Money is a controversial subject in the WWE right now. There's a full time roster of wrestlers who are earning well under a million dollars, meanwhile a part timer like Brock Lesnar is making multi-millions. The issue of earnings became even more fiery when the WWE Network arrived. Downside guarantees for mid carders have never been that great (when you consider the time put in and road expenses), so pay per view bonuses really mattered. The Network killed much of that income, with pay per view being a dead avenue for the post-Mania 30 WWE. Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter is still unaware of how WWE addressed this with talent. It looks like it was merely a case of not addressing it - like it or lump it. Indeed, that's one of the factors in CM Punk's exit last January. Why stick around when you aren't going to be paid your worth to a company? It is a matter of fact that some of WWE's lower card could earn much more on the indie scene than they do in WWE. The same is true of TNA, take a look at AJ Styles, who left the comfort of a TNA contract for a more lucrative run in the indies and Japan this past year. There's a raft of talent in WWE right now who are on a payscale between $300k to $600k a year. With merchandising and other bonuses drying up, talent are faced with a situation where there's a shortfall in earnings. Many of these men and women are the engines of WWE, appearing weekly in some of Raw and Smackdown's best action. Based upon pre-Network earnings, here's ten wrestlers who deserve a payrise.
