WWE: Ranking The Top 10 Breakout Stars Of 2018

4. Shayna Baszler, NXT

The NXT Women’s Champion, Shayna Baszler has become the force to be reckoned with on WWE’s “Black and Yellow” brand. Baszler first caught the eyes of WWE fans in the inaugural Mae Young Classic, but she didn’t blossom into a true star in NXT until her underrated feud with Ember Moon.

By the time she passed out Moon in the center of the ring, Baszler had established herself as a standout character, doing her best to rule NXT with an iron fist, inspiring fear in the hearts of the other women of the roster. She bullied Dakota Kai, attempted to the same to Candice LeRae, and eventually ran into her equal in Kairi Sane.

Baszler’s rivalry with Sane will go down in history as one of the best women’s feuds in WWE history, even if some fans were critical of the TakeOver: WarGames 2 match. Everything else these two did was splendid, specifically the story-telling leading up to TakeOver: Brooklyn IV and the phenomenal match itself.

With Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir by her side, Baszler’s terrifying reign as NXT Women’s Champion will continue, and her ceiling as a character is impossible to spot, given the potential this heel faction has. The Undisputed Era has been a boon to NXT since their debut, but there’s something special about Baszler/Duke/Shafir that could push them over the top.

In the ring, Baszler is painfully slick, and her attitude outside of the ropes is just as cutthroat. Baszler is a future Raw Women’s Champion and everything the WWE hopes Ronda Rousey (the comparisons are inevitable, as is their feud) eventually becomes as a character and story-teller.