History StarMakingRole / ProfessionalWrestling

** Mil Muertes was already a made man from his debut, but when he feuded with Fenix over the affections of Catrina, culminating in the literally ''murderous'' Grave Consequences match, it raised his stock considerably and made Fenix one of the top stars in the promotion.

* PaulHeyman had been a wrestling reporter creative personality and an announcer for years, but he credits the Dangerous Alliance with putting him on the map.

* Wrestling/TripleH escaped his past as Wrestling/ShawnMichaels' sidekick after his feud and retiring of Wrestling/MickFoley in 2000.

* Wrestling/{{Edge}}'s big break as a singles competitor came upon winning Money In The Bank and later cashing in on a bloodied Wrestling/JohnCena at the 2006 New Year's Revolution.

* Wrestling/AJLee's big star-making moment was, well, her being Daniel Bryan's valet during his World Heavyweight Championship run.

* In October of 2001, All Pro Wrestling held its second "King of Indies" tournament, which ended up not only being a star making role for the winner, [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson American Dragon]], but for the US independent circuit as a whole, which for most of its history following the death of the territorial system, had been increasingly ignored. Granted, "star making" meant "look at all that talent I can take" rather than business booming for said independent promotions but the resulting success of most who were simply associated with the event such as Wrestling/SamoaJoe, Wrestling/LowKi, Bison Smith, Wrestling/AJStyles, [[Wrestling/LondonAndKendrick Spanky]], Donovan Morgan, Doug Williams, Adam Pierce, Scoot Andrews, Wrestling/FrankieKazarian and Super Dragon is still something to behold. The founding fathers of Wrestling/RingOfHonor, of Wrestling/{{TNA}}'s X Division, title runs in the Japanese majors of the time (Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling, Wrestling/{{All Japan|ProWrestling}}, Wrestling/ProWrestlingNOAH, Wrestling/ProWrestlingZero1), helped bring life back into the NWA, ect. Dragon himself would become the most over wrestler of the US since Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin to the point WWE couldn't successfully bury him. Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels, who already kind of was a star thanks to Wrestling/{{ECW}} and Wrestling/{{WCW}}, raised his profile in the previous KOI.

* For Wrestling/{{Sting}}, it's his match against Ric Flair at the very first ''Clash of the Champions'' in 1988 that lasted 45 minutes and ended in a time limit draw.

* Wrestling/DiamondDallasPage started off as a generic upper midcard heel that few, if any people cared about. Then he made a HeelFaceTurn in January 1997 by standing up to the [[Wrestling/NewWorldOrder nWo]] and feuding with Randy Savage, which was voted "Feud of the Year" by PWI and cemented Page as the company's 3rd biggest babyface (behind Sting and Goldberg).

* Wrestling/HulkHogan: He was already a big-time wrestling star for the Midwest-based Wrestling/AmericanWrestlingAssociation, thanks to his prolific role in the movie ''[[Film/{{Rocky}} Rocky III]]''. But the match that catapulted him into superstardom was his legendary match January 23, 1984, at New York's Madison Square Garden, where he defeated [[{{Heel}} hated]] Iranian wrestler Wrestling/TheIronSheik to win the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. The match broadcast live on the [=USA=] Network, allowing the nation to witness the birth of Hulkamania and see an American capture a huge victory over someone from one of the United States' most hated enemies, Iran.

** Also from ''[=WrestleMania=] III'': Wrestling/RickySteamboat and the late Wrestling/RandySavage's [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title]] match was a landmark for showcasing that smaller wrestlers with tight work could steal the show and carry a crowd. It's frequently cited as one of the greatest matches of all time, and some aficionados say it's better than Hogan/Andre.

* Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin first got over with his ''King of the Ring'' win in 1996, but it was his submission match at ''Wrestling/{{WrestleMania}} 13'' with Wrestling/BretHart that solidified his standing.

* Wrestling/RingOfHonor had been uncharacteristically pushing Michael Elgin as increasingly NobleTopEnforcer for the House Of Truth, generally squashing most of their "opposition"(hopeless locals not even expecting to see him due to Truth Martini [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney paying off their opponents to let Elgin take their place]]) but then in early 2012 came a joint venture with Wrestling/DragonGate USA and Ring Warriors where Elgin and Davey Richards unexpectedly tore the house down and stole the show, catapulting Elgin into the main event. He'd have another at the 2015 [[TournamentArc G1 Climax]] against Wrestling/KazuchikaOkada, which established him as a star in Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}} and lead to him being picked up by Liga Elite and Wrestling/{{CMLL}} the next year.

