10 WWE Stars Who Briefly Flirted With The Main Event

After a few years in Florida, Wade Barrett was cast as the de facto leader of The Nexus, who made their main roster bow - in one of the all-time memorable Monday Night Raw moments - by wreaking havoc on all before them (including neck-tie-wearing ring announcer Justin Roberts).

Barrett soon emerged as a contender for the WWE Championship, and twice fought Randy Orton for the title on pay-per-view, before headlining TLC one-on-one with John Cena, and then finishing a respectable third in the 2011 Royal Rumble (although when one of the two ahead of you is Santino, that achievement loses some of its shine). The career of the 'Bare Knuckle Brawler' peaked within a few months of its start - and from there it was a steady slide back the other way.