Wade Barrett regained the Intercontinental Championship from Dolph Ziggler. They did not follow through with a face turn for him. That exchange he had with Cesaro was probably either meant to take a shot at CM Punk or just humiliate Cesaro. There were other ways they could have brought him back, especially if they intended to keep him heel. Or is this just very bad inconsistency? They could have had him return to confront Ziggler in some manner. Barrett did deserve a title shot since he never lost the Intercontinental Championship. Just not good development.
The man you would expect him to be feuding with, Dolph Ziggler, is currently fired as part of a storyline. What is left for Barrett? A minor feud with Sin Cara? And it is very minor. It feels like Wade Barrett has already lost the momentum he had when he returned. When he returned the way he did, that got a lot of fans interested in him. Is he really turning face? He also had some freshness on his side. Even keeping him heel and giving him back the title was not necessarily horrible. The problem has been everything since then. It seems like he is back in the same position he was in last year prior to his injury. Sin Cara is not a guy that can elevate him. That is just filler.
Rusev is still holding the United States Championship. Much like Barrett, the guy Rusev is supposed to be feuding against is not around. That would be Ryback. It was only a matter of time before Rusev ran out of worthy opponents to go against the kind of gimmick he has. I think they have reached that point. Is John Cena the last guy left? Another thing, the WWE was doing a good job of taking Rusev up that ladder. He started off beating clear jobbers, then Big E, then Jack Swagger, then Mark Henry, and then Big Show. He beat Sheamus for the US title. He was a part of Team Authority at Survivor Series. But after all that, where do you really go with him? His feud with Ryback seems like a step back down from some of the guys he was feuding against. The climb up the ladder was good, but it seems the WWE's desire to prolong his push like this might hurt his momentum.
There is also the fact that he is undefeated in terms of never being pinned or tapping out. He has gotten some cheap finishes here and there. And he isn't exactly completely dominant. There have been a few nights where he has been made to look human. To put it simply, I do not think he has been developed to be the dominant threat that he should be. If this guy is really supposed to feud with John Cena, does he have the credibility? Or is he really just an overrated midcard act?
Go back to when I was talking about TNA's Havok recently. They built her up to be dominant. It wasn't just about winning matches. They had her destroy other KOs. The only issue was her not being around long and TNA not having enough time to monitor if she was connecting well with fans prior to making decisions on her. On the other side, you have TNA's Crimson. His main claim to fame is an undefeated streak that most fans would agree was lame. He really wasn't that dominant and never really got over.
If they are developing Rusev to be a top star or put over a top star, his dominance should be leaning towards how TNA has handled Havok. Instead, it is starting to lean towards Crimson. They were doing a better job for a few months, but right now, Rusev needs better focus. Feud development is hurt with Ryback involved in a bigger angle. His gimmick isn't leading to anything fresh. His dominance is questionable. And I don't think that undefeated streak is enough to carry him.
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