The WWE locker room is currently full of talents who come out and showcase their talent every week. With Brock Lesnar being the Universal champion, and the WWE relying on part-timers for selling out major events proves that the current lot is certainly missing the major star power that could draw on their own. Well, that was not the case 10 years ago when the roster had John Cena leading it with Triple H, The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and other big Superstars were full-timers.
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WWE had started looking for its future Superstar at that time but had the present secured with all these big names. The current lot has also got few Superstars who could have thrived a decade ago and could have been more than a major name that they are right now.
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#5 Braun Strowman
Braun Strowman got a major push from the creatives ever since he got separated from the Wyatt family. His career graph is on the upswing at the moment and he is most likely to be a WWE title holder in the near future. He is shining on the WWE stage now with his skills and one could imagine him working in WWE 10 years ago and fighting it out with the big names WWE had that time.
Feud against names like Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker, Batista or Edge would have done wonders to him. Currently, WWE has part-timers like Brock Lesnar, TripleH and John Cena who are well past their prime as the major stars.
WWE likes to go for big men fighting it out against each other and unfortunately, Braun hardly has got any competition in this. The only two competitors he faced of his size were Big Show and Mark Henry, both of them at the near end of their career.
This could have been different with Big Show being full time and Mark Henry still inducting wrestlers in his "Hall of pain". Still, he has done more than a decent job which makes fans wonder about how things would have been different a decade ago with him in the corner.
#4 Kevin Owens
The former Universal champion is one of the biggest stars in the company right now. He has proven his mic skills and in-ring ability multiple times in his career. Had he been on the stage a decade ago, the fans could have seen some great storylines involving him and names like Edge and Randy Orton at their peak.
WWE was looking for their future star at that time. This could have well suited him with workers like CM Punk, Cena and Batista to go against and with skills he has, he could have become a major face in the company. He is one of the best heels in the company right now and could have achieved a lot at that time. Currently, he is generally involved in random feuds and is unclear if WWE will put a major title on him anytime soon.
#3 Bray Wyatt
Bray Wyatt has shown a lot of potential with his skills in WWE but is yet to reach anywhere near the pinnacle point of his career. He has generally been put in a wrong place for a major portion of his career. He feuded with The Undertaker at Wrestlemania 31, where the "Phenom" was coming out of a shocking loss the previous year and was expected to win.
He lost the title at WrestleMania 33 against Randy Orton which ended his very short reign with the title and was a surprise move by the WWE. If we look at his character and bookings it can be concluded that WWE tried to portray him as the next Undertaker which they have either postponed or have given up on.
But if we imagine him 10 years earlier, he could have got a major push with a great storyline involving Kane, The Undertaker and Triple H who all were full timers that time. He could have had the opponents he needs to accelerate his WWE career right now. Currently, he is the part of Raw tag team championship with "Woken" Matt Hardy which also has the potential to become a stepping stone in his career.
#2 Dean Ambrose
"The Lunatic Fringe" of WWE is currently out of action due to an injury and is expected to return late in the summer. The former WWE champion could have been a breakthrough star 10 years ago with his unique style of working. A feud with Edge or Batista that time would have made headlines in WWE and could have suited his working style.
Before his injury, he was in need of a change as his character was growing stale due to lack of momentum and a proper opponent. After the split from The Shield, he has shown that he has the calibre to headline WWE events but just hasn't been able to continue with that. He requires a long-term feud with major stars in the company which WWE had a lot in numbers a decade ago.
#1 AJ Styles
The current WWE champion is one of the, if not the "best in-ring performer" to step up in the ring. Irrespective of the time period, one can easily say that he could have thrived anytime he had entered the WWE ring.
But one thing that is missed from his feuds is the lack of major WWE names in his opponent corner. He had a great feud with John Cena which helped him establish his name in WWE. He still has some great names to face like Daniel Bryan, Seth Rollins, Samoa Joe and Roman Reigns. But fans would have also loved to see him fighting it out with other big names of the company who are now either retired or are part-timers now.
Currently, with his skills and potential, he is one of the major "Face that runs the place". The excitement among fans which came up after a tease of him facing Shawn Michaels during Royal Rumble proves that he could have thrived 10 years ago like he is doing right now in WWE.
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