Early Predictions on Who Will Be WWE and AEW's Top Stars of 2024

WWE and AEW's previously-established top talent led the charge in 2023 and carried both products to an excellent year.

The vast amount of fresh faces that broke out and found success at the upper echelon of the card also played a pivotal role in the year being as exceptional as it was.

Looking ahead to 2024, any number of people can carry the torch for WWE and AEW, whether it be the usual suspects or stars who have yet to be given an opportunity to move beyond a certain status.

Some are more obvious than others, but it is safe to assume there will be continue to be a variety of main-event players across the companies that will constantly keep things interesting.

WWE having two distinct brands and AEW's increased hours of programming should make it easier for more wrestlers to excel at an elite level.

It's impossible to predict who exactly will be dominating WWE and AEW in 2024, but the following names are the best bets.

Jade Cargill

The former AEW TBS champion was a huge pickup for WWE this year, but she has yet to step foot in the squared circle in her new home. Expect her to make a major impact wherever she ends up and be a focal point of the division.

Toni Storm

Storm is perhaps AEW's most successful women's wrestling since signing with the promotion in March 2022, having captured the AEW Women's World Championship on three occasions. However, only now she found her footing with her new character and her prominent positioning on AEW TV will continue well into 2024.

Becky Lynch

Outside of a brief run as WWE Women's Tag Team champion in the spring, Lynch has spent the last 16 months out of championship contention. All signs point to her challenging Rhea Ripley for the Women's World Championship at WrestleMania 40 and serving as the face of Raw's women's division from there.

Jamie Hayter

Hayter's hot momentum came to an abrupt halt when she was sidelined with a serious injury earlier this year that has kept her out of action ever since. Currently, there's no timetable set for her return, but she's bound to pick up where she left off upon her return as one of AEW's lead female stars.

Bayley

It's been over three years since Bayley was at the forefront of WWE's women's division. She's put over plenty of talent in that time, but 2024 should be the year she returns to the singles spotlight and holds gold on SmackDown, ideally as a babyface.

Six months ago, CM Punk being a main attraction for AEW heading into 2024 would have been considered a lock, especially with a guaranteed feud with AEW World champion MJF on the horizon.

Of course, the wrestling landscape has drastically changed since then, and in a shocking turn of events, Punk now finds himself back in the good graces of his ex-employer WWE, potentially on the brink of headlining WrestleMania for the first time in his career.

He must win the men's Royal Rumble match to earn that opportunity, but before he can finish his story, Cody Rhodes must finish his own.

They're the two top 2024 Rumble favorites by a long shot, simply because it makes sense for them to be walking into 'Mania as world championship challengers. In Rhodes' case, he's been working his way toward a rematch with Roman Reigns and must be the one to dethrone him as Undisputed WWE Universal champion.

Regardless of the Rumble outcome, Rhodes and Punk are destined to be the biggest babyfaces on their respective shows in the new year.

MJF has undoubtedly been one of the best booked talents in AEW's short history as well as their biggest star of the past year.

The product revolves around him in many ways, and throughout his year-long reign as AEW World champion, he has remained a recurring highlight on the weekly shows both as a babyface and as a heel.

His title run could be coming to an end sooner rather than later, but assuming he legitimately recently re-signed with AEW and will be around for the long haul, there's no reason to think he won't continue to be the face of the franchise in 2024 and beyond.

Adam Cole was elevated by his white-hot storyline with MJF and led him to headlining the historic All In event with his "brochacho" back in August. Cole suffering an injury soon after cut his momentum short, but it's clear there are plans in place for him upon his return.

With their angle far from over, it wouldn't be a stretch to see them go one-on-one again and Cole emerge victorious this time with gold in his grasp. He's overdue for a permanent move to the main-event scene.

All signs pointed to Roman Reigns dropping his prized possession at WrestleMania 39, until he didn't. It was clear from that point forward that his historic reign wasn't ending for the remainder of the year.

While 2024 should be when it finally happens, it's hardly set in stone. Either way, even as a part-time competitor, Reigns will be a big part of WWE programming next year as well, with or without a championship belt around his waist.

An extended break once he ultimately loses the title would be beneficial, and in his absence, Seth Rollins can replace him at the top of the food chain.

He essentially already occupies that role whenever Reigns disappears for months on end, and as the World Heavyweight champion, he's done an exceptional job of holding down the forts on Monday nights.

Similar to Reigns, Rollins doesn't need gold to feel special, but he has brought prestige to that newly-created championship. He's WWE's most reliable workhorse and there's no indication that will be changing any time soon.

AEW scored big time when they locked down Will Ospreay to a deal last month. He's widely regarded as one of the best wrestlers in the world and is expected to make a major impact immediately upon his arrival.

At only 30-years-old, he has his entire career ahead of him and has a plethora of tremendous talent to work with on the AEW roster. Provided he can stay healthy and he's handled properly, 2024 is going to be a career year for him.

Bryan Danielson is also in that conversation regarding wrestling's most phenomenal performers today and has had a stellar stint in AEW so far, despite the injuries he's endured along the way.

He announced a few months back that 2024 would be his final full-time year in wrestling and that he intends to go out on top. It's included putting on a wrestling clinic with Zack Sabre Jr. at WrestleDream as well as the hotly-contested Continental Classic.

Danielson may not be AEW World champion before he rides off into the sunset (though he should be), but AEW will ensure he's featured prominently ahead of a deserving sendoff.

LA Knight is on the fast track to super stardom after making himself a hot commodity in 2023.

From being left off WrestleMania 39 to headlining Crown Jewel with Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, he's had an outstanding year. The Megastar is incredibly over with the audience and has kept them behind him despite failing to become champ.

With WWE back to having two world titles, Knight should be in line for a run with one of them in the next 12 months. The same can be said for Gunther, whose lengthy Intercontinental Championship reign has taken him to that next level.

His in-ring work was never in question, but there was always the fear that Gunther wouldn't translate well to the main roster due to his unique style and presentation. He's exceeded all expectations and is well on his way to winning a world championship before long.

If fans are yearning for new blood in the world title mix next year, Knight and Gunther should be considered the strongest and most likely candidates.

The magic AEW has captured with Swerve Strickland is among the company's biggest success stories of 2023. He's been in a league of his own as of late and has proven himself as a world championship-caliber competitor.

He's been rolling in the ongoing Continental Classic, but it's almost irrelevant if he loses because he has a much higher ceiling than what's on the line in that tournament. A case can certainly be made for him being next in line for a run with the AEW World Championship if MJF is still champ come 2024.

His back-to-back pay-per-view wins over Adam Page only accelerated his ascent.

Speaking of Hangman, he's a former AEW World champion in his own right, meaning he's made it to the mountaintop of AEW before and can easily make it there once again.

It's entirely possible Page is the one to dethrone Strickland for the top title if such a scenario comes to fruition, but even if nothing is at stake, there's bound to wage war again eventually and it has to be the main-event of whatever show it is.

Strickland and Page are two shining stars with real main-event potential in 2024.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.