Tye Dillinger Would Be ‘Perfect 10’ for WWE Draft 2016

Tye Dillinger could be a candidate to get called up for the WWE Draft, and while rumors haven’t indicated this, it would make sense for him to leave NXT.

There was once a time where the directionless pair of Tye Dillinger and Jason Jordan were thought to have no future in WWE. They were generic wrestlers who NXT paired together, hoping for something to click. This didn’t happen, and their “break up match” was more awkward than anything.

The greatest thing to happen to these two developmental stars was to split up, though. Jason Jordan teamed with Chad Gable, won the NXT Tag Team Championships, and is a candidate for a call-up to WWE.

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Dillinger, on the other hand, took a gimmick called the “Perfect 10” and made it into a success. Suddenly, with the WWE Draft on July 19, the Canadian star is a candidate to be called up for the show.

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Tye Dillinger isn’t the most talented wrestler WWE has. He isn’t the most charismatic either. What he has proven to do, though, is the ability to take nothing and turn it into something. A “Perfect 10” gimmick sounds too gimmicky.

A “Perfect 10” gimmick sounds too gimmicky. On paper, it sounds forced and would just be someone too obsessed with themselves. Kind of like Tyler Breeze’s supermodel character. The volume is turned up multiple notches to the point where fans haven’t bought into the persona, mostly due to its ridiculousness. While the “Perfect 10” is silly, it works because of its realism, which Dillinger has been able to get over.

The 35-year-old doesn’t walk out into the arena with a cape on, outlandish boots, or some other standoffish attire. Dillinger comes out like a regular WWE Superstar and chants at how he’s the “Perfect 10”, because he’s better than everyone else.

Speaking of that “10” chant, it easily went over with the crowds. This is a simple call that fans get even do by simply putting both of their hands in the air. Simplicity can be key sometimes, and with a crowd of 10,000-plus seeing him for the first time, an easy chant like “10” could work.

As noted, Tye isn’t the world’s greatest wrestler either, but he is certainly above-average. He can make any wrestler look like a million bucks just by wrestling a 10-minute match with him. Think of this like a point guard in an NBA offense. They’re not going to score all the points, but will make their teammates look better throughout the game. That’s what Dillinger’s role has been and would be on the WWE roster.

Despite all this praise for Dillinger, he’s not going to be a main event star. Probably not a mid-card talent either. He has the upside of someone like Cesaro, though. A wrestler who can be thrown out there for a 10-15 minute match on any night and succeed. Dillinger isn’t the wrestler Cesaro is, but he can get the job done in similar fashion.

A mistake would be making the Perfect 10 a low-card misfit, like Bo Dallas, Curtis Axel, and Heath Slater. Unlike those three, Dillinger has made a gimmick work and is worthy of the test to see if it can succeed in front of Raw or SmackDown audiences.

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The other side of the coin is Dillinger officially leaving NXT. He is a fan favorite at Full Sail University, and the 300-400 fans that show up for the tapings will be disappointed. However, his time there has started to become a detriment due to the fans because they love him so much.

Take the Andrade Almas’ matches at NXT TakeOver: The End and the subsequent episode of WWE NXT as an example. NXT is clearly high on the former La Sombra as a babyface, so they put him with someone who has been used to break new stars in. This should have been a simple way to get Almas some momentum, and he did impress. However, because the fans are so into Tye, they booed Cien, which was an embarrassing start for someone who is supposed to be a babyface. While NXT’s poor booking of Almas can be factored in, the fans made him look ridiculous while trying to put themselves over, a constant criticism of the Full Sail crowds, and put NXT into a corner with Dillinger. How can they have him work with another upcoming babyface if the plan is to keep him heel?

That may draw the “listen to the fans” response. NXT has listened to the fans on numerous occasions, including turning Gable and Jordan babyface because they got so popular. When Baron Corbin was getting booed as a dominant babyface, he was turned heel. The difference is Dillinger’s character works better as a heel. The “Perfect 10” persona is meant to be cocky and arrogant, perfectly fitting a bad guy. So while the fans may not love it, they are a sliver of the reason why Dillinger is a fit to be called up.

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Tye Dillinger may not stick out as a candidate to be called up, but the evidence is there to prove that he’s ready. In a time when WWE isn’t giving their Superstars much of a character to get invested into, Dillinger is one of the few that has the ability to make it happen. Now, we’ll have to see if WWE feels the same by including him in Tuesday’s draft.