Who Are You?: The 10 Most Underutilized Superstars in WWE
Every week, WWE fans turn on their televisions and are subjected to the biggest names in sports entertainment.
John Cena, Randy Orton, Triple H, The Undertaker, Edge and Rey Mysterio have become the faces of the multi-million dollar wrestling company.
They sell merchandise, pay-per-views, usher in television ratings and draw fans to arenas across the globe.
But there is an entire group of fledgling Superstars who have been tossed aside in favor of the aforementioned main event stars and the current crop of "next big things."
They are often seen populating the Thursday night WWE Superstars program or lying down for the more prevalent stars on Mondays and Fridays.
Given the opportunity, these young men and women could propel themselves into the stratosphere of world-reknowned, immediately recognizable stars.
Who are these Superstars? Find out now.
10. Chavo Guerrero
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Chavo Guerrero is an interesting case in that, if you asked the casual wrestling fan, many would probably question whether he is still employed.
Unfortunately for the multiple-time Cruiserweight and Tag Team Champion, that is what his career in the business his family was so successful in has become.
Guerrero can often be seen on the WWE Superstars program squaring off against the likes of JTG or Chris Masters in solid, but forgettable, wrestling matches.
The question remains how a decorated superstar like Chavo who, at one time, was a featured performer on Smackdown, has become such a complete afterthought in the WWE Universe. The answer includes a leprechaun and an ill-timed brand switch to Raw.
Someone like Chavo Guerrero should never have ended up on Raw. It is the land of the big man, the land of superstars.
It is a show focused on mega-stars such as Cena, Triple H and Randy Orton, where they toss aside lower card superstars in favor of major storyline developments, feuding commentators and the occasional celebrity appearance.
Guys like Chavo were chewed up and spit out by the writers, typically jobbers in quick squash matches that made the mighty that much mightier.
Despite the obstacles facing him, Chavo managed to get his face on television every week. Unfortunately for the third-generation wrestler, he would have been much better off going unnoticed.
Hornswoggle killed Chavo Guerrero's chances at ever advancing past low-card status again. For months on end, Chavo was the recipient of beat downs at the hands of the significantly smaller "leprechaun."
No matter how many times he stepped into the ring with Hornswoggle, Chavo was constantly made a fool of and always found himself on the losing end of their matches, no matter how unrealistic it was.
The children in the audience loved it but Chavo quickly became a joke in the eyes of the fans. Then, in April 2010, it looked as though Chavo may have been saved by another brand switch, this time to the brand he called home for the majority of his WWE career, Smackdown.
But he was never able to recover from the stigma of the Hornswoggle losses and creative ceased to care. He was again lost in the under card and this time, there would be no television time for consolation.
So how does all of this make Chavo an underutilized superstar, you may ask?
Chavo Guerrero is one of the most technically gifted stars in all of wrestling. His pedigree speaks for itself, as does the in-ring work throughout the course of his career. He is a veteran star who could be used to help prepare younger stars for the bright lights and big stages that come with being a WWE Superstar.
While his on-screen and in-ring time has been greatly diminished, Chavo has all the tools to become a solid addition to the group of road agents WWE employs behind the scenes.
He could work with the young men and women called up from Florida Championship Wrestling to either Raw or Smackdown.
With Tough Enough making its return to the USA network airwaves, there is absolutely no reason Chavo couldn't serve as a trainer, teaching the new kids the both the in-ring and behind the scenes aspects of the job.
Chavo isn't underutilized because of what is not done with him in the ring, he is underutilized because of what is not done with him in every other area of the business.
Chavo, never one to turn down an angle no matter how ridiculous or harmful it may be to his career, is a true professional and that is something sports-entertainment could use more of.
9. Tyler Reks
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I will be the first to admit: when I saw Tyler Reks, the surfer bum from California, step out from behind the curtain and onto the ECW stage, I immediately expected him to be released in a month.
He was generic and the fans obviously could not care less about his undeveloped move set and his non-existent personality.
I despised watching every match he was in and often found myself doing more productive things like watching paint dry or listening to the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard.
