With WrestleMania 36 coming up this Saturday and Sunday night, pre-taped and in total chaos, everything is up in the air as to what is happening.
Normally, by this point, the Superstars Missing from the Card series is pretty straightforward—especially for something like WrestleMania. This year, it’s unlike anything we could have anticipated months ago.
If there were any time a piece like this needed to shine, it’s now. However, this has been the most haphazard, crazy, playing with unknowns situation of any pay-per-view ever, it seems.
Still, while this card is always subject to change and the Roman Reigns situation alone proves how flexible things can get, we have at least some idea of who is currently scheduled and who is not. WWE may have made alterations that we’re kept in the dark about, if not just for the sake of surprises. But at the moment, the men and women in this breakdown are not currently advertised as being part of this event.
In some cases, this may be justified, or even a purposeful plan. In other cases, it may be ridiculous. This year, we also have plenty of people who would have participated if it could take place at Raymond James Stadium like intended, but can’t for safety reasons.
Let’s take a look at which superstars aren’t being promoted for this show.
From the Raw Men’s Division
— Akira Tozawa: Tozawa is the first person on this list to qualify for the #JobberStatus note. That basically means “despite how talented this superstar is, they haven’t been focused on and would have likely been in one of the battle royal matches if those could have taken place this year.”
— Andrade: He suffered a rib injury on Monday Night Raw that has taken him out of this match. He is replaced by Austin Theory.
— The Authors of Pain (Akam & Rezar): Rezar’s injured and since they’re a packaged deal, Akam serves no purpose.
— Cedric Alexander: #JobberStatus
— Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder: #JobberStatus
— EC3: EC3 has been out of action with a concussion injury for many months with no timetable of his return, especially not in this environment.
— Eric Young: #JobberStatus
— Erick Rowan: #JobberStatus
— Humberto Carrillo: #JobberStatus, although he might have been in a United States title match if that would have taken place.
— Murphy: Supposedly, Murphy is sick and/or in quarantine.
— No Way Jose: #JobberStatus
— Rey Mysterio: Supposedly, Mysterio is in quarantine.
— Ricochet: #JobberStatus…as painful as that is to say.
— Riddick Moss / R-Truth: They may still have filmed something revolving the 24/7 Championship between these two, but it’s completely unknown. With that in mind, they’re not officially advertised, so they still count for this list.
— Rusev: Rusev picked a good time to undergo contract negotiations, right? He’s been off television for a while and since there’s no clue when TV will even return, he’s just been sitting home before COVID-19 regulations even went into effect.
— Samoa Joe: Joe has been out of action with two injuries he suffered back to back and a suspension.
— Shelton Benjamin: #JobberStatus
— Titus O’Neil: These days, O’Neil pops up once in a while, but isn’t quite active in any in-ring capacity. #JobberStatus
— The Viking Raiders (Erik & Ivar): My guess is, if WrestleMania could have gone down the way WWE would have wanted from a few months back, these two would have been fighting AOP and The Street Profits in a Triple Threat match for the Raw Tag Team Championship.
From the Raw Women’s Division
— The IIconics (Billie Kay & Peyton Royce): WWE has neglected these two for months. Rumors went out a while back that they would be repackaged, yet they’re still not involved in anything and nothing has been teased.
— Lana: Assuming the Bobby Lashley match continues, she may or may not be in his corner.
— Liv Morgan / Ruby Riott / Sarah Logan: I’m convinced these three would have been a primary focal point of the WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal.
— Natalya: Would she have teamed with Beth Phoenix to fight The Kabuki Warriors? We may never know.
— Nia Jax: Jax has been out of action for many months with injuries. She may make her return soon or WWE may hold off on that for a while.
From the SmackDown Men’s Division
— Apollo Crews: #JobberStatus
— The B-Team (Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel): #JobberStatus
— Cesaro, Drew Gulak and Shinsuke Nakamura: These three could accompany Sami Zayn and Daniel Bryan ringside for the Intercontinental Championship match or WWE might have kept them out of it to not have as many people on set.
— The Colons (Epico Colon & Primo Colon): These two haven’t done anything in WWE in well over a year.
— Heath Slater: #JobberStatus
— Jeff Hardy: Matt Hardy showed up on Raw recently, but Jeff Hardy is still dealing with his injury and legal problems.
— Jinder Mahal: Mahal suffered a ruptured patellar tendon injury in a match against Ali on June 15th and will be out several months.
— Lars Sullivan: The Freak will be out of action until further into 2020 due to a knee injury.
— The Lucha House Party (Gran Metalik, Kalisto, & Lince Dorado): #JobberStatus
— The Miz (and The New Day and one of The Usos?): Supposedly, The Miz is sick and was sent home. It’s been reported that this could be everyone but The Miz wrestling or any combination of things, including just ONE of The Usos against John Morrison. We simply don’t know right now and will have to wait until SmackDown.
— Mustafa Ali: #JobberStatus no matter what those glitchy graphics indicate. Maybe he would have won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal if that would have taken place.
— The Revival (Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson): These two are leaving WWE. There’s no need to try to put them on the card.
— Robert Roode: He’s stuck in Canada due to travel restrictions.
— Roman Reigns: Due to his compromised immune system, The Big Dog opted not to film his match with Goldberg. Supposedly, he was replaced by Braun Strowman, which explains why he’s not on this list, although that has not been officially confirmed by WWE at the point of publishing this.
— Sheamus: In a different world, The Celtic Warrior might have won the Intercontinental Championship here against Braun Strowman and/or Daniel Bryan. It’ll be interesting to hear stories about whether or not that was in the works.
— Shorty G: #JobberStatus
— Tucker Knight: He may be ringside for the Otis and Ziggler match, or WWE may keep him out of that.
— Xavier Woods: I think if WrestleMania would have taken place at Raymond James Stadium, we would have seen Woods get involved in the tag team title match by being ringside or something. He may not have gotten physical, but I think he would have been there for the moment. With circumstances being what they are, that’s obviously not happening.
From the SmackDown Women’s Division
— Carmella: Like Corey Graves, Carmella opted not to travel to Florida and was not added into the card because of this.
— Dana Brooke: She’s in quarantine.
— Ember Moon: Achilles injury.
— Mickie James: James is out of action with a knee injury that has her on the shelf for 7-9 months.
— Sonya Deville: Mandy Rose will be ringside for the Otis and Ziggler match. It’s possible Sonya will show up in that segment, too.
Do you think these men and women or any others not on this list should have been booked on the card in some fashion? How would you have utilized them if given the opportunity? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
