12 Wrestlers Without Direction For WrestleMania 33

Small roles on the big stage.

the miz dolph ziggler
WWE.com

The 'Road To WrestleMania' has officially begun, with the Royal Rumble's conclusion signposting clear destinations for several key players up and down the WWE main roster.

However, looking beyond some of Raw and Smackdown Live's key components, a fog has emerged over a slew of performers who should in theory have a a greater sense of purpose during the company's busiest time of year.

Not only is it a source of frustration for fans of the performers, it also has to grate on the individuals themselves, who are told to grab mythical brass rings all year round in order to justify a prominent spot on the 'Show of Shows'.

Despite one of the company's best ever in-ring years in 2016, many of the annum's prevailing talents still find themselves on the short end of the creative stick at the worst possible point.

Assessing their futures and what can be salvaged in time for the Orlando showpiece, here are 12 acts currently without direction for WrestleMania 33.

12. Rusev

rusev lana jinder mahal
WWE.com

Despite the recent hilarities stemming from his passable midcard feud with Enzo and Big Cass, the 'Bulgarian Brute' appears left out on the Monday Night Raw fringes in his makeshift partnership with underling Jinder Mahal.

The former 'Three Man Band' member has been a washout since his return to television, and has dragged the former US Champion down with him, despite some choice comedy segments and the recent 'Handsome Rusev' moniker gaining immediate traction juxtaposed with the Virgil-esque face mask protecting his broken nose.

Alongside several others on this list, a dispiriting Royal Rumble appearance best summed up the current malaise management seem to have for Rusev, with Goldberg comfortably dumping him after he dared to interrupt Big Bill's overly long face-off with The Undertaker.

Truthfully, with the Enzo and Cass story concluded in a Raw tornado tag match the night after the Royal Rumble, it seems unclear how 'Ru-Ru' will even be figured in for March's 'Fastlane' Pay-Per-View, let alone the 'Showcase of the Immortals' a month later.

He would of course be a heavy favourite in something like the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but the pre-show melee would be an undeserving spot for one of 2016's most consistent performers.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett