10 Wrestlers WWE Should Never Have Allowed To Leave
The top men and women that WWE should have right now.
It's incredibly difficult to stay on top in the WWE, mostly because the powers that be -- a.k.a Vince McMahon -- are the ones to decide who gets pushed as champion and who gets zero TV time. Thanks to this business model, there is a revolving door of talent that roll in and out of the company. For the most part, people who leave have average to less than average success among other organizations. Although, there is a small group that is better off when they leave the #1 wrestling promotion in the world.
To a lesser extent, some wrestlers are able to "find themselves" outside of the WWE, like Maria Kanellis. In the WWE she was always a sidekick or just an airhead gimmick, but in ROH she's the Queen, she's "The First Lady of ROH" and has become one of the best heel managers in the world.
This list will focus on those that left the WWE and increased their notoriety (Drew Galloway or Brooke), or at least got back to the level of exposure that they deserved (Alberto El Patron). Sometimes backstage politics are the main reasons why a wrestler is let go, and unfortunately their release has nothing to do with talent, but that's the WWE loss, and other promotions gain.
10. Mickie James
Originally signed to a developmental contract in 2003, Mickie James spent 7 years with the WWE before being released. During her run she was a 6-time champion and was involved in one of the most famous divas feuds playing the obsessed fan of Trish Stratus. As one of WWE's better all-around talents, Mickie was a critical piece to the women's division when others like Lita and Trish retired from wrestling.
Then in 2010 came the "Piggy James" storyline with LayCool where she was constantly needled for being "fat". Soon after she was released from WWE as they wanted "the women's division to go in a different direction" according to Mickie. Looking back we see that "direction" was bringing in more models, and less focus on wrestling.
Since then Mickie has made a nice living on the indy scene, primarily with TNA, where she is a 3-time Knockouts Champion. Her talent has never been in question and if WWE is smart they will bring her back as a full-time NXT trainer down the road.