Then he disappeared for a over a year, the only mention of him coming when he allegedly freaked out on an airplane and reportedly came that much closer to a release. For a year, I was living blissfully without a weekly dose of Tyler Reks to ruin everything.
So imagine my excitement when, a few weeks before the 2010 addition of Bragging Rights, Reks made his return to WWE. But this time, something was different.
Gone was the Hawaiian shirt and the surfer image. Now he was a generic big man with Rastafarian dread locks. He was immediately placed on the Smackdown team for Bragging Rights and seemingly in line for a major push.
Then, it all came to a screeching halt. For whatever reason, Reks was taken off of Smackdown and placed into the abyss known as Superstars.
A funny thing happened to Reks while on Superstars. He began to develop as a worker, competing in longer, quality matches with the likes of Trent Barreta, Curt Hawkins and Chris Masters.
Gone were the days of generic maneuvers straight out of FCW and in their place were high-impact, unique moves not used by other wrestlers in either of the "Big Two" promotions.
Now, Reks is a fixture on the Thursday night show and has developed into a very solid worker who plays his character, a beast of a man who may or may not be "all there," to perfection.
Tyler Reks belongs on Monday nights. He is a big heel who would not look completely out of place in the ring with Randy Orton or John Cena. He has an impactful move set that, given an opportunity in the spotlight, could help to get him over to the masses.
His look is unique enough and his character edgy enough that the ever-important 18-35 male demographic could find themselves behind someone like Tyler Reks.
He is the anti-pretty boy that WWE seems to be lacking and one that could end up paying huge dividends.
8. Chris Masters
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Chris Masters has had a tumultuous WWE career. Once touted as one of WWE's next mega-stars, Masters received a humongous push that resulted in a big match vs. Shawn Michaels at the Unforgiven 2005 pay-per-view and a spot in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match at New Year's Revolution.
But mid-way through 2006, Masters' push disintegrated and for the rest of his first run in WWE, he was little more than a mid-card star with the physique of a world-class body builder.
When he was released in November 2007 following a second wellness test failure, Masters accepted bookings across the globe, including Australia, Japan and Europe.
He learned how to be a better in-ring worker and how to work with different wrestlers who employed a variety of different styles.
Eventually, it was his re-dedication to his work, and his improvement as a wrestler, that led to his return to World Wrestling Entertainment.
Since his return, Masters has flown under the radar, his only significant television time due to his ability to flex his pectoral muscles along to and in rhythm with popular songs. His time on Raw was short lived as he was quickly drafted to Smackdown, the brand he has called home since.
On occasion, he will find himself on Smackdown being beaten by stars destined for major pushes and featured storylines.
Otherwise, Masters sees the majority of his time in singles or tag team action on Superstars. Recently, he has been engaged in a rivalry with another superstar on this list, Tyler Reks.
The fact that Chris Masters is on this list is mildly perplexing. It is no secret World Wrestling Entertainment likes its stars to have movie-star good looks so that they can plaster their faces on promotional materials and feature them on merchandise and the occasional movie.
Masters has the looks and the physique to match. He has improved his skills to the point that he is arguably one of the more underrated in-ring performers in the entire company.
Perhaps the only thing lacking on him are his interview skills. But for a man constantly featured on Superstars, where promo time is nearly non-existent, it is increasingly difficult for him to expand those skills or to improve upon them.
Masters has long been considered one of the nicer guys outside of the ring and in encounters with fans.
As someone with "the total package," to steal the moniker of another star from eras past, is it only a matter of time until he forces those with power to take notice or will he forever be one of the superstars who Vince and Co. let get away?
7. Maryse
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Maryse is the most beautiful woman in all of professional wrestling.
Now with that out of the way, let's focus on this incredibly sexy young woman's positive attributes. As a WWE Diva in recent years, the most important feature a prospective woman could have is the looks of a superstar model.
They should have an amazingly beautiful face and an in-shape, fit body. Maryse has both in spades. She also portrays the character of prissy-yet-arrogant and cocky bombshell to the tee.
