WWE fans had seen so many releases within the company recently, thinning the roster to a dramatically low amount compared to just a few years ago when it seemed like the company was loaded in all their brands. Since the roster is now much thinner, it would be logical that WWE was utilizing all the talent they have left on their roster to the fullest extent.
However, that is not the case, and for one reason or another, many of the wrestlers on the roster have been absent from television and programs far too often, and fans have not been able to see some amazing talent recently.
10 Timothy Thatcher
Much has changed with the NXT brand since Timothy Thatcher has not been on the show. Thatcher has not wrestled since NXT 2.0 has been birthed. Thatcher's last match was in August against Ridge Holland, where Holland injury Thatcher's throat in the storyline, seemingly taking him out of action for a while. However, not much is known when, or if, Thatcher will return to the NXT brand. Thatcher has only been with the WWE since 2020, but has already held the NXT Tag Team Championships with Matt Riddle. Thatcher has faced some of the biggest wrestlers in NXT in his short time, so the time off seems confusing if the injury was just for the storyline.
9 Asuka
Asuka is one of the most dominant wrestlers fans have seen in the modern era. She holds the record for the longest NXT title reign in all of the brand's history. Asuka is also a Grand Slam Champion on WWE's main roster, winning the RAW, NXT, and SmackDown Women's Championships as well as the WWE Tag Team Championship with Kairi Sane and Charlotte Flair.
All of her accomplishments make it odder that it has been so long since fans have seen the Empress of Tomorrow. When Asuka returns, it will likely be to a huge ovation.
8 Viking Raiders
The Viking Raiders have just shown back on up television, losing to Los Lotharios in under two minutes. This is not a good sign for a tag team that had not been seen on WWE television since September. The Viking Raiders were drafted to the SmackDown brand back in August, but fans had not seen them wrestle on the brand until this week. With such a quick match, there is fear that The Viking Raiders will be used as jobbers for the time being until WWE finds an interesting story to put them in, or until they leave/are released to pursue more fruitful ventures.
7 Lacey Evans
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At the beginning of 2021, Lacey Evans began a storyline with Charlotte Flair that involved Ric Flair. Evans was paired with "The Nature Boy," and Evans was seen as an item. Fans did not seem too thrilled of Ric Flair returning in this way, but the storyline was quickly scrapped due to Evans becoming pregnant in real life and has been out on maternity leave since February.
Evans is another free agent in the WWE and is, at the moment, free to show up on either brand. But she will surely not be paired with Ric Flair anymore as much has changed with his situation since Evans' pregnancy.
6 Drew Gulak
It seems as though Drew Gulak is just being used for battle royal segments, dark matches, and WWE Main Event shows. Gulak is one of the best technical wrestlers on the roster and has proven to be an extremely charismatic character on 205 Live. However, Gulak has been used as just a jobber, typically losing matches in under 3-5 minutes, if used on a show at all. When Gulak was given opportunities, it was typically used in the 24/7 Championship segment. For a wrestler of Gulak's caliber, it is unfortunate that the company can't find more for him to do.
5 Bayley
Fans have, unfortunately, not seen Bayley since June. Bayley's last match was against Bianca Belair at Hell In A Cell for the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship. Shortly after, she suffered a torn ACL at the WWE Performance Center.
Bayley is expected to miss nine months due to the injury, so Bayley will likely not be seen on television until at least the spring of 2022. Hopefully, Bayley recovers as quickly as possible, and fans can go back to see one of the Four Horsewomen on TV soon. Although, when she does return, it will be a question on which brand she shows up on, considering she is currently a free agent.
4 Elias
WWE fans have every right to be asking the question right now — where is Elias? Elias was last seen wrestling in September in his feud against former tag team partner, Jaxson Ryker. Once losing that feud, Elias was seen in vignettes, burning his guitar in August, and stating "walk with Elias, but Elias is dead," seemingly ending the musician gimmick he was famous for. However, since those vignettes, wrestling fans have not seen anything with Elias, and with so many wrestlers released, there's confusion from fans as to why he isn't being shown on television.
3 R-Truth
R-Truth has only been seen in a wrestling match on WWE television once since the end of WWE ThunderDome. R-Truth took part in the Battle Royal at Survivor Series like most of the undercard, but WWE has not done much with him as of recent.
Since the inception of the WWE 24/7 Championship, R-Truth has been at the forefront of that title, winning the championship 53 times. When Truth is on television, he is a refreshing comedy act and can make the most out of any situation, so hopefully, his talents will be of more use soon on WWE programming or somewhere else.
2 Titus O'Neil
Titus O'Neil has not wrestled on WWE television in the entire year of 2021. However, Titus can now call himself a WWE Hall of Famer, as he was a WWE Hall of Fame inductee in the class of 2020, receiving the Warrior Award at WrestleMania 37 where O'Neil co-hosted the event with Hulk Hogan. O'Neil received the award due to his notable philanthropy work. O'Neil's last match was against Bobby Lashley for the United States Championship in November of last year. Despite O'Neil being the Global Ambassador for the WWE, he still isn't retired. So, fans may see O'Neil's in-ring return still.
1 John Cena
John Cena is one of the greatest WWE superstars of all time. When Cena wants to have a storyline or match with any competitor, he is likely able to work with whoever he wants. However, now that Cena is doing movies in Hollywood, he is only a part-timer for WWE.
Despite not being a part of any brand, Cena is still signed with WWE, showing up for major events like WrestleMania and SummerSlam. In fact, the last match that Cena had with the company was at SummerSlam in August, in a losing effort to Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship. Surely, any time Cena wants to come back, the company will gladly accept him back with open arms.