Mock Draft 2025
NFL Draft season is upon us, and with so many mock drafts out there trying to predict who will go where - we thought, why not try doing one for pro wrestling of notable free agents? And since we here at WrestleWatch curate the Pro Wrestling Free Agency Tracker, we have a decent pool of talent to choose from in such a draft.
We had four contributors take the reigns of the three major promotions we keep an eye on: Ryan for AEW, Marlowe for WWE, and a tag team effort by AJ & TC handling the two-headed-beast of Bushiroad - NJPW & Stardom. Each of us had to consider what each promotion was looking for in talent and who would help their promotion most. Available talent included anybody currently on the Free Agency Tracker, anybody not currently on who has a contract expiring within the next year, freelancers, and anybody currently signed to a promotion not listed above (TNA, Marigold, RevPro, CMLL, AAA, etc). Here’s how the conversations leading to each draft pick shook out:
Round 1:
Ryan (AEW): For AEW’s first pick in the draft, my strategy was looking at where AEW could level up its roster with someone who wrestles a complementary style to who is already at the top of the card. I think the top of the men's card is solid right now with lots of young guys leading the charge. I don't think AEW needs an older guy here with this pick, so I thought I should try to find someone who complements the upper card women like Toni, Mariah, Willow, Stat, Mercedes, and Athena. And since Becky Lynch isn’t available anymore (I think getting another bona fide star known to North American audiences would’ve been perfect), AEW’s harkening to their slogan: “where the best wrestle” and picking Sareee.
TC (NJPW & Stardom): Sniping Sareee from me was rude.
Ryan: Yeah I had it down to three people, I’ll talk about the other two if/when they get picked.
TC: I’m juggling between two picks.
Ryan: With Sareee, she's just one of the best wrestlers in the world right now, she's 28, she fits in perfectly with the in-ring style, and I think her style would translate really well into AEW and help her transcend the language gap more than the other options.
Marlowe (WWE): I am thinking through a few picks here. My general idea is not to rock the boat too much. The Fed is successful so most signings should be ones that will keep the status quo. That being said I want to find little ways to make the Fed more interesting while still staying within the general guidelines. I think the women’s division is potentially unfixable without a bigger overhaul than this draft can do but I am going to make an effort anyway. So with my first pick I am choosing Gabe Kidd.
TC: Nice.
Marlow: He is young, he has natural star power. He is great in ring and a fantastic promo. He can be a heel that has nuance and pathos unlike most fed heels and he has some face potential as well. I can see him making almost everyone he wrestles with better.
Ryan: I'd be interested in hearing a Gabe Kidd promo where he has to censor himself
Marlowe: I think he can do it. He gave a promo on LA morning tv once that was absolutely fantastic, he can certainly go off on Netflix.
TC: With the yen down, NJPW is relying on the West to make up the difference in revenue….
TC: Getting AJ Styles back in the fold would be huge for the western expansion and he'd slide right into the BC Civil War era.
Ryan: I was thinking you might go with AJ.
Round 1 Recap:
AEW - Sareee
WWE - Gabe Kidd
Bushiroad - AJ Styles
Round 2:
TC: STARDOM adds one of the top young women's wrestlers in the world and simultaneously cripples one of their primary competitors by picking Utami Hayashishita.
Ryan: Utami was one of my three I was looking at with the first pick. With Utami now dropped in, I'm intrigued who else from Marigiold might get taken!
Marlowe: Bushiroad has influenced my draft strategy here by causing me to start a run on retirement acts. I had planned to draft some older guys but thought I could sneak them in later rounds. So with Pick 2 I am bringing Edge back to the WWE Universe.
Ryan: Ooo interesting pick!
Marlowe: I think he is a big enough star to headline a night of Mania and can have a solid run of “Edge’s last night ever in your city.” He can still wrestle, he can promo better than ever, and he has stated his goal is to put over younger guys before he retires. Great locker room guy who can draw a house.
Ryan: Fits in with how Bushiroad in this would be rolling from Tanahashi's retirement tour to AJ Styles; WWE would roll from Cena to Edge.
Ryan: You know what, I'll also be inspired by Bushiroad selecting AJ Styles... And look, I know he's not a flat earther but there are some things about it that make sense…
Ryan: AEW selects Mayu Iwatani. She's kind of done everything she can with Stardom, she's still relatively young, and she's had rumors of AEW for a while. Why not do the dew and get another Stardom hand through the door to match up with your upper card? Mayu was also who I was 50/50 on with the first pick; the 3rd possibility was Utami.
Round 2 Recap:
Bushiroad - Utami Hayashishita
WWE - Adam Copeland/Edge
AEW - Mayu Iwatani
Round 3:
Ryan: With Sareee and Mayu, I think AEW now has the top of their women's card solidified and they can move on to looking at other areas… While the tag scene could use more names, it's not lacking right now. And while I could see them taking one of the older names on the board especially with Edge back in WWE, I think what AEW needs is to get a next gen men's wrestler. So for my next pick, I'll be taking Leon Slater.