Her wrestling abilities are comparable to any other Diva Search contestant not named Michelle McCool and she could easily be included on any promotional piece WWE would set up for live events, television tapings, or pay-per-views and not look out of place.
So the question remains: why is Maryse shuffled to the background of the Divas division? The answer lies in her origins.
It is absolutely no secret that Maryse's French accent gets in the way of her ascension to the top of the WWE's Divas roster. While her work at thinning out the accent has improved her speech, it still is not uncommon for the fans to become confused with what she is saying.
It isn't her fault. As a native of Montreal, Quebec, she more than likely grew up around the French language and brought it with her when she began her employment with WWE.
However, as is the case with another superstar still to come on this list, her accent became an impediment.
She was demoted from the face of the Raw Divas division, a multi-time champion, to little more than eye candy standing at ringside for Ted DiBiase.
Recently, Maryse has been tapped to host NXT, Season 5 on WWE.com. Some would look at this as an opportunity for her to branch out and enjoy more exposure to the WWE fans.
But can we really consider this an opportunity for exposure when it is on the D-Level show, broadcast on WWE.com, that no one watches or cares about?
Throughout WWE's long and storied history, there is proof that beautiful blondes have the ability to become mega-stars if marketed correctly and pushed efficiently.
There is no other Diva on the roster with the ability to become WWE's female mega-star bombshell than Maryse.
The sooner the powers that be realize that her accent is not a negative but rather, a positive part of her, her character, and a marketable attribute, the more successful Maryse can be—and the more money WWE can make.
6. Ted DiBiase
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What happened here? I am not sure there is an answer for such a question.
In 2008, Ted DiBiase exploded onto the scene and immediately became the sure-fire, next breakout superstar.
Established veterans like John Cena, Randy Orton and Triple H sang his praises in several interviews and there were rumors running rampant that the young DiBiase would be the man to knock off the Undertaker at Wrestlemania.
He was positioned in the "Legacy" faction with fellow second generation star Cody Rhodes and third generation, and former multiple time world champion, Randy Orton.
They were atop the Raw brand for months, in major storylines with D-Generation X and John Cena.
Then, when the dissension in Legacy led to a break up and a face turn for Orton, as well as a brand switch for Rhodes courtesy of the WWE Draft, DiBiase was left on his own.
"The Fortunate Son" moniker, and the addition of his father's Million Dollar Belt appeared to be what DiBiase needed to freshen himself up before making the leap to the top of the card.
But what at first seemed promising soon devolved into a mid-card feud with Goldust over the aforementioned belt.
From there, DiBiase became lost in the shuffle, rarely making appearances on Raw and being relegated to both Superstars and NXT, where he served as a pro to rookie Brodus Clay.
A short-term rivalry with Daniel Bryan over the United States championship is, as of date, the last consistent TV airtime Ted has enjoyed.
So, how does a guy with such hype and potential, who was deemed worthy enough to star in a WWE Productions feature film, fall from grace so fast?
Did he do something to anger one of the locker room leaders or a powerful writer?
Did Vince McMahon wake up one morning and decide he had changed his mind and wanted to focus on the young stars of Nexus or Alberto Del Rio or Drew McIntyre instead?
While the latter is not completely out of the question, there is little evidence as to why DiBiase reportedly has fallen into the doghouse.
One thing is for certain, however, DiBiase can recover from this speed bump in his young career.
It is not to late to dig himself out of the hole and reposition himself as THE featured young talent on a roster with a whole lot of young men and women.
Time will only tell if he can do it himself or if he needs help, perhaps in the form of a powerful behind-the-scenes ally.
One thing is for certain: the young man whose entrance music brags "I Come From Money" should have WWE swimming in money.
5. Jack Swagger
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The World Heavyweight Championship hurt Jack Swagger. It is not very often you hear a statement like that and, as a matter of fact, most would claim I was asinine for even suggesting such a thing.
Winning a title such as the World Heavyweight Championship immediately propels a young star to the top of the industry and puts the focus on them.
