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Like any competition, wrestling is ultimately a zero-sum game. There are only so many spots on the roster, and far fewer at the main event level. For there to be winners, there must be losers.
For every star who rises, another must fall.
Whose turn is it this week?
Rising Star of the Week: Myles Born
Myles who? Since debuting in NXT in June 2022, Borne has toiled on the lower mid-card, losing far more matches than he wins. In September 2023 he joined Drew Gulak, Charlie Dempsey, and Damon Kemp in the heel faction which would go on to be called the No Quarter Catch Crew.
Even after losing Gulak and adding Wrenn Sinclair, the group has made relatively little impact, solidly losing a feud with Tony D’Angelo’s “The Family.”
Borne has had very little mic time and has had few opportunities to differentiate himself from other members of the NQCC, a group which itself has little definition other than being heels and competent workers. He’s spent the last year as an unimportant, undefined member of an unimportant, undefined faction.
All that is beginning to change. April would see Bourne branch out from the NQCC to team with Je’Von Evans in a losing effort against DarkState – the first opportunity for him to stand out.
Then, the shocker: On the May 6 NXT, Borne shocked the audience by winning a 25-man battle royal to become the no. 1 contender for the NXT Championship. The next week he would reveal that he is partially deaf, and delivered an impassioned, relatable promo: “I don’t want to just be known as the deaf kid. I want to be judged by my ability, not by my disability.”
Borne has a compelling story and a mission statement anyone can get behind while benefiting from a push no one saw coming. Against all odds, Borne will face Oba Femi for the NXT Title at Battleground. While he has seemingly no chance of winning, I’m excited to see him try.
From virtual unknown to main event title shot, Bourne has the biggest opportunity of his career next week, by a considerable margin. The NXT audience hopes to see him rise to the occasion.
A star is Borne? We’ll find out next Saturday.
First Runner-up: Dominik Mysterio
When he debuted as a WWE wrestler in 2020, Dominik seemed to lack all of the traits that made his father Rey successful. He had a below average look, marginal wrestling skills, and no apparent charisma. Dominik had all of the trappings of a “nepo baby.”
He was fortunate to have started his WWE tenure during the COVID quarantine. Without live audiences to reject him, Dominik was able to fly under the radar for several months. When wrestling crowds returned, Dominik hid in his father’s shadow for a time in their tag team, winning the Smackdown Tag Team Championship in May. By then it was apparent that fans rejected Domenik, as he clearly lacked the talent to justify his place on the card. Turning heel against his father a few months later was a natural move, aligning his persona with the way fans felt about him.
The heat on Dominik was intense, and he instantly became the most over heel in the company. Fans rejection of him came not from his talent at portraying a villain but from his lack of talent. His wrestling ability and mic work hadn’t improved nearly enough to truly earn him such a prominent spot. Like Vicki Guerrero 20 years before, he was resented because he had been promoted beyond his ability due to nepotism alone. WWE creative made this resentment work to their advantage by making Dirty Dom a villain.
A year and a half later, Dom’s heat has cooled as his performances in the ring and on the mic have improved. His Backlash match against Penta was Dom’s best to date, with both men looking equally as agile and adept. His backstage skits with the Judgement Day are consistently well done (and a guilty pleasure of mine).
Dom no longer stands out as a lame performer. Perhaps it is no coincidence, then, that audiences have begun to embrace him. After years of being an over-pushed dud, Dirty Dom is finally beginning to earn his place in the WWE, and fans are taking notice. It’s become nearly as fun to cheer him as it once was to jeer him.
Does Dominik Mysterio have what it takes to be a monster babyface? Who knows?
Either way, he’s about to get his shot.
Second Runner-up: Nia Jax
Jax’s heel heat, similar to Dom’s, has historically come from a mismatch between her ability and her place on the card. Jax has been pushed as a perennial main eventer in her nine years on the main roster, in contrast to her poor in-ring ability, limited mic skills, and reputation for legitimately injuring opponents (Bayley, Kairi Sane, and Becky Lynch). Like Dom, she has been accused of benefiting unfairly from nepotism, given her familial ties to the Rock and Roman Reigns.