Ryan: He's super young, he's going to be big some day, and this helps build up the next wave of young guys for AEW.
Marlowe: I am going to continue and complete with my nostalgia run by bringing (Chris) Jericho back to WWE.
Ryan: It surprises me, but it's not shocking.
Marlowe: Mostly the same reasoning as Cope. And WWE loves to find ways to dig at AEW so signing one of the big original signings and then throwing him into a goodbye feud with Cody will fuel IWC discourse.
Ryan: I could def see WWE wanting him back for the PR and to cash in on another nostalgia run.
AJ (NJPW & Stardom): Alright, for our next two picks, we wanted to focus on one main thing: the future. People that can help Bushiroad grow and succeed for years to come—decades even. in addition, we wanted to continue the trend of setting up NJPW and Stardom as the places to be, attracting talent from a global stage and giving diverse talent a place to succeed. For our next two picks, we are drafting ...Persephone and…
Round 3 Recap:
AEW - Leon Slater
WWE - Chris Jericho
Bushiroad - Persephone
Round 4:
AJ: … Michael Oku. Two young, impressive stars with a lot of talent and even more potential.
Ryan: Oku was exactly who I thought you'd go for.
Marlowe: Oku is a perfect pick for New Japan.
Ryan: I considered him for my pick but I think him being 31 made me want to go with Slater instead. I even thought to myself, "... New Japan probably wants Oku too," when I had my pick.
Marlowe: OK with my next pick I am choosing to strengthen the women’s division which badly needs an infusion of talent by selecting Masha Slamovich.
Ryan: Ooo intriguing pick.
Marlowe: She is young, she is a phenomenal performer, and she can do a hard-hitting style that the division needs. She can bring in death match wrestling lite which the Fed could also use for women. Additionally she is an indie darling and gives us IWC hipster street cred to make us look better in the dirt sheets.
Ryan: I'm going to play a little defense here with who AEW should keep... I think losing Cope and Jericho are fine enough loses. They're older, they're going to retire, it happens. My next pick is a duo I think AEW should try to keep as best as they can, and that's Top Flight.
Ryan: They still have a lot of time left ahead of them, and I don't think it's over yet for them in AEW. They haven't hit their ceiling yet.
Round 4 Recap:
Bushiroad - Michael Oku
WWE - Masha Slamovich
AEW - Top Flight
Round 5:
Ryan: And if we're losing two nostalgia acts with Cope and Jericho, how about get some dream matches back in exchange? They've been teasing this for years, so why not finally have it happen? You may be asking ... who? who? who?
Ryan: It’s a New Day, yes it is! AEW would love to have these guys in the fold. They've pretty much wanted them since Day 1. And while not as notable as Edge or Jericho, they fill a bit of the ~nostalgia~ gap.
Marlowe: I love the idea of New Day in AEW. I could see them becoming instantly fresh and revitalized.
Ryan: I agree. They'd have a lot of new matchups, plus I'd be really interested in seeing this version of Hurt Syndicate vs New Day
Marlowe: Going to follow the trend here and make a protection pick and keep Sami Zayn.
Marlowe: He brings a unique energy to the WWE. A guy who can do comedy and serious and always excels in ring.
Ryan: I really did consider Sami there, but I think his solo value isn’t as high as other potential picks.
TC: Bushiroad is going with Street Profits.
TC: NJPW’s heavyweight tag scene needs beefing up with Goto off doing singles stuff. Also we can split Ford off eventually and have him be a big singles dude.
Ryan: Street Profits in the New Japan tag scene would be interesting.
Round 5 Recap:
AEW - The New Day
WWE - Sami Zayn
Bushiroad - Street Profits
Round 6:
TC: We’re bringing Bea Priestley (fka WWE’s Blair Davenport) back to Stardom.
TC: It feels like a very obvious fit.
Ryan: Priestley makes a lot of sense yeah.
Marlowe: Going with another safe pick. It’s WWE so we mostly just need to stay the course. That being said I am taking Josh Alexander.
Ryan: Josh Alexander is a spicy pick.
Marlowe: He’s a perfect Fed fit. He is good in ring, wrestles strong, and can play a heel or face equally well. Could easily beef up the mid card scene or main event for a top title at a lesser PLE. We also know he can tag well which adds some extra value to the signing.
Ryan: I think for this pick, I have to just make one that makes sense who just fits into AEW, because they’ve been there before. I'm going with Mina Shirakawa.
Like Mayu, she's someone who has pretty much finished up what they will in Stardom so it won't hurt ~the relationship~ to have her come to AEW full-time. She's already over in the promotion too, which makes this an easy one.
Round 6 Recap:
Bushiroad - Bea Priestley
WWE - Josh Alexander
AEW - Mina Shirakawa
Round 7:
Ryan: And with the snake, I’ll pick another name who just fits with AEW - this time due to a lot of his buds already being there.
