Bron Breakker & Theory Represent 2 Different Paths WWE Can Take For Its Future
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One of the hottest topics WWE fans love to speculate on is who will be the future of the company. The topic has become even more intriguing in recent years with the realization that the majority of the main-event caliber wrestlers on the roster are either part-time (Brock Lesnar, John Cena, The Rock) or appear to be planning on a future that lands them outside the squared ring (Roman Reigns). While part-timers will always have their role inside the company, WWE still relies on younger talent to carry the workload year-round with the endless house shows, television, and PPVs cards to fill out.
Currently, two superstars have been seen as the lead candidates to become the future faces of WWE: Bron Breakker and Theory. Both possess similar attributes: at just 24 years old they are extremely young to have already reached the pinnacle of professional wrestling and have the physical size, and the looks to represent a global brand. However, despite their similarities, Breaker and Theory have their differences; Theory came from the indies while Breakker was a standout collegiate athlete and a second-generation wrestler, his father being Rick Steiner and his uncle being Scott Steiner. Thus, they represent two different paths WWE can take for its future.
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Breakker: Proven Name Value
Breakker is an interesting wrestler because he came to WWE fairly green, only wrestling for a couple of months before being signed by WWE. With his background in collegiate (and a small stint in the NFL) football, along with his family connections to the Steiner Brothers, Breaker felt almost destined to arrive in WWE at some point. He is a proven athlete with wrestling blood inside of him, so WWE only needed to mold Breakker into the superstar he has the potential to become, hence his extended stay in NXT. WWE is taking the approach of big fish in a small pond with Breakker; they have elevated him to the face and champion of the NXT brand as a way to build up Breakker's skill-set and confidence in the role as the top dog of a wrestling program, albeit in a much smaller setting. NXT's live audience and television audience are significantly smaller than the main roster, so Breakker is afforded the chance to learn on the job and hone his craft, something that is much more difficult when thrown into the big league of Raw, as Omos is quickly learning. WWE is taking the slow approach with Breakker to not only ensure he is fully ready when gets called up to the main roster but also to slowly accumulate a following for him by making him the focal point of NXT each week. It's a wise move, because while Breakker is doing a standout job currently as the NXT Champion if he was forced to get jump-started too early in his career onto Raw or SmackDown, he may have floundered under the spotlight.
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Theory: The Upstart Rookie
Unlike Breakker, Theory did not have the credible background that makes you so valuable in the eyes of WWE. Theory has no wrestling in his blood, nor an acclaimed athletic background that WWE scouts would have kept note of. Instead, Theory relied on hard work and putting in the time to get to WWE. Competing in bodybuilding developed his good looks and physical attributes, and he went the route of competing in different indie promotions for many years to hone his wrestling ability. Only after winning championships in various promotions did Theory finally get the call from WWE to join the big leagues. His early WWE experience can be summed up as hot potatoing; he jumped back and forth between NXT and the main roster, mainly serving as an enhancement talent.
Once he started his storyline with Mr. McMahon, Theory started to establish himself as one of the top heels of the main roster. Despite still being in the infant stages of his WWE run, Theory was afforded the rare privilege of having an on-screen [and presumably off-screen] relationship with Vince McMahon, which resulted in his gradual descent towards the main event, and his eventual Money in the Bank contract win. Theory's rise draws parallels to Seth Rollins' 2014-2015 rise; through the use of heel tactics and partnerships with WWE's leaders, they quickly ascended up the card, acquired the MITB briefcase, and eventually got the crowning achievement of winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Unlike Breakker's path, Theory represents WWE's aptitude to force a superstar they deem the "future" down the fans' throats. While this can be risky because fans can quickly get turned off from over-exposure and a clear indication of WWE's desire to push that superstar to the top, all signs point to Theory ascending to the top of WWE, with Breakker not too far by when he debuts on the main roster. Do not be surprised to see both of these men crossing paths sometime in 2023 over the top championship in WWE because after all, they are the two faces of the future.