They become the face of whatever brand they currently call home and receive the experience of being in the main events of several prestigious pay-per-view events, TV tapings, and house shows.
It is also a feat they can brag about for the remainder of their career, even if they never reach that pinnacle again.
So why did the World Heavyweight Championship hurt Jack Swagger? And more importantly, how can he possibly be on a list of underutilized superstars when he is a former world's champion?
Winning the Money in the Bank Ladder Match at Wrestlemania is a major accomplishment, one that has created top line Superstars that have raked in a significant chunk of change for WWE over the last couple of years.
Edge and CM Punk rank as the most successful of the Money in the Bank winners and both were able to create main-event positions and several championship reigns for themselves because of it.
Both of those men, however, were upper mid-card level stars who were eventually going to enjoy main event status regardless of whether they won Money in the Bank or not. The actual victory only served to elevate them more rapidly.
Jack Swagger is a different case. He won Money in the Bank after weeks of losing on Raw, mainly to comedy act Santino Marella. Many feel he was lucky to make the big Wrestlemania show in the first place, let alone compete in the ladder match.
When he won, many considered it a surprise and questioned if he was ready for such a push. It was speculated that he would hold onto the briefcase and develop more over the ensuing months.
When he cashed in and won the World Heavyweight Championship just two days later at the Smackdown tapings, those questioning the decision only became louder.
Soon, Swagger was all over the Smackdown broadcasts, feuding with the likes of Big Show, Rey Mysterio, and Kane. While the promos were good, and crowd response to him was more than okay, something felt like it was "off."
Was it his lisp during interviews, the object of many a joke? Was it his age and perceived inexperience when matched with the top stars on Smackdown?
While the lisp, his age, and his inexperience all played a major part in why he was hurt by his championship reign, the main reason for his inability to carry the ball actually had nothing to do with Swagger.
He couldn't maintain the push given to him because he was not ready. WWE took a young kid who spent the majority of his first two years on television wrestling on the care-free ECW brand with ring generals such as Christian and Tommy Dreamer directing him and put him into the main event slot on Smackdown, facing surefire Hall of Fame candidates like Kane, Mysterio and Show, and expected him to be able to carry his own.
Swagger did not have the time to properly develop into a seasoned wrestler capable of carrying his own in a big match situation and it ended up affecting him to this day.
Since the fall from the main events on Smackdown, Swagger has been wandering around aimlessly on the Friday night show, almost as if he is without direction. He is often found wrestling Kofi Kingston, Chris Masters, or in multiple-man Intercontinental Championship matches.
At what point, however, does WWE decide to help Swagger mature as a performer so that he can capitalize on the next opportunity he receives?
He has almost zero promo time, has no real rhyme or reason for doing anything he does on Smackdown, and seems stuck in a proverbial treadmill, moving, but never really going anywhere.
Swagger is a superstar not unlike Mr. Kennedy was during his time with WWE. He is cocky, arrogant and the fans love to hate him. He tasted the main event a little too early and as a result, was pulled back to the reality that is mid-card status.
It is now up to WWE to realize that, if they don't want Swagger becoming another missed opportunity, they have to spend the time necessary to complete him.
4. Melina
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She has won five championships (three Women's, two Divas). She managed MNM to three tag team championships.
WWE Hall of Fame inductee Bret "Hitman" Hart named her the best wrestler in all of World Wrestling Entertainment. Not female wrestler. Wrestler. Period.
She has been involved in several major storylines since her debut on Smackdown in 2005.
So why, as the 27th annual Wrestlemania rapidly approaches, has Melina been tossed into the heap of stars unlikely to make the big show? A long history of attitude problems may have something to do with it.
No matter how hot Melina gets, and how much she is featured on Mondays or Fridays, one of two things usually leads to her falling back down the ladder of Divas.
The first is injury. Melina has a recent history of injuries that tend to occur at the worst possible times. In June 2008, an injured heel/ankle derailed a potential major storyline rivalry with the white-hot Beth Phoenix that had resulted in an intense "I Quit" match at Extreme Rules. She missed a little over five months.
