12 Best Runs By WWE Stars In OTHER Companies

Times have changed. Take a look up and down the WWE roster and even the most cursory of glances will reveal a plethora of men and women who perfected their game outside of the system before being brought in. NXT is the clearest example of this, a former developmental brand that now functions essentially as a super-indie, a collection of this generation’s best performers doing their thing under the bright lights of WWE production.

WWE’s decision to change tack and bring in the best of the best from the wider wrestling world has undoubtedly been a net positive. Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan and CM Punk are just three of many success stories, top-tier performers who have taken their game to new heights on the biggest stage. These men all faced skepticism upon signing with the promotion and went on to prove everybody wrong.

But for every Bryan or Rollins there are a handful of men and women who have been neglected in WWE, wrestlers who can be forgiven for reminiscing about better times in other companies. Several of WWE’s best competitors were among the best in the world in other companies, further proof that the promotion itself may be the real problem.

But that is neither here nor there. Better to remember WWE stars when they were at the peak of their powers.

WWE seems to have finally gotten its act together when it comes to Bobby Lashley. How has it taken so long? Things started off well enough as Lashley was given a monster push upon debuting back in 2005, but everything soon fell apart. The fans quickly turned on the unbeatable Lashley, a state of affairs made worse by the inexplicable decision to have him win the ECW Championship, and he was out of the company in a flash. Lashley returned to WWE in 2017 but it hasn't exactly been top trumps since then. In fact, Big Bobby has been involved in two of the worst RAW segments in modern history, so make of that what you will.

The ship has been righted in recent weeks, as Lashley has been booked in dominant fashion ahead of a WWE Championship feud with Drew McIntyre. Maybe Vince McMahon and the creative team were able to swallow their pride and look at how Impact booked him, picking up pointers along the way. Impact booked Lashley like a legitimate monster, a premier athlete dripping in credibility, a man at the very top of the food chain. He won four World Championships, proving to be a more than impressive big bad for a company in transition at the time.

Lashley has always been one of those pro wrestling prototypes, a beast of a man with the legitimate fighting skills to back it up. It should be the simplest thing in the world, booking such a figure. TNA/Impact Wrestling has made plenty of mistakes over the years, but its booking and treatment of Bobby Lashley was a definite highpoint.