* Wrestling/BrockLesnar pretty much became a legend after defeating [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson The Rock]] at Wrestling/SummerSlam 2002 to be the then youngest WWE Champion in history.

* Wrestling/CMPunk had been an indy darling for years (mostly known for his "UsefulNotes/StraightEdge" gimmick being unique in the pro wrestling landscape) but stagnated in Wrestling/{{WWE}}. Towards the end of a six year contract, facing an uncertain future, Punk grabbed a microphone and dropped a legendary worked shoot promo three weeks before ''Money in the Bank 2011''. He went on to win the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-h.html WWE Championship Title]] from Wrestling/JohnCena at the event and solidified himself as a major star. (He probably would have left the company for real had he not cut that promo.) Nearly a year later, after several high-profile matches with some of WWE's top stars, a lengthy WWE title reign, a stellar program with the legendary Wrestling/ChrisJericho, and a ''[=WrestleMania=]'' main event match one could argue he became one of the the biggest stars in the business.

* Dru Onyx and Wrestling/FergalDevitt established themselves as stars after their championship match for the British Commonwealth belt at the 57th Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA anniversary show in October of 2005, which earned both an invitation to the [[Wrestling/AntonioInoki Inoki]] Dojo. Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}} ended up not signing Onyx but Devitt would establish two successful TagTeams in the junior heavyweight division with Minoru Tanaka and Ryusuke Taguchi, as well as found Wrestling/BulletClub.

* Dru Onyx and Wrestling/FergalDevitt established themselves as stars after their championship match for the British Commonwealth belt at the 57th Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA anniversary show in October of 2005, which earned both an invitation to the [[Wrestling/AntonioInoki Inoki]] Dojo. Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}} ended up not signing Onyx, however.

* Dru Onyx and Wrestling/FergalDevitt established themselves as stars after their championship match for the British Commonwealth belt at the 57th Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA anniversary show in October of 2005, which earned both an invitation to the [[Wrestling/AntonioInoki Inoki]] Dojo. Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}} didn't sign Onyx, however.

* Dru Onxy and Wrestling/FergalDevitt established themselves as stars after their championship match for the British Commonwealth belt at the 57th Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA anniversary show, which earned both an invitation to the [[Wrestling/AntonioInoki Inoki]] Dojo. Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}} didn't sign Onyx, however.

* Wrestling/{{Edge}}'s big break as a singles competitor came upon winning Money In The Bank and later cashing in on a bloodied Wrestling/JohnCena.

* Wrestling/CMPunk had been an indy darling for years but stagnated in Wrestling/{{WWE}} (mostly known for his "UsefulNotes/StraightEdge" gimmick being unique in the pro wrestling landscape). Towards the end of a six year contract, facing an uncertain future, Punk grabbed a microphone and dropped a legendary worked shoot promo three weeks before ''Money in the Bank 2011''. He went on to win the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-h.html WWE Championship Title]] from Wrestling/JohnCena at the event and solidified himself as a major star. (He probably would have left the company for real had he not cut that promo.) Nearly a year later, after several high-profile matches with some of WWE's top stars, a lengthy WWE title reign, a stellar program with the legendary Wrestling/ChrisJericho, and a ''[=WrestleMania=]'' main event match one could argue he became one of the the biggest stars in the business.

* Wrestling/CMPunk had been an indy darling for years but stagnated in Wrestling/{{WWE}}. Towards the end of a six year contract, facing an uncertain future, Punk grabbed a microphone and dropped a legendary worked shoot promo three weeks before ''Money in the Bank 2011''. He went on to win the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-h.html WWE Championship Title]] from Wrestling/JohnCena at the event and solidified himself as a major star. (He probably would have left the company for real had he not cut that promo.) Nearly a year later, after several high-profile matches with some of WWE's top stars, a lengthy WWE title reign, a stellar program with the legendary Wrestling/ChrisJericho, and a ''[=WrestleMania=]'' main event match one could argue he became one of the the biggest stars in the business.

* Wrestling/ShawnMichaels' ''Wrestling/{{Wrestlemania}} X'' effort in a Ladder Match against [[Wrestling/ScottHall Razor Ramon (Scott Hall)]], who sadly could never quite capitalize on his own momentum largely due to personal problems, or this might have been a double-sided SMR.