Then, in December 2009, Melina would suffer an ACL tear that would keep her out until August of the following year, ending a Divas Championship reign. The injuries had been detrimental but each time, she was able to battle back and win championship gold.
There was something much more damaging to her career than any injury could possibly be.
Through the majority of her WWE career, Melina has been plagued by rumors of a bad attitude and her seemingly endless ability to suck up to those in power to get what she wants.
Whether these rumors and claims are legitimate or simply former employees of the company looking to tarnish a former co-worker, the fact that the rumors exist is troubling.
Melina has seen opportunities diminish, the latest a program with Natalya over the Divas title, due to the claims of a bad attitude.
There have also been past anonymous Internet sources claiming Melina's attitude was partly to blame for John Morrison, her long-time flame, enduring a seemingly unending existence in the mid-card, rather than the main event like so many believe he is worthy of reaching.
The mismanagement of Melina is different from the others on this list. Hers has little to do with the front office deciding she is not worthy or is not marketable enough to ensure a push.
For Melina to achieve and enjoy a sustained push that renders increased television time, she has to check her attitude and learn to do what is the best for all involved, not just herself.
Unfortunately for Melina, her status as one of the older Divas may not lend itself to a hard push when there is a roster of younger Divas quickly rising behind her. At the end of the day, any success Melina enjoys will be solely up to her to maintain.
3. William Regal
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William Regal is one of the most beloved stars of all time. Beloved in the sense that WWE fans love to hate him.
He is and has always been a heat magnet, capable of getting the fans to boo him at any given moment with the mere flick of the wrist or the flashing of a facial expression.
As the general manager of Raw in 2008, Regal incited a crowd reaction I am not sure has been matched since.
Every week for his run atop of the Raw brand, he was so hated it was often widely assumed he would be the guy to derail John Cena's WWE Championship run.
Before that could happen, however, controversy struck and Regal's career would never be the same again.
Weeks into the hottest streak of his career, Regal failed his second drug test under the WWE Wellness Policy and was suspended for 60 days.
Since his return later that year, he has failed to make the impact he did for the majority of his career.
A brief run on ECW led to an low card run on Raw. He holds down the fort on Superstars, providing experience to an otherwise young and inexperienced group of Superstars regulars.
He's had several solid matches with Yoshi Tatsu and Darren Young, helping in their development.
Regal is underutilized for the same reason Chavo Guerrero is underutilized. The Blackpool native has the charisma and abilities to continue being a factor on WWE television, either as an in-ring competitor or as a manager for a younger man that doesn't share his talking abilities.
He also has a wealth of knowledge he could share with the young roster and would seemingly excel as a road agent.
Much like his fellow European, and long-time on-air rival Finlay, Regal could also help the WWE Divas grow as workers, teaching them the subtleties and nuances of the art of pro wrestling.
While Regal's days as an active wrestler may be winding down, WWE should do everything possible to incorporate him into the other facets of the business to ensure someone with his talent is not wasted on retirement.
2. Gail Kim
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Never has there been a more blatant example of WWE giving a non-verbal "F-U" to TNA than their use of Gail Kim. In late-2007 through most of 2008, the TNA Knockouts division was one of the hottest in all of professional wrestling. It was superior to WWE's in every way.
The wrestling was better, the story-telling was better, some even argued that the more natural look of TNA's girls was hotter than the models WWE employed.
At the center of the division was the brutal, vicious rivalry between Gail Kim and Awesome Kong. The two women spent weeks beating each other around Orlando, performing maneuvers and competing in matches not seen in any women's promotion this side of Japan.
And despite Kong's size and her status as the baddest woman in the wrestling world, Gail Kim was the woman who impressed fans the most.
A former Women's Champion in WWE, she was largely wasted by the company and quickly released in the talent purge that occurred in late 2004. From there, she signed with TNA and quickly became their most known, and one of their only, female talents.
When the ideas for the Knockouts division formulated, Gail quickly became its face. She was on promotional posters alongside AJ Styles, Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe.