Ryan: I'm going with Cedric Alexander. Do I think they should necessarily break out the pocketbook for him? Eh. Do I think AEW would? Definitely.
Marlowe: This is certainly going to sound unorthodox but I am drafting AJ Francis aka Top Dolla back to WWE.
Marlowe: WWE believes he has main event level talent and a charisma and presence that is unmatched by other current superstars. Teaming him with B Fab will reunite Hit Row 2.0 as the Feds newest bad ass stable.
TC: Bushiroad selects the surfing enthusiast Shinsuke Nakamura.
Ryan: Shinsuke fits the idea of getting someone back for one last ride.
Round 7 Recap:
AEW - Cedric Alexander
WWE - Top Dolla / AJ Francis
Bushiroad - Shinsuke Nakamura
Round 8:
TC: And we’ll also take friend of the pod, Ninja Mack.
Ryan: Ninja Mack is good depth.
Marlowe: How about we follow the real life Fed and take Fenix?
Ryan: I think I'm going to do a little defense here with someone whose contract is up and has a high ceiling, but hasn't been given a single push yet in AEW. The crowds are always behind him and I think he could be huge, plus he seems to love working at AEW and doing promotion for them so why not keep him? And that's Anthony Bowens.
Round 8 Recap:
Bushiroad - Ninja Mack
WWE - Rey Fenix
AEW - Anthony Bowens
Round 9:
Ryan: My next pick is a tag team with one member who is familiar already to AEW audiences... I think in the time from 2020 through 2023 when appearances were made that they just didn't fit with what AEW was doing. But today, I think both would fit right in and work well both in tag matches and singles work. They're also only 29 & 30 so they have a lot of time still in them despite it feeling like they've already done everything they can where they current reside. It’s 121000000 - Maki Itoh & Miyu Yamashita.
Marlowe: Dammit I wanted Maki Itoh. Great pick.
Marlowe: With our ninth pick WWE is bringing back Samantha Irvin.
Marlowe: Her presence as an announcer adds gravitas to soda events and we believe as an on screen character she will add depth and nuance to the small roster of women performers who are not in ring.
Ryan: Yeah I think she's an upgrade from who they've had since to replace her
TC: With Bushiroads final picks we select Dragon Dia…
Round 9 Recap:
AEW - 121000000 (Maki Itoh & Miyu Yamashita)
WWE - Samantha Irvin
Bushiroad - Dragon Dia
Round 10:
TC: … and Tegan Nox.
Ryan: Decent depth picks from Bushiroad.
TC: We feel like both of them will be solid depth pieces to fill out our rosters.
Marlowe: For my final pick the WWE is making its riskiest superstar signing ever. We will market this for weeks in advance as the most dangerous and potentially hostile wrestler ever signed. It could blow up in our faces. He can’t really wrestle and we can’t go very hardcore but we believe that he has an innate charisma, presence, and promo ability to be a Stone Cold level outlaw fan favorite. He might not even show up to work but he’s a risk we are taking with our last pick. WWE’s final selection is The God of this Shit - Nick Fuckin’ Gage.
Ryan: Well now that AEW knows they don't have to play defense, they can play some offense... I don't think we have to take anybody from CMLL or Japan (not even Bozilla). There are folks like Alex Windsor or Kevin Knight who are interesting but I don't think AEW would need to draft them here, so I think they'll try to take someone from WWE or TNA. There's the potential to draft a stable from TNA / the British indies that both gives depth to the tag division and a younger women's star with potential with Subculture, but AEW instead will go with Dragon Lee.
Ryan: I think AEW is making a play to corner the Lucha market in a way that differentiates them from WWE and is complementary to their partner of CMLL, and I think getting Dragon Lee back into the fold is something they’d want to pursue.
Round 10 Recap:
Bushiroad - Tegan Nox / Nixon Newell
WWE - Nick Gage
AEW - Dragon Lee
Here is a recap of who each promotion took in the draft:
AEW: Sareee, Mayu Iwatani, Leon Slater, Top Flight, The New Day, Mina Shirakawa, Cedric Alexander, Anthony Bowens, 121000000 (Maki Itoh & Miyu Yamashita), Dragon Lee
WWE: Gabe Kidd, Adam Copeland / Edge, Chris Jericho, Masha Slamovich, Sami Zayn, Josh Alexander, Top Dolla / AJ Francis, Rey Fenix, Samantha Irvin, Nick Gage
Bushiroad: AJ Styles, Utami Hayashishita, Persephone, Michael Oku, Street Profits, Bea Priestley, Shinsuke Nakamura, Ninja Mack, Dragon Dia, Tegan Nox / Nixon Newell
Which promotion do you think came out on top here? Is there someone you think a promotion should’ve gone after before they got picked by another one? Let us know in the comments!