Roman Reigns and 4 other reasons WWE should stop relying on part-timers

The WWE Royal Rumble kicked off the Road To WrestleMania and now there are two part-time Rumble winners who will go on to main event WrestleMania.

Ronda Rousey returned after an almost three-year absence, whilst Brock Lesnar won his second Royal Rumble to wrack up another main event match at 'Mania.

Over the last decade, WWE has become more and more reliant on part-time stars with the likes of Goldberg, Batista, John Cena, and even The Rock being known to be recalled by the company when needed.

Whilst this was a formula that once worked, it appears that there are now several glaring reasons why the company no longer needs to make the call to former stars for WrestleMania season.

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#5. Roman Reigns is a huge reason why WWE no longer needs to rely on part-time superstars

Roman Reigns may come from a family of wrestlers, but the star himself is a complete product of WWE's Performance Center. The current Universal Champion has come through the ranks in FCW, NXT, and has been the face of both RAW and SmackDown en route to being the best-known wrestler in the world.

Reigns is proof that stars can be created from scratch and that the company needs to have more faith in the talent that they have contracted, rather than looking elsewhere for a bigger name.

Reigns has worked with Brock Lesnar on numerous occasions over the past few years and The Rock is rumored to be recalled to the company for a huge showdown in the coming years. That spot could instead go to an up-and-coming star who could rise through the ranks and become a credible challenger to The Tribal Chief.

The reliance on part-time superstars has meant that no one on RAW can match the level that Roman Reigns is currently on over on SmackDown. The only person that is on Reigns' level that can continue to be recalled is Brock Lesnar or John Cena.

WWE had potential with the Seth Rollins/Reigns feud heading into The Royal Rumble but that has once again been pushed aside in favor of the company's favorite panic button feud.

#4. Part-timers won't always have the impact that WWE thinks they will

WWE has called back several names over the years with the likes of Undertaker, Goldberg, and Shawn Michaels all wrestling matches in Saudi Arabia.

Needless to say, these matches didn't completely go to plan. Goldberg faced off against The Undertaker and the two men were lucky to avoid serious injury with the number of botches in the match.

Shawn Michaels returned in 2018 to wrestle at Crown Jewel and the Hall of Famer later made it clear that he regretted his decision. The match wasn't what he expected it to be and it was clear that he was no longer the wrestler that he once was.

Sometimes there is a reason why these stars want to stay retired, legends want to ensure that their legacy is protected, and the company needs to understand that the more they roll out the red carpet the more likely they are to return and fail.

WWE history is littered with legends who retired and then came back, some legends deserve to remain retired and stick to their word.

#3. Current WWE Superstars would be given more screen time on weekly shows

Mustafa Ali recently handed in his release request after being completely forgotten or overlooked several times over the past year. Ali had a fantastic character and was seemingly set to win the Money in the Bank contract in 2019 which would have given him the push he needed to become a main event level superstar.

Instead, Ali had this victory snatched from him when Brock Lesnar made his return to the company and despite already being a former world champion, he was able to claim the contract.

WWE's reliance on these part-time stars means that others have been completely forgotten. There were several stars like Xia Li who is on the company's main roster but wasn't able to be part of The Women's Royal Rumble match.

Humberto, Angel, Cesaro, and Finn Balor all missed out on the Men's Royal Rumble match because there were other stars who were put ahead of them including Shane McMahon, Brock Lesnar and Bad Bunny.

#2. Budget cuts could be prevented if WWE didn't need to bring in big names with big price tags

Budget cuts have become a huge part of life in WWE throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and it's clear that the company has been forced to make these cuts to level out its finances.

This wouldn't be an issue if the company didn't need to rely on bigger stars to come in for four months of the year and ensure that ticket sales hit a certain percentage.

If the company concentrated on the talent that they already have under contract on all four of their brands and were able to avoid spending large amounts on part-time stars then there may not be as many budget cuts.

The pandemic has had a financial impact on several companies all over the world and cuts have had to be made, but now that the world is looking forward there should be a simple way for WWE to ensure that no more of their talent lose their jobs due to "budget cuts."

#1. WWE Ratings suffer when part-timers take time off after WrestleMania season is over

It's a story that's as old as time, WWE brings in part-timers at The Royal Rumble and then allows them to work through until WrestleMania.

After WrestleMania when Batista, Brock Lesnar, Ronda Rousey, and Goldberg all head home, WWE expects their NXT call-ups who have never been mentioned on the main roster before, to be enough to bring in the ratings.

The part-time stars take all of the main event segments and have the biggest spotlight for their matches because they're costing WWE the most money. Meanwhile, the night after WrestleMania it's the undercard that the company relies on to ensure that there are ratings from April until January.

Whilst these stars are a huge draw and they are able to ensure that tickets are sold when they leave, there are no current superstars that can match that. There needs to be a focus on the new talent and allowing them to have a spotlight as well so that there is something to fall back on when the legends leave.

The biggest issue the company appears to have at present is building their own stars to Roman Reigns' level so that they can then carry their remaining shows each year.