She was widely considered the best female wrestler in the world. Her matches with Kong were as good, if not better, than the majority of the matches the guys were putting on.
WWE, apparently realizing its mistake in 2004, quickly acted. They offered Gail a significantly larger contract than the one TNA offered. Gail couldn't turn down the offer and she was soon on her way back to the biggest wrestling company in the world.
What resulted was far from the critically acclaimed success she enjoyed in TNA. The video packages hyping her return were little more than workout clips.
When she finally did return, she was allowed no interview time and the crowd immediately found it hard to care, much like they had in 2003 when she first debuted on the national scene.
WWE had seemingly made the same mistake they had half a decade earlier.
But did they? Was it really a mistake?
Or had WWE simply allowed Gail to fill the same role she did before she left as a way to stick it to TNA? They had taken their biggest female star, signed her to a contract TNA had no possible way of matching, and allowed her to fill the role of "just another Diva."
It was a genius maneuver that allowed WWE to steal away the only star TNA had significantly better than what WWE had in the same position on its roster.
Gail's career has yet to rebound.
WWE is missing an opportunity to create a star its new female fanbase can be proud of. Gail is the athletic girl everyone knows. She's smart, she's sexy and she is athletic.
If given the time to talk on TV, and get herself over as an athlete who wants to be the very best, the little girls in the audience will have an idol they can look up and appreciate for her skills.
Boys will respect her for the moves she can do that are similar but aren't exactly like those someone such as Rey Mysterio would execute.
She is the athletic counterpart to the other model-like Divas populating the roster.
For a woman who had the wrestling world buzzing, and Vince McMahon willing enough to write a six-figure check for her services, it is a shame to see just how underutilized and underrated a Diva in her prime like Gail Kim really is.
And Number One Is...
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We have made it through nine WWE Superstars, all underutilized for one reason or another. Some were of their own doing.
Others were because of poor booking and planning. Who is No. 1 and what is their reason for making this list? Click next to find out.
1. Zack Ryder
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First he was a Major Brother. Then, he was an Edge Head. But it wasn't until he embraced his hometown of Long Island, a ridiculous headband, and a repetitive three-word catchphrase that he began to gain some traction with WWE fans. His name is Zack Ryder and he is the most underutilized WWE Superstar.
Zack Ryder has done everything right. He is a fixture on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, all popular social media instruments used to reach a wider audience. He is not afraid to embarrass himself to get his character over, as seen in his new, extremely popular video posts entitled Z! True Long Island Story.
He has worked hard to shill his merchandise, going as far as to promise a personal autograph for any fan photographed wearing his new T-shirt.
He is young, charismatic, and has captured the attention of many smart-mark Internet wrestling fans across the country. He has even embraced his never-ending appearances on the Thursday night Superstars program, dubbing himself the "Superstar of Superstars."
In 2009, Ryder had a string of matches with then-ECW Champion Christian which many fans consider some of the most underrated and under-appreciated of the year.
His interview skills are comparable to the main stars on the roster and he is constantly looking to get himself over, something a majority of young stars on the roster cannot be bothered to do. Instead, they embrace the status quo and move on to their comfy spot on Raw or Smackdown.
Zack, on the other hand, seems content to continue to work hard and do whatever is necessary to get the one opportunity he needs to hit it big in the profession he grew up loving.
Raw and Smackdown are missing someone like Zack Ryder. Today's heels are too busy trying to be cool to really get over and be hated by the WWE fans.
Ryder's character, an obnoxious, overbearing Long Island whose antics are not unlike those of the Jersey Shore kids, is the type of goofball heel the fans love to hate and would pay to see get his comeuppance.
His "Woo woo woo, you know it" catchphrase is comical but he has shown on several occasions in the past that he has the ability to be serious and show aggression when needed.
It has always been said that the guys and girls that love wrestling will always prevail over those who are simply looking for media exposure and a quick payday.
One can only hope in Ryder's case the opportunity to truly succeed in the business he adores comes sooner or later, before it is too late.
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