10 WWE Acts That Are Running Out Of Steam
8. Rusev
'The Bulgarian Brute' may have just liberated the United States Championship from Shinsuke Nakamura, but it again feels like a half-push too late rather than a proper one bang on time.
Until they were inexplicably split, Rusev Day were one of the most over acts in the company but had found popularity on their own terms and (as is so often the case) were seemingly punished as a result. Rusev himself barely had a follow-up story, Aiden English was embarrassingly underserved and even Lana got her wings clipped when the post-breakup angle resulted in her charge speaking for himself rather than using her impressive range.
It's hard to parse what Rusev's act even is at this point. Is he a comedy babyface? A killer one? A former heel in the throes of a passionate relationship with the crowd that fades by the day? He's nothing if not durable - Rusev's run began before NXT truly transformed how new talent came to the main roster, and had to survive a ropey follow-through once a year-long undefeated streak came to an end - but has his character been browbeaten to the point that he'll never be thought of by the fans or Vince McMahon as a credible headliner?