Like Dom’s, Jax’s in-ring abilities have improved significantly as of late. She sounds credible in promos, carries herself fairly in the ring, and hasn’t caused any apparent injuries.
Enter her main event match against Tiffany Stratton on Smackdown. While it was not the “instant classic” Joe Tessitore would have us believe, the match was surprisingly good. Jax was motivated, capable, and compelling, seemed a credible winner, and pulled her own weight in the encounter.
Amazingly, Jax pulled off a better championship match with Stratton than Charlotte Flair did a month prior. Jax proved, perhaps for the first time, that when motivated she truly belongs in the main event scene. Will fans finally embrace her as they have Dominik?
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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FADING STAR OF THE WEEK: GIULIA
An eight-year veteran of Stardom, New Japan, and the independent circuit, Giulia was already an adept ring worker when she debuted in NXT last September. Introduced as a top talent, Giulia’s second match saw her challenge Roxane Perez for the NXT Women’s Championship. After only a few months on the brand, Giulia would defeat Perez for the title. An overnight success, Giulia seemed the brightest prospect on NXT. Like Iyo Sky before her, her potential seems only limited by ability to connect with the fans in an unfamiliar language.
After a two-month reign on top, it fell apart. An injury forced her to take time off, dropping the title to Stephanie Vaquer on her way out. Her return in April saw Gulia turn heel against former ally Vaquer, but she failed to regain the title at Stand & Deliver. Giulia went on to lose clean to Jordynne Grace in a number one contender’s match a few weeks later. Her first match on Monday’s Raw went no better. Tagging with Perez against Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky, the end saw Giulia pinned cleanly by Ripley after an excellent main event.
Giulia has had little in the way of introduction to the Raw audience, besides assaulting Sky and Ripley and interfering in their matches. Like Perez, she would benefit significantly from being the opportunity to show more of her character. Both have been presented as generic heels who put on good matches before losing.
While there are plenty of chances to recover, Giulia is not been positioned to make a big splash on the main roster. A breakup with Perez promises some sort of change. Perhaps she’ll be given an opportunity at a prominent role once her English improves enough to deliver a more compelling promo. Until then, she seems bound for the mid-card.
Giulia deserves better.
1st Runner-up: Wren Sinclair
Borne’s NQCC compatriot, Sinclair has been featured in a number of high profile matches the year following her NXT debut in January 2024. Most prominently, she competed in a six-woman ladder match to crown the inaugural NXT North American Women’s Champion last April and in the Iron Survivor Challenge in December.
Sinclair’s exuberant personality did not go unnoticed by fans, who increasingly voiced their support as 2024 came to a close. Her in-ring acumen had improved as well. A promising up-and-comer, Sinclair seemed poised for a more prominent role.
Surpsingly, 2025 saw Sinclair’s role on TV greatly diminished. Frequently seen on TV in a supporting role with other members of the NQCC, she has had little to no speaking roles and virtually no matches.
Her ability and charisma seem a can’t miss prospect for opportunities at some point in the future, but for now, Sinclair simmers on the NXT back burner.
2nd Runner-up: War Raiders
Seven years of stop-start pushes, bad booking (their goofy “Anything You Can Do, We Can Do Better” program with the Street Profits), unfortunate presentations (“The Viking Experience”), and lamentable injuries have kept the War Raiders from reaching their potential as a top-tier tag team in WWE.
Their second reign as tag team champions this past year was unremarkable with the exception of an intense match with the Judgement Day which saw J.D. McDonagh seriously injured.
The War Raiders feud with the New Day has been lamentable. The teams had poor chemistry in the ring and on the mic, culminating in arguably the worst match at this year’s WrestleMania. We can only hope that the Raiders’ loss to American Made on Raw signals the end of their title contention.
After so many failed reinventions and defining losses, It’s difficult to see a path forward for the War Raiders at this point other than putting over teams who retain more of their potential.
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