5 times WWE Champions were relegated to wrestling on Main Event
The career of a WWE superstar is by no means a steady affair. The nature of the business is such that a wrestler can experience dizzying highs one day and sinking lows the next.
In the world of WWE, the latter is probably being relegated to jobber status or in other words, wrestling on WWE Main Event. Main Event is a tertiary show that features superstars who aren't prominently shown on the main ones. If it isn't clear already, it is not where aspiring wrestlers want to be.
However, WWE has dropped the ball with so many superstars over the years that even former world champions have appeared on Main Event. While some swiftly jumped back up, others spun their wheels for a bit on the show.
Here are five times when WWE Champions, reigning or former, made an appearance on Main Event.
#5. On our list of WWE Champions who were relegated to wrestling on Main Event: The Miz
The Miz rose to the top of the wrestling mountain by cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase and becoming WWE Champion. He went on to headline WrestleMania 27 in a match against John Cena.
However, Miz has also ended up wrestling on Main Event for a while. He has had matches against the likes of Jack Swagger, Dolph Ziggler, and Cody Rhodes.
The lull his career went through saw him become a Main Event mainstay. It would take an Intercontinental Championship win in 2016 for him to re-establish himself as a main event player. No, not the show!
#4. Finn Balor
Finn Balor became the latest former world champion to appear on Main Event. The latest tapings from Pittsburgh show that he wrestled Apollo Crews in a one-on-one match.
Balor was the first Universal Champion and is the current United States Champion. A competitor of his caliber wrestling on Main Event is a worrying sign, especially because he is presently a midcard champion who should be booked well.
Fans are understandably worried for The Prince and justifiably so. He doesn't have a match for WrestleMania at the time of writing. The Main Event appearance has sparked a worry that he may not have one at all.
#3. Dolph Ziggler
Dolph Ziggler's world championship win was one of the greatest moments in WWE history. His cash-in and subsequent victory won him the World Heavyweight Championship, but a concussion resulted in him losing it pretty quickly.
The start-and-stop nature of Ziggler's pushes meant he found himself wrestling on Main Event a fair bit. While he has always returned to the main shows, he has also gone down just as many times.
The Showoff's resume and connection with fans never warranted repeated Main Event appearances. But that is exactly what he had to go through back in the day.
#2. Alberto Del Rio
Alberto Del Rio is another former world champion who WWE repeatedly handed the short end of the stick. Four world titles weren't enough to escape wrestling on Main Event, which he did on more than one occasion.
Del Rio has wrestled a variety of matches on Main Event. While that showcased his range and abilities as a performer, he should have been doing it on the primary shows. Instead, he spun his wheels for a brief period before leaving the company.
#1. Sheamus
Even Sheamus couldn't escape the dreaded Main Event appearance. Having been a four-time world champion and a consistent performer for many years, no one expects the likes of him to be working Main Event.
However, that did happen for a while in Sheamus' career. He mixed it up with all kinds of opponents, sometimes with championships on the line. In fact, he was part of the main event (pun intended) of the very first episode of Main Event. There, the then-World Heavyweight Champion wrestled WWE Champion CM Punk.
It's safe to say that The Celtic Warrior's subsequent appearances on the show didn't carry half the stakes or the necessity. Thankfully, the last few years have seen him wrestle on the main shows and with good storylines backing him.