10 Current WWE Superstars That Belong In Another Era

1. Paige - 2013/4 WWE

Paige Divas Champion
WWE

Conquering some hefty professional and personal trials and tribulations during a 16-month absence from television, Paige's November 2017 return screeched to a heartbreaking halt just months later after suffering a potentially career-ending injury during a routine house show clash.

The physical style wasn't supposed to be her undoing - at only 25 she'd already been wrestling for over a decade - but the lightning quick steps taken by the division in her absence were destined to leave her eventually outclassed.

'The Anti-Diva' she portrayed so expertly in NXT and on the main roster fit the pace of the league's placement at the time. Women's wrestling on Raw and SmackDown was in the gutter, with only AJ Lee remotely credible as a titleholder during a time of such tumult. A Full Sail force, Paige was an out-of-the-box sensation for her celebrated differences alongside the perennial champion, even if neither of their best matches could now hold a candle to the Four Horsewomen-led contests that have since occurred.

There was no greater period for Paige than the era she became a huge success in. Should she never ever wrestle again, it will remain the tenure in which she's immortalised.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett