4 Superstars Paul Heyman couldn't get over

Paul Heyman is widely regarded as being one of the most influential beings in the storied history of professional wrestling. Heyman has managed a string of legendary wrestlers, was the owner of the notorious promotion called Extreme Championship Wrestling and went on to become a mainstay in Vince McMahon's WWE.

Heyman has managed the likes of Brock Lesnar and CM Punk, who are two of the biggest superstars in recent history. During both of Brock's runs in WWE, Heyman stood alongside him and turned into his mouthpiece, delivering scathing and hard-hitting promos on Lesnar's behalf.

But not all guys that Heyman managed turned into megastars while being associated with him. In the list below, we'll take a look at four Superstars who were Paul Heyman guys, but the association didn't exactly help them get over in the promotion.

Note: The article features guys who didn't make it big WHILE BEING UNDER Heyman's tutelage

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#4 Heidenreich

Heidenreich

Back in 2004, Heidenreich came to SmackDown, under the management of Paul Heyman. The gimmick Heidenreich donned was of a crazy big guy, who interfered in matches and recited hateful poems. Heidenreich kicked off a feud against The Undertaker, after attacking The Deadman in his WWE title match against JBL at No Mercy. At Survivor Series, Heidenreich lost to The Undertaker. The Royal Rumble pay-per-view saw Taker defeat Heidenreich again in a Casket Match after Kane came out to make the save.

A tag team match was planned for WrestleMania 21, featuring The Brothers of Destruction and Heidenreich & Snitsky, but was later nixed. Heidenreich went on to turn babyface and form a tag team with Animal. The duo won the WWE Tag Team titles on one occasion. He was released by WWE in 2006.

In terms of physique and raw power, Heidenreich fit the WWE mould. But his career never really took off. Superstars like Snitsky, Mark Jindrak and a host of others who were part of the WWE setup during the 2000's faced the same fate as 285 pounder.

Giving credit where its due, not everybody gets to start their career with a feud against the Undertaker and Heidenreich sure did get a high profile launchpad.

#3 Curtis Axel

Curtis Axel and AJ Styles

Originally known as Michael McGillicutty, Axel was later given another name that seemed easy on the tongue. He came up to the main roster along with Husky Harris, attacking John Cena during his match with Wade Barrett, helping him win the bout. Years later, McGillicutty was repackaged as Curtis Axel, with Paul Heyman being named as his manager.

The association lasted for a while, with Heyman and Axel teaming up against CM Punk at Night of Champions. Axel was eliminated by Punk, but Heyman eventually won the match after interference by Ryback. Soon after, Heyman declared that Axel was no longer a Paul Heyman Guy, marking the end of their alliance. Over the next few years, Axel was given new gimmicks, like AxelMania (a Hulk Hogan impersonator), The Social Outcasts (alongside Heath Slater, Adam Rose, and Bo Dallas), and a tandem named The B-Team, with Bo Dallas. Heyman being Axel's manager didn't help matters for him, and he was released from the company in 2020 after languishing in the mid-card segment for a long time.

Axel was wrestling royalty. He was the son of one of WWE's most technically sound wrestlers, 'Mr Perfect' Curt Hennig. But he was unable to replicate even a small portion of his old man's storied career and hence phased out without a trace.

Another example of a Heyman guy who couldn't make it big in the business.

#2 Cesaro

Cesaro and Sheamus

At WrestleMania 30, Cesaro won the first-ever Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal, by eliminating The Big Show. The next night on Raw, Hulk Hogan presented Cesaro the trophy, after which he dumped Zeb Colter as his manager and formed an alliance with Paul Heyman, declaring himself a "Paul Heyman Guy". Cesaro went on to lose several matches against the likes of Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, and Big E. Soon after, Cesaro ended his partnership with Paul Heyman without much fanfare.

This resulted in a losing streak for him, with back-to-back losses against Dean Ambrose, John Cena, Jack Swagger, Dolph Ziggler, and Rob Van Dam. Fans had been clamoring for a push for Cesaro after his historic WrestleMania win, but it never came. He formed a team with Sheamus and won the Tag Team titles on several occasions, but never managed to win the big one.

Cesaro has been a mainstay in the WWE for almost a decade now and is one of the best pound-for-pound wrestlers in the locker room. His super-human feats in the ring have earned him a large fanbase, however, Cesaro is unable to break the glass ceiling separating the mid card and main eventer slots.

Pairing him up with Paul Heyman seemed to be the right solution, but that did not pay dividends.

#1 Mean Mark

Mean Mark and Paul E. Dangerously

Before becoming possibly the greatest superstar in WWE history, The Undertaker was a typical big guy wrestler in WCW. Dubbed as Mean Mark Callous, Taker was put under the guidance of Heyman, then known as Paul E. Dangerously, defeating the likes of Brian Pillman and Johnny Ace, better known as John Laurinaitis.

He was shockingly mature for someone so new to the industry." Heyman said about managing Taker in his early days.

Mark Callous didn't make waves under Heyman's tutelage and didn't break out of the mid-card throughout his run. Heyman eventually helped him get noticed by Vince McMahon, who initially didn't show interest. After Bruce Prichard asked Vince to speak with Taker, the two met and he soon debuted at WWE Survivor Series 1990. The rest is history, as the dark, mysterious character of The Undertaker became a huge hit among the fans.

The Undertaker is often known to be one of the few superstars who underwent extremely minor changes to his gimmick in a career that spanned over three decades. But The Mean Mark Gimmick is what set the tone for the Deadman to become a legend of the business.