10 Great Workers WWE Paid Not To Wrestle

5. Booker T

WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T, the six-time (six-time!) world champion, is still technically signed to WWE as an occasional announcer. Although thankfully he€™s not a regular commentator for the company (memories of his colour role playing the eighties-style blowhard are still fresh in many minds), he€™ll run colour commentary before and during pay-per-views, as part of the team of analysts that WWE likes to use to give their special events a €˜real sports€™ flavour. To our knowledge, he€™s not wrestled a match for WWE since the 12-man tag bout at Wrestlemania XXVIII in 2012, and a few months before then at the Royal Rumble as a special guest. His last mini-feud on WWE television was at the tail end of 2011, when he lost to a heel Cody Rhodes at the TLC pay-per-view, beat him on the following week€™s Monday Night RAW to continue the feud, and lost the following week on Smackdown to put Rhodes over. Now, Booker may be 49 years old and semi-retired€ but he never suffered a career-ending injury like Stone Cold or Edge, and he€™s still in great shape. He was completely natural as either a heel or a babyface. He€™s also still got the passion for wrestling, as evidenced by his continued support and funding for his local Reality Of Wrestling promotion in Houston, where he also helps train aspiring pro wrestlers. All indications are that Booker T is happy to take a backstage role and to leave the future of the business to the younger talent€ but the former King Of The Ring, and the most decorated wrestler in WCW history, as well as the greatest African-American professional wrestler in history, could easily give the rub to an up-and-comer, which was no doubt the point of the Rhodes angle in 2011. WWE needs to see sense and bring Booker T back into the ring for occasional stints. The man can still go, and has plenty left to offer even on a part time basis.