As WWE moves into the summer months, a slew of major shows are on the horizon.
Night of Champions is set for June 28, followed by another Saturday Night’s Main Event, the all-women’s Evolution PLE, NXT’s The Great American Bash event in July, and the first-ever two-night SummerSlam in August.
Across this hectic stretch, there are bound to be some noteworthy debuts across all brands, setting the stage for matches, storylines, and major angles for the rest of the year.
Here are five names we could see debut.
5. Mr. Iguana
El Hijo del Vikingo may have been WWE’s chosen luchador to spotlight from AAA, but the WWE audience had other ideas about who they wanted to get behind.
At the AAA–WWE crossover Worlds Collide show on June 7, the most over luchador was Mr. Iguana — a talented but decidedly lower-card comedy wrestler known for doing spots with a stuffed iguana.
His popularity was so overwhelming that he was given his own video package on Raw and appeared on NXT, with signs pointing to immediate WWE plans — something Mr. Iguana himself may have leaked, claiming in a now-deleted Mexican interview that he would bypass developmental and go straight to the main roster.
Whether he ends up in NXT or not, it seems clear Mr. Iguana will soon be debuting under a full-time WWE contract.
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4. El Hijo del Vikingo
When WWE announced it had aquired Mexican promotion AAA, El Hijo del Vikingo was the key star highlighted — appearing on camera at WrestleMania and on Raw.
AAA’s Mega Champion certainly seems to be WWE’s chosen luchador, having recently main evented the crossover Worlds Collide show against Chad Gable.
Despite this growing spotlight, Vikingo has yet to compete in a match on WWE’s main programming.
It seems only a matter of time before he’s signed to a full-time WWE deal — the only question is when does he make his in-ring debut.
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3. Mike D Vecchio
Last month, it was reported that Belgian indie wrestler Mike D Vecchio is set to sign with WWE.
The 28-year-old has had a breakout year, impressing in British and German indies — RevPro and wXw, respectively — as well as a standout showing in All Japan’s historic round-robin tournament, the Champion Carnival.
The muscular athlete exudes charisma and tough-guy energy, and is known for his explosive, hard-hitting in-ring style and willingness to take crazy bumps.
A debut for the Belgian star is expected soon — the big question is whether he’ll arrive in NXT or be a key name in the long-rumoured launch of NXT Europe.
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2. Hikuleo
Hikuleo, the brother of Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa, has technically made his long-awaited in-ring WWE debut — the 6’8″ star was signed from New Japan Pro Wrestling last year.
Long rumoured to be joining the Bloodline storyline, he recently appeared in a dark match before SmackDown, and then again the following week.
Now that the Bloodline are once again involved in internal conflict, with Jacob Fatu set to defend his United States Championship against Solo Sikoa at Night of Champions, the timing could be perfect for Hikuleo to join the fold.
On June 28 in Saudi Arabia, we may finally see the official debut of Hikuleo as a member of the Bloodline.
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1. Mayu Iwatani
Celebrated Japanese star Mayu Iwatani left her home promotion STARDOM in April, signing with rival joshi promotion Marigold.
Marigold has an informal working relationship with WWE — one that has already seen WWE Women’s World Champion IYO SKY wrestle for the promotion.
Iwatani has made it clear she hopes to wrestle in America one day, and while a full-time move to WWE seems unlikely at this time, with the company’s new willingness to work with other promotions there’s every chance she could appear on WWE programming.
Long considered by many to be the best female performer of her generation, a WWE debut for Iwatani could happen sooner rather than later, perhaps at Evolution.
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