* Though a regional and territorial star for years, Wrestling/RicFlair's breakout match on the national stage was the legendary "I Quit" match against Wrestling/TerryFunk at ''Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA Clash of the Champions IX'' in November 1989. Because fans hadn't evolved to the "[[SmartMark smark]]" stage yet and weren't entirely in on the choreographed nature of the sport, Funk didn't come out of this match looking as good as Flair did with the fans. However, it got him over with other wrestlers and many cite this as one of their favorite matches.
* Wrestling/JeffHardy became more of a legitimate Single Eventer after his praised ladder match with Wrestling/TheUndertaker. Later in 2008, his feud with Wrestling/TripleH cemented his new found Main Event Status.
* Wrestling/TripleH escaped his past as Wrestling/ShawnMichaels' sidekick after his feud and retiring of Wrestling/MickFoley.
* Wrestling/CMPunk had been an indy darling for years but stagnated in Wrestling/{{WWE}}. Towards the end of a six year contract, facing an uncertain future, Punk grabbed a microphone and dropped a legendary worked shoot promo three weeks before ''Money in the Bank 2011''. He went on to win the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-h.html WWE Championship Title]] from Wrestling/JohnCena at the event and solidified himself as a major star. (He probably would have left the company for real had he not cut that promo.) Nearly a year later, after several high-profile matches with some of WWE's top stars, a lengthy WWE title reign, a stellar program with the legendary Wrestling/ChrisJericho, and a ''[=WrestleMania=]'' main event match one could argue he became one of the the biggest stars in the business.
* Wrestling/{{Goldberg}}'s career STARTED this way. After having worked some non-televised matches, he made his surprise TV debut on the September 22, 1997 episode of ''Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro'' against Wrestling/HughMorrus, where he became the first wrestler to kick out of Morrus' FinishingMove No Laughing Matter en route to winning the match. EVERYBODY was talking about Goldberg after that.

* Wrestling/TheUndertaker had three: His debut at Wrestling/SurvivorSeries 1990, him defeating Wrestling/HulkHogan for the WWE title a year later or beating Wrestling/JimmySnuka at Wrestling/WrestleMania VII to start a historic streak.
* For [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson The Rock]], it's either his RealitySubtext fueled TakeThatAudience promo right after his initial FaceHeelTurn or his "I Quit" match against [[Wrestling/MickFoley Mankind]] in Wrestling/RoyalRumble 1999.
* Wrestling/BrockLesnar pretty much became a legend after defeating [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson The Rock]] at Wrestling/SummerSlam 2002 to be the youngest WWE Champion in history.
* For Wrestling/{{Kane}}, it's either his debut when he interfered in the match between Taker and HBK, his [[GimmickMatches Inferno match]] with Taker, or winning the WWE title from Stone Cold at King of the Ring 1998.

* For Wrestling/{{Sting}}, it's his match against Ric Flair at the very first ''Clash of the Champions'' in 1988 that lasted 45 minutes and ended in a time limit draw.
* Wrestling/DiamondDallasPage started off as a generic upper midcard heel that few, if any people cared about. Then he made a HeelFaceTurn in January 1997 by standing up to the [[Wrestling/NewWorldOrder nWo]] and feuding with Randy Savage, which was voted "Feud of the Year" by PWI and cemented Page as the company's 3rd biggest babyface (behind Sting and Goldberg).
* In October of 2001, All Pro Wrestling held its second "King of Indies" tournament, which ended up not only being a star making role for the winner, [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson American Dragon]], but for the US independent circuit as a whole, which for most of its history following the death of the territorial system, had been increasingly ignored. Granted, "star making" meant "look at all that talent I can take" rather than business boom for said independent promotions but the resulting success of most who were simply associated with the event such as Wrestling/SamoaJoe, Wrestling/LowKi, Bison Smith, Wrestling/AJStyles, [[Wrestling/LondonAndKendrick Spanky]], Donovan Morgan, Doug Williams, Adam Pierce, Scoot Andrews, Wrestling/FrankieKazarian and Super Dragon is still something to behold. The founding fathers of Wrestling/RingOfHonor, of Wrestling/{{TNA}}'s X Division, title runs in the Japanese majors of the time (Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling, Wrestling/{{All Japan|ProWrestling}}, Wrestling/ProWrestlingNOAH, Wrestling/ProWrestlingZero1), helped bring life back into the NWA, ect. Dragon himself would become the most over wrestler of the US since Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin to the point WWE couldn't successfully bury him. Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels, who already kind of was a star thanks to Wrestling/{{ECW}} and Wrestling/{{WCW}}, raised his profile in the previous KOI.
* The purpose of Wrestling/{{CMLL}}'s "Torneo Gran Alternativa" has always been to create a new star by pairing them alongside an established one and they really hit gold in 2004, or rather, silver and gold, when El Hijo del Santo won the event with Wrestling/{{Mistico}}, who would become not only the company's top draw, not only Mexico's biggest box office draw, but the most consistent draw of the decade.

* Wrestling/CMPunk had been an indy darling for years but stagnated in WWE. Towards the end of a six year contract, facing an uncertain future, Punk grabbed a microphone and dropped a legendary worked shoot promo three weeks before ''Money in the Bank 2011''. He went on to win the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-h.html WWE Championship Title]] from Wrestling/JohnCena at the event and solidified himself as a major star. (He probably would have left the company for real had he not cut that promo.) Nearly a year later, after several high-profile matches with some of WWE's top stars, a lengthy WWE title reign, a stellar program with the legendary Wrestling/ChrisJericho, and a ''[=WrestleMania=]'' main event match one could argue he became one of the the biggest stars in the business.

* In October of 2001, All Pro Wrestling held tournament called "King of Indies", which ended up not only being a star making role or the winner, [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson American Dragon]], but for the US independent circuit as a whole, which for most of its history following the death of the territorial system, had been increasingly ignored. Granted, "star making" meant "look at all that talent I can take" rather than business boom for said independent circuit promotions but the resulting success of most who were simply associated with the event such as Wrestling/SamoaJoe, Wrestling/LowKi, Bison Smith, Wrestling/AJStyles, [[Wrestling/LondonAndKendrick Spanky]], Donovan Morgan, Doug Williams, Adam Pierce, Scoot Andrews, Wrestling/FrankieKazarian and Super Dragon is still something to behold. The founding fathers of Wrestling/RingOfHonor, of Wrestling/{{TNA}}'s X Division, title runs in the Japanese majors of the time (Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling, Wrestling/{{All Japan|ProWrestling}}, Wrestling/ProWrestlingNOAH, Wrestling/ProWrestlingZero1), helped bring life back into the NWA, ect. Even Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels, who already kind of was a star thanks to Wrestling/{{ECW}} and Wrestling/{{WCW}}, would raise his profile in the following KOI events APW held.

* In October of 2001, All Pro Wrestling held tournament called "King Of Indies", which ended up not only being a star making role or the winner, [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson American Dragon]], but for the US independent circuit as a whole, which for most of its history following the death of the territorial system, had been increasingly ignored. Granted, "star making" meant "look at all that talent I can take" rather than business boom for said independent circuit promotions but the resulting success of most who were simply associated with the event such as Wrestling/SamoaJoe, Wrestling/LowKi, Bison Smith, Wrestling/AJStyles, [[Wrestling/LondonAndKendrick Spanky]], Donovan Morgan, Doug Williams, Adam Pierce, Scoot Andrews, Frankie Kazarian and Super Dragon is still something to behold. The founding fathers of Wrestling/RingOfHonor, of Wrestling/{{TNA}}'s X Division, title runs in the Japanese majors of the time(Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling, Wrestling/{{All Japan|ProWrestling}}, Wrestling/ProWrestlingNOAH, Wrestling/ProWrestlingZero1), helped bring life back into the NWA, ect. Even Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels, who already kind of was a star thanks to Wrestling/{{ECW}} and Wrestling/{{WCW}}, would raise his profile in the following KOI events APW held.

* For Wrestling/{{Sting}}, it's either his match against Ric Flair at ''Clash of the Champions'' in 1988 that ended in a time limit draw or his match against Flair at ''The Great American Bash'' in 1990, which is when Sting won his first World Championship. So either way, Flair made Sting a star.
* Wrestling/DiamondDallasPage started off as a generic upper midcard heel that few, if any people cared about. Then he made a HeelFaceTurn in January 1997 by standing up to the [[Wrestling/NewWorldOrder nWo]] and feuding with Randy Savage, which was voted "Feud of the Year" by PWI.

* Wrestling/DiamondDallasPage's HeelFaceTurn and feud with Randy Savage in 1997, which was voted "Feud of the Year" by PWI.

While many pro wrestlers find a successful character (if they're lucky) and play it for the duration of their career (if they're not Wrestling/MickFoley) there is such a phenomenon as a [[StarMakingRole star-making match.]] A sub-trope, but probably not enough of one for its own page.

