The WWE may have truly blown a chance at promoting a wrestler who could be a real star in the coming decade.
[adinserter block=”1″]When I saw Bo Dallas’ debut on Raw Monday night, it took me to a very dark place in terms of wrestling history, wrestling potential and more important, how the WWE could really use a star like Taylor Rotundo (his real name) and may have destroyed his career even before it truly started. Dallas’ first appearance in the WWE when he battled Wade Barrett gave us hope the third generation of Windhams would carry on the family name in grand style.
That tradition has been bestowed upon his brother Windham Rotundo – that’s Bray Wyatt to all of you out in wrestling land. As the new torch bearer for the Windham name – where their father is Mike Rotundo, their grandfather is Black Jack Mulligan and their uncle is Barry Windham, the WWE and the wrestling business could only hope these two young lions were only as good as their father and other family members.
It also shows how the WWE has taken one of the family members and created an instant star in Wyatt’s Kevin Sullivan-like mantras and may have pushed Dallas back into a state of confusion with him Tim Tebow-like persona.
To be honest, I don’t buy any of this crap. Maybe I need one of Barry Windham’s flying lariats to shake some sense in me.
Brothers born into one of the greatest wrestling families, separated by WWE confusion.
And it looks like it could only get worse. The crowd on Raw wasn’t “Bo-lieving” in anything – and to be honest, neither was I.
Dallas has a look and a skill set that reminds me quite a bit like Uncle Barry – tall, lean, agile and someone who had to grow into his body to be great. Wyatt’s legacy has already been written thanks to the current program with John Cena. Dallas needs a little – err a lot – of help with his legacy.
But the Windham comparison and the potential character assassination of his family member would actually work if the writers would look further than a few weeks ahead.
In NWA/WCW, Windham was a one-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, a one-time United States Heavyweight Champion, a one-time Television Champion, a one-time Western States Heritage Champion, a four-time NWA (Mid Atlantic)/WCW World Tag Team Champion and a one-time NWA United States Tag Team Champion with Ron Garvin. In the WWF, he was a two-time World Tag Team Champion with his brother-in-law, Mike Rotunda. In 2012, Windham was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as a member of the Four Horsemen.
In my mind, and I am a huge Windham fan (who started wrestling professionally when he was 19 when he faced JJ Dillon in that debut).
Dallas was the longest-reigning NXT Champion in the championship’s history at 280 days. He had previously held the FCW Florida Heavyweight Championship three times and is a former two-time Florida Championship Wrestling Florida Tag Team Champion with Wyatt, who was using his real name at the time.
My question for the WWE is why they did not take Dallas’ impressive performance in the company with Barrett and use it as a springboard for the youngster to come into the company on his own?
[adinserter block=”2″]Dallas needs to be the wrestler we all talk about in this next wave of WWE stars – the ones with Cody Rhodes, Damien Sandow, Rusev, Wyatt, and Big E.
The time is now for someone like Dallas. But the difference in “believing in him” and “bo-lieving” in him are two different things.
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That constant fake smile and over the top character they created isn’t helping. He and his brother have very similar facial features.
I too was disappointed in his debut, but I have high hopes for him. I am not a fan of Rose either. I think his gimmick is too old school over the top gimmicky. I guess we will see after payback. I think Dallas has potential, I figured he would be a heel after watching some NXT. He is annoying like heels should be.
I could see the WWE morphing his character into a motivational cult leader type, in which case he could team with his brother.
I absolutely think that at some point they wind up together.
It wasnt that impressive a debut. But I see the potential. It just needs time to evolve. Part if the problem is assumed he would be a face and the heel role wasnt as clear as it couldve been… It shows more promise then the Rose character. He’ll be a jobber real soon.