WWE Tough Enough was an interesting venture for WWE this past summer, as they were able to see some new talent that could be future stars for them. While ZZ, Josh, Amanda, and Sara Lee are all now under a WWE contract, many wanted to see others get the opportunity to come in. Tanner ended up deciding to go back to the world of MMA, and will come back to wrestling at a later date, while people like Patrick Clark simply went back to what he was already doing before Tough Enough — wrestling.
Patrick was an independent wrestler before WWE gave him the opportunity to come onto the Tough Enough television show. He actually worked out of Maryland Championship Wrestling, and was thought to be put in a bigger role there after the Tough Enough period. However, most felt that WWE would give him the chance to come down and work under a developmental contract.
Chad Dukes was the one who first reported that Clark was being signed to a deal, as he mentioned it on his radio show , which happens to be out of Washington, D.C.
PWInsider reported that he was, indeed, signed, pending the standard WWE medical tests. Patrick was said to have had a tryout for WWE a few weeks back, and it does appear that he was liked enough to get the opportunity to come in. He would be the only person out of the Tough Enough final four to get signed as of this point.
WWE Hall of Famer Lita is now working with WWE in a backstage role and was said to have had a big part in the signing of Patrick Clark, which means he has her to thank for the opportunity.
Clark is 19-years-old, so he will surely be someone WWE can wait a bit longer on. His progress at 19 is not of their concern when he can easily deliver in a couple years. WWE is in no rush to use most of the Tough Enough talent. The only person who WWE is ready to feature immediately is Amanda, who will be working for WWE on the Total Divas show in its new season, as she has been working with the girls of the show as much as possible.
The feeling among most is that Amanda will be good to use for a variety of outside projects, similar to Eva Marie, so there is no rush on her coming to the main roster when she can be used in non-wrestling roles. However, WWE does want to get both Eva Marie and Amanda better in the ring so that they can both be featured in a bigger role on WWE NXT.
While Eva has returned to NXT, she has not shown enough improvement for people to like her on the same level as the other girls WWE has had with NXT, like a Sasha Banks or Charlotte.
Amanda has yet to make her in-ring debut for NXT. However, she and Sara Lee both did a live match on Tough Enough . Amanda was good for the little time she had to prepare, while Sara lagged behind. The feeling among fans is that Amanda could be a serious competitor in the Divas’ Division if she can continue to develop in the right way. Keep in mind, Charlotte might be Ric Flair’s daughter, but had zero wrestling experience before coming to WWE. That said, Amanda could end up doing just as well as Charlotte with the same coaches teaching her.
When it comes to Patrick Clark, while he does come in with some experience, he won’t be seen on television for a while. His age plays into his favor, as WWE will continue to give him time over others who are much older coming in.
[IMG Credits: WWE, YouTube, kevineckwrestling.sportsblog.com]
