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While many young wrestlers dream of getting promoted from developmental to the WWE main roster, others had to go back to the lower ranks after tasting glory.
WWE has had several developmental territories over the years. WWE Superstars have to undergo months of training to earn a spot on the main roster. Names like John Cena, Batista and Roman Reigns spent months preparing themselves in promotions like OVW and FCW before they got a chance to perform on the main shows.
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However, WWE has prematurely promoted some superstars to the main roster on a few occasions. WWE management ultimately had to send them back to developmental to improve their skills later on.
Further training is not the sole reason WWE has had to send superstars back to developmental. Sometimes WWE management has implemented demotion as a punishment method. Former World Champion The Big Show was one of its most famous victims.
Here are five WWE Superstars that were sent back to developmental.
#5. Former WWE Superstar Matt Morgan
Matt Morgan signed a WWE contract following his participation in season two of Tough Enough. He joined Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), WWE's developmental brand at the time, to learn the ropes before debuting on SmackDown a year later, in October 2003.
WWE was undergoing many changes back then. Young talents such as John Cena, Randy Orton and Brock Lesnar were turning into superstars, and WWE management believed Morgan could follow in their footsteps. He received a push on SmackDown, but a shoulder injury put a quick end to it.
Following his recovery, WWE sent Morgan back to OVW. His return to the developmental brand saw him go straight to the top and win the OVW Heavyweight Championship.
A year following his demotion, Morgan returned to SmackDown with a new stuttering gimmick. Morgan revealed the idea came from Vince McMahon. However, it did not work. Morgan later spoke about his failed persona in an interview with The Post and Courier:
"I hated it. I didn't tell those guys to call me up prematurely (...) I did say in that office, and not talking back or anything, but you know, Vince sold this to me as he's always wanted to put this stuttering character on one of these bigger, super impressive looking guys."
Having noticed the failure of Morgan's stuttering gimmick, WWE released him in July 2005.
Following his unsuccessful WWE run, Morgan joined TNA, where he became a two-time TNA World Tag Team Champion.
#4. WWE Superstar Drew McIntyre
Drew McIntyre has reached the top of the WWE mountain. However, on his way to success, he suffered a few setbacks. One of them was getting sent back from the main roster to developmental.
McIntyre made his debut on SmackDown in 2007 and had a very short stint before WWE officials decided to send him back to FCW for more training. There, he held the FCW World Heavyweight Title and the Tag Team Championships alongside Stu Sanders.
In 2009, McIntyre returned to SmackDown and soon became Intercontinental Champion. He also captured the Tag Team Championships alongside Cody Rhodes.
McIntyre's career took many turns in the following years. He was released by WWE in 2014 to wrestle on different promotions before returning to the company in 2017. His second WWE run has been much more successful than his first. He has won the NXT Championship, the RAW Tag Team Championships and the WWE title so far.
The Scottish Warrior is now on a quest to regain the WWE Championship, which he lost to The Miz at Elimination Chamber. He will face a huge challenge when he goes into a triple threat match against Braun Strowman and WWE Champion Bobby Lashley at WrestleMania Backlash next Sunday.
#3. Former WWE Superstar The Big Show
Although The Big Show is a legend in WWE history, he was once punished harshly for his bad habits. In 2000, Vince McMahon himself decided to demote the giant superstar to developmental. McMahon's decision came out of fear that Show's unhealthy lifestyle could end his career, if not his life.
At that time, The Big Show had developed unhealthy eating habits and was also smoking. He gained a lot of weight and was unable to perform at the necessary level. According to Bruce Prichard, McMahon felt the only way to straighten him up was to send him back to OVW, WWE's developmental brand at the time.
Although The Big Show was frustrated by the decision, he confessed it turned out to be a "humbling experience":
"What I had was taken away. It was humbling. I went from walking in Mr. Big s–t – I had a $50,000 Dodge Dually with semi alcoas on it – and Jim Cornette told me to pull the ring. Like, my truck’s worth more than your entire territory (...) I got my education that most everyone gets in the business before they ever get in, mine happened after I had already tasted a little bit of success. And that was a hard pill to swallow, a pill that at that time I think I needed to swallow," The Big Show said on Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions.
The Big Show's demotion to OVW served its purpose. He got rid of many of his bad habits before returning to the main roster. He went on to become one of the top guys in WWE for many years.
#2. WWE Superstar Bray Wyatt
Bray Wyatt is one of the most talented individuals in WWE. However, his skills have needed a little sharpening at times.
The former Universal Champion joined WWE's developmental territory, FCW, in 2009. He spent almost a year training before making his debut on the main roster as Husky Harris. Although he joined The Nexus, he could not stand out amongst its members. WWE soon sent him back to FCW for further development.
The former WWE Champion spent another year in FCW, where he made enormous progress. In 2013, he made his second debut on the main roster as Bray Wyatt, the leader of the Wyatt Family, and the rest is history.
The time Wyatt spent at FCW has served him well. He transformed from a lost rookie to one of the most successful superstars of the current generation. He is now a former two-time Universal Champion, WWE Champion, Raw Tag Team Champion and SmackDown tag team Champion.
The last time Bray Wyatt wrestled in WWE was at WrestleMania 37, where he lost to Randy Orton.
#1. WWE Superstar Eva Marie
Eva Marie is finally back in WWE. She announced her return through a taped promo that aired on RAW last Monday. All Red Everything is ready to open a new chapter in her WWE career, which has seen many highs and lows.
Eva Marie first burst onto the scene in 2013 when WWE promoted her to the main roster following just two weeks of training at the Performance Center. She also starred in season one of WWE's reality show, Total Divas.
Despite her looks and athleticism, Eva Marie clearly had no in-ring skills. She participated in several matches alongside some of the best female wrestlers of all time but could never step up to their level.
The Red Queen became subject to harsh criticism forcing WWE to take action. The company took Eva Marie off WWE TV and sent her to train under former WWE Superstar Brian Kendrick's supervision.
Following her training, WWE sent Eva Marie to NXT, WWE's developmental brand at the time. She tasted some success there, defeating the likes of Billie Kay, Liv Morgan and Carmella. She also challenged Bayley for the NXT Women's Championship but lost.
The Red Queen's stint on NXT lasted a little less than a year. WWE then brought her back to RAW in early 2016 before drafting her to SmackDown. However, she never competed on the Blue brand. In August 2017, she announced her departure from WWE.
Now that Eva Marie is back, it will be interesting to see what "Eva-Lution" is all about.
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