When you look at Gabriel and Barrett, they couldn’t be more different. Gabriel is a small, high-flyer who isn’t overly charismatic and doesn’t have a ton of mic skills, while Barrett is a big guy, who is decent in the ring, but really excels when he has a mic in his hand.
If I had to choose someone to compare both Gabriel and Barrett to, Gabriel is like Evan Bourne while Barrett is like Sheamus.
The similarities between Bourne and Gabriel aren’t hard to see: Exciting in-ring style, small stature, lack of mic skills, lack of gimmick, etc.
The same goes for the similarities between Barrett and Sheamus: Big guys who know how to work the mic and rose to the top of the WWE quickly before dropping back to the mid-card.