With dramatic storylines, spine-chilling bouts and billions of fans and followers from around the world, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is often popularly hailed as one of the most prominent launch pads for wrestlers, in order to create an influential buzz and build a roaring momentum for their wrestling career ahead.
Over the years, numerous legendary and iconic WWE wrestlers have made their successful debuts that have left a high-octane impact on the annals of the World Wrestling Entertainment company and left the fans in utter shock after fearlessly defeating the greats in the format. Have you ever wondered about the most shocking debuts in the decades-long history of World Wrestling Entertainment? Well, let’s find out.
In this article we will take a look at the top four most shocking debuts that still resonate in the realms of the WWE.
Top 4 WWE Debuts That Shook the Industry
Kane’s Dreadful Debut At The Bad Blood 1997
The American actor and professional wrestler Glenn Thomas Jacobs, often popularly referred to by his nickname “Kane”, undoubtedly made one of the most shocking and memorable debuts in the history of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) at the Bad Blood event in 1997. With a dreadful and fiery storyline about being The Undertaker’s Brother, Kane entered the bout with the lights, the fire, the fearless approach to tearing a door off — well, it undoubtedly felt like a lifetime experience for the fans of WWE to witness one of the most hyped characters of the format come to life.
If you’re still wondering, the Undertaker’s storyline claimed he had a younger brother who supposedly died in a fire that destroyed their family funeral home. Therefore, witnessing Kane making his debut at the Bad Blood event in 1997 seeking cold-blooded revenge on the undertaker left the fans in utter shock.
John Cena’s Fearless Debut At The SmackDown 2002
At the second spot in our list of the top four most shocking debuts in the history of WWE, we have John Cena’s unanticipated yet fearless debut at the SmackDown event on 27 June 2002 that not only left the fans looking up at him as the “next big thing” in the world of WWE but also established him as one of the most dreadful wrestlers of the platform.
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Well, John Cena created waves after responding to an open challenge from Kurt Angle, who was considered one of the most prominent and deadly wrestlers in WWE at the time. Unlike the majority of the wrestlers who are given an incredible hike before their official WWE debut, John Cena remained a low-key character with no promos or vignettes. Although John Cena ended up losing the match, his fearless bout against Kurt Angle undoubtedly established him as one of the most deadly wrestlers of that era. John Cena’s gutsy move of slapping Kurt Angle twice left the fans even more shocked.
CM Punk’s Roaring Debut At The ECW 2006
The American professional wrestler and actor Phillip Jack Brooks, often popularly referred to by his ring-name “CM Punk”, sent waves of shock across the wrestling world with his roaring debut at the ECW 2006 event after he ended up defeating Justin Credible with his signature finishing move “Anaconda Vise”.
Well, the moment CM Punk walked inside the ring with multiple tattoos, straight edge and MMA-inspired gear, he undoubtedly came through as one of the most interesting characters ever witnessed by the fans of WWE. Although in the beginning, fans did not anticipate him clinching the bout against Justin Credible, he left no stone unturned and left the fans shocked with his well-practised brutal moves like a seasoned pro. Right after his shocking yet glorious debut, the WWE fans started calling him “the next Paul Heyman guy.”
AJ Styles’ Spine-Chilling Debut At The Royal Rumble 2016
Finally, at the fourth spot in our list of the top four most shocking debuts that still resonate in the realms of the WWE, we have AJ Styles’ soul-stirring debut at the Royal Rumble 2016. Well, even before making his star-studded WWE debut, AJ Styles was hailed as one of the most successful wrestlers with multiple TNA World Championships, X-Division titles and two IWGP Heavyweight Championship titles.
Interestingly, unlike most new signings, AJ skipped NXT entirely and debuted directly on the main roster, speaking volumes about his dominance even before he entered the WWE ring. With his brutal moves throughout the 29-minute-long bout against the most prominent names of the WWE, including Roman Reigns, Kevin Owens, and Chris Jericho, AJ Styles undoubtedly arrived in style and left the fans in utter shock.
