finally getting their chance to join the big leagues.
Let’s take a look at five superstars that took the long road to WWE and joined the company very late in their careers.
#5 Samoa Joe – 36 Years Old
Samoa Joe is definitely one of those superstars who has been a journeyman throughout his career. “The Samoan Submission Machine” has spent time in over 10 different wrestling promotions during his career, including extensive stints in TNA and Ring of Honor. He finally signed with WWE at the age of 36 and was sent to their “developmental” brand, NXT. After almost two years there, Samoa Joe finally debuted on Raw this past year at the age of 37 as Triple H’s “Destroyer”.
While Joe has a lot of lost time to make up for in WWE, “The Samoan Submission Machine” was a massive star in NXT and has now become a big-time player on Monday nights. He may have gotten to the big leagues a little late in his career, but Samoa Joe seems intent on making the most major significant impact he possibly can.
#4 Shinsuke Nakamura – 36 Years Old
Could you imagine watching Shinsuke Nakamura’s entire career take place in a WWE ring? Truth be told, there is no chance that he would have become the same character. The King of Strong Style took to New Japan Pro Wrestling like a duck to water and went from strength to strength. After entering the MMA world for a short period, Nakamura became the youngest person to ever win the IWGP Heavyweight Title in 2003.
For the next decade, Nakamura was a staple in the wrestling world in Japan, becoming a 5-time IWGP Intercontinental Champion and 3-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion and also winning the G1 Climax and New Japan Cup tournaments.
In January of 2016, at the age of 36, Nakamura revealed that he would be leaving NJPW and signing with WWE. However, he would not go right to the main roster as Nakamura was sent to NXT to start off his WWE career. Almost exactly a year later, Nakamura debuted on Smackdown Live.
#3 Diamond Dallas Page – 45 Years Old
Diamond Dallas Page’s road to the top is one of the strangest ones you'll ever see. DDP didn’t even start his career in wrestling until he was well into his 30’s. He signed with WCW in 1991 and headed to the Power Plant as a 35-year-old rookie. It took Page several years to hone his craft, but when he did, DDP exploded onto the scene and became one of WCW’s most popular superstars during its heydey.
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He was also, arguably, the biggest name from WCW to immediately make the jump to WWE when Vince bought out his competition in 2001. After one of the craziest career paths to get to WWE, DDP debuted with the company at the age of 45 in June of 2001. His time in WWE was quite underwhelming and short-lived (he was in WWE for less than a year), but he remains one of the most popular superstars ever to step foot in the squared circle.
#2 Sting – 55 Years Old
Sting is one of the greatest pro wrestlers of all-time and is one of the few superstars that turned down the opportunity to go to WWE after the company bought out WCW back in 2001. Sting was still under a guaranteed contract with WCW, and instead of joining WWE, he decided to wait out the rest of his contract with his old company.
Sting eventually moved on to TNA and spent over a decade with the Nashville-based promotion. The reason for Sting not going to WWE was that he did not trust the company to keep his reputation intact. The concern was understandable considering what they did to most of the guys from WCW that came over to WWE during that time.
Finally, in 2014 and at the age of 55, WWE and Sting agreed to terms, and “The Icon” was signed to a WWE contract. He would go on to feud with The Authority over the next few months, culminating with a one-on-one match against “The Game” at Wrestlemania 31.
Sting even got a World Title shot against Seth Rollins months later at Night of Champions. However, he suffered a serious injury during that match, and it looks like he will never wrestle again. At least, we got to see the Vigilante in a WWE ring.
#1 AJ Styles – 37 Years Old
AJ Styles is a name that wrestling fans have been familiar with for over 15 years now. After beginning his career in WCW during their final months in existence, Styles made a couple of appearances on minor WWE shows and was actually offered a developmental deal by the company.
However, AJ turned it down because he knew he wasn’t ready for the big state at his young age. Styles then wrestled in every major (or not so major) wrestling promotion besides WWE, excelling in runs with ROH (twice), TNA (especially), and NJPW.
However, for “The Phenomenal One”, there was always something missing from one heck of a wrestling career: being a star in WWE. In 2016, at the age of 37, Styles and WWE finally agreed to a deal that brought him to the biggest wrestling company on Earth.
Since debuting at the Rumble last year, AJ Styles has solidified his spot among the best in the world, winning the WWE Title and beating WWE’s biggest star, John Cena, on several occasions. Not only has his performance in the ring been phenomenal, but he has also become one of the most popular superstars in the company; he looks set to be a main cog in the WWE machine for years to come.
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