26-year-old former WWE champion will be "the next guy," believes veteran

Wrestling veteran Jonathan Coachman believes Austin Theory has the potential to become the face of WWE.

The 26-year-old received a massive push upon moving from NXT to the main roster. He won the 2022 Money in the Bank briefcase and held the United States Championship twice. The Georgia native also defeated John Cena at WrestleMania 39.

Although Theory's push has seemingly cooled off over the past few months, Coachman believes he is "the next guy," as he disclosed on his Behind The Turnbuckle podcast.

"He [Theory], to me, he's the next guy. He's the next guy. And people think that he's an overnight success. He's been around for a minute. He's not, you know, he's not brand new."

The former color commentator added that Theory was working hard to cement his place as a top performer in WWE:

"And so, he's had chances to kinda figure himself out away from the WWE, so then when he got here. But I saw a recent interview with him where he talked about how they used to shoot down his ideas all the time, and he's trying to figure out and he gets accused of ripping off, you know, catchphrases and all these different things when he's just trying to make a name for himself. And I haven't seen any of that, but I'm just, I'm kinda paraphrasing what the interview said. But I think he could be, Tommy." [24:39 - 25:16]

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Austin Theory praised The Usos for helping him during his early days in WWE

After spending a few years on the independent circuit, Austin Theory joined the Stamford-based company in 2019. During a recent interview with 107.9 KFIN, the former United States Champion recalled his early days in WWE.

The 26-year-old superstar praised Jimmy and Jey Uso for helping and supporting him.

"There are two specific guys. They've been there since the beginning since I was having dark matches when they were deciding if I was ready to be on the main roster. Those two guys, it's Jey and Jimmy Uso. The support from those two and the mindset, them two being there for over a decade, it's such good advice and such a good place to be with them. Just how many things they can help me out with, how they see stuff, [and] how much stuff they have seen. I’m just grateful for those two. They've helped me out a lot. Shoutout to The Usos."

While Theory is not currently booked for WrestleMania XL, Jimmy and Jey Uso are set to square off against each other at this year's Show of Shows. Ahead of their clash, the two had a heated confrontation last night on RAW.

Do you think Austin Theory can become the face of WWE? Hit the discuss button and sound off.

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