10 Worst WWE Feuds Of 2016

10. Rusev Vs. Titus O'Neil

The best thing that you can say about Titus O’Neil and Rusev’s United States Title feud is that it was mercifully short and presented the Bulgarian as a dominant champion. Having spent most of Spring beating Kalisto like a drum, Rusev moved into this program with Titus in late May, when Titus became the latest ineffectual lower-midcarder to take exception to Rusev’s dastardly antics, but he was doomed from the start.

The feud only lasted a couple of weeks, but it was a perfect example of how not to book a midcard title challenge. Titus came into the story incredibly cold: he’d never gotten over as a singles wrestler and has never experienced any kind of success against credible opposition, so the idea that he’d somehow present a threat to Rusev was laughable. You can’t get invested in a babyface’s challenge if you don’t believe in their abilities as a competitor, and Titus has done nothing to inspire such belief.

Furthermore, Titus entered the feud on the back of a 60-day suspension for grabbing Vince McMahon during Daniel Bryan’s retirement celebration. The whole feud felt like on-air punishment for Titus’ perceived transgressions, particularly when Rusev beat him down in front of his son (take that, Dad of the Year), and by the time Rusev beat Titus for the last time on July 4th, nothing had been accomplished.