* In October of 2001, All Pro Wrestling held tournament called "King Of Indies", which ended up not only being a star making role or the winner, [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson American Dragon]], but for the US independent circuit as a whole, which for most of its history following the death of the territorial system, had been increasingly ignored. Granted, "star making" meant "look at all that talent I can take" rather than business boom for said independent circuit promotions but the resulting success of most who were simply associated with the event such as Wrestling/SamoaJoe, Wrestling/LowKi, Bison Smith, Wrestling/AJStyles, [[Wrestling/LondonAndKendrick Spanky]], Donovan Morgan, Doug Williams, Adam Pierce, Scoot Andrews, Frankie Kazarian and Super Dragon is still something to behold. The founding fathers of Wrestling/RingOfHonor, of Wrestling/{{TNA}}'s X Division, title runs in the Japanese majors of the time(Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling, Wrestling/{{All Japan|ProWrestling}}, Wrestling/ProWrestlingNOAH, Wrestling/ProWrestlingZero1), helped bring life back into the NWA, ect. Even Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels, who already kind of was a star thanks to Wrestling/{{ECW}} and Wrestling/{{WCW}}, would raise his profile in the following KOI events APW held.

* In October of 2001, All Pro Wrestling held tournament called "King Of Indies", which ended up not only being a star making role or the winner, [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson American Dragon]], but for the US independent circuit as a whole, which for most of its history following the death of the territorial system, had been increasingly ignored. Granted, "star making" meant "look at all that talent I can take" rather than business boom for said independent circuit promotions but the resulting success of most who were simply associated with the event such as Wrestling/SamoaJoe, Wrestling/LowKi, Bison Smith, Wrestling/AJStyles, [[Wrestling/[[Wrestling/LondonAndKendrick Spanky]], Donovan Morgan, Doug Williams, Adam Pierce, Scoot Andrews, Frankie Kazarian and Super Dragon is still something to behold. The founding fathers of Wrestling/RingOfHonor, of Wrestling/{{TNA}}'s X Division, title runs in the Japanese majors of the time(Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling, Wrestling/{{All Japan|ProWrestling}}, Wrestling/ProWrestlingNOAH, Wrestling/ProWrestlingZero1), helped bring life back into the NWA, ect. Even Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels, who already kind of was a star thanks to Wrestling/{{ECW}} and Wrestling/{{WCW}}, would raise his profile in the following KOI events APW held.

* Though a regional and territorial star for years, Wrestling/RicFlair's breakout match on the national stage was the legendary "I Quit" match against Wrestling/TerryFunk at ''[[Wrestling/{{WCW}} NWA]] Clash of the Champions IX'' in November 1989. Because fans hadn't evolved to the "[[SmartMark smark]]" stage yet and weren't entirely in on the choreographed nature of the sport, Funk didn't come out of this match looking as good as Flair did with the fans. However, it got him over with other wrestlers and many cite this as one of their favorite matches.

* While [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson Daniel Bryan]] has always been an internet favorite, the moment that helped his popularity skyrocket was his 18-second loss to Sheamus at WrestleMania 28.

* Wrestling/{{Edge}}'s big break as a singles competitor came upon winning Money In The Bank and later cashing in on a bloodied JohnCena.

* Wrestling/DiamondDallasPage's HeelFaceTurn and feud with Randy Savage in 1997, which was voted "Feud of the Year" by PWI.

* Wrestling/{{Edge}}'s big break as a singles competitor came upon winning Money In The Bank and later cashing in on a bloodied JohnCena.

* For Wrestling/{{Kane}}, it's either his debut when he interfered in the match between Taker and HBK, his [[GimmickMatches Inferno match]] with Taker, or winning the WWE title from Stone Cold at King of the Ring 1998.

* Wrestling/ShawnMichaels' ''Wrestling/{{Wrestlemania}} X'' effort in a Ladder Match against [[Wrestling/ScottHall Razor Ramon (Scott Hall)]], who sadly could never quite capitalize on his own momentum, largely due to personal problems, or this might be a double-sided SMR.

* Wrestling/CMPunk had been an indy darling for years but stagnated in WWE. Towards the end of a six year contract, facing an uncertain future, Punk grabbed a microphone and dropped a legendary worked shoot promo three weeks before ''Money in the Bank 2011''. He went on to win the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-h.html WWE Championship Title]] from Wrestling/JohnCena at the event and solidified himself as a major star. (He probably would have left the company for real had he not cut that promo.) Nearly a year later, after several high-profile matches with some of WWE's top stars, a lengthy WWE title reign, a stellar program with the legendary Wrestling/ChrisJericho, and a ''[=WrestleMania=]'' main event match one could argue he is the biggest star in the business.

While many pro wrestlers find a successful character (if they're lucky) and play it for the duration of their career (if they're not Wrestling/MickFoley) there is such a phenomenon as a star making match. A sub-trope, but probably not enough of one for its own page.