5 WWE Superstars whose careers lasted less than a year
WWE Superstars are aware that sometimes their time in the spotlight can be fleeting. Careers in WWE that last for more than a decade are rare and more often than not they only happen to the most elite superstars.
While it's well-known that the shelf-life of a main roster WWE Superstar is usually a short one, there are an unlucky bunch of wrestlers who were released in their first year with the company.
Many of these are memorable ones, whilst others remain forgettable names in the history book of the biggest professional wrestling promotion in the world.
The following list looks at just five former WWE Superstars whose entire career in WWE lasted less than a year.
#5. Former WWE Superstar Cain Velasquez
As part of SmackDown's debut episode on FOX in 2019, Cain Velasquez made his arrival in WWE.
The former UFC star already has a history with Brock Lesnar and was able to pick up where he left off when he was introduced as Dominik's godfather.
Velasquez attacked The Beast Incarnate and set up a match between the two men in Saudi Arabia in November 2019. It was the only wrestling match that Velasquez was part of in WWE and it lasted mere minutes before Lesnar picked up the victory. After the match, Rey Mysterio involved himself and there were links to continue the story, but WWE decided against this after it was revealed that Velasquez was injured.
The former MMA star was then sidelined for several months due to a knee injury and there were reports that he would be making his return as part of The Royal Rumble match, which would then set up a match at WrestleMania.
Despite the hype surrounding his signing, Velasquez failed to wrestle in WWE again. Velasquez was signed by WWE in October 2019 ahead of his debut on SmackDown and was then released on April 28th, 2020 due to budget cuts stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
This means that the retired MMA star's entire wrestling career lasted just over six months.