10 WWE Wrestlers Vince McMahon Didn’t Know How To Book

5. Rusev

Rusev WWE
WWE.com

The wrestler formerly known as Rusev will hopefully find a way to prove Vince McMahon wrong before long, taking his considerable skillset to a new world away from an inconsistent Sports Entertainment universe that failed him more than anyone else over the past five-to-six years.

Pushing Rusev as an imposing foreign menace looked an effective springboard to considerable heel stardom until John Cena cut 'The Bulgarian Brute' off at the knees. An awful romance angle with Dolph Ziggler and Summer Rae split him and Lana soon after, then the dead-end League of Nations stable, burials by Roman Reigns' hand, and a worthless feud with Enzo and Big Cass. By early 2017, Rusev's career was in the dumps.

Rusev Day changed this. His natural charisma and likeability shining through, Rusev became one of the most popular acts in the company with almost no support from management, taking off like never before. Merchandise was flying off the shelves, chants filled every building, and the pops were gigantic, leading to what looked like an easy transition to main-event babyface success - a transition WWE chose not to take.

McMahon did nothing with Rusev Day, letting the movement peter out and die a death before needlessly splitting Rusev and hype man Aiden English. It'll go down as one of this period's biggest wastes.

In this post: 
Rusev
 
Posted On: 
Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.