5 WWE Superstars who were signed and released within a year

There are only a handful of wrestlers in the history of WWE who have been able to remain contracted to the company for more than a few decades. Several veterans have been with the company now for more than ten years and have already seen some of their best days.

These stars have already made an impression on the company and the WWE Universe, however, there are others who were not given the same opportunity.

Many WWE Superstars are signed to the company on a regular basis, and then it's decided whether or not they should be sent down to NXT or debut on the main roster. Regardless of where they end up, there are several names who have only been able to remain contracted for a couple of months.

Here are just five WWE Superstars who couldn't last a year as part of the company.

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#5 Nathan Jones - With WWE for just under a year

Nathan Jones may be more memorable to the WWE Universe as an actor than a wrestler following his cameo in the 2004 film Troy, but he is also a former WWE Superstar.

Jones was signed to the company in late 2002 after running into several issues when it came to his Visa. The former star didn't make his WWE on-screen debut until 2003, when he defeated Bill DeMott on an episode of SmackDown.

Jones was originally scheduled to team with The Undertaker at WrestleMania 19, before plans changed and he was taken out of the match at the last minute. After interfering in the match and helping Undertaker pick up the victory, Jones was sent back to OVW to continue to train.

Jones was later paired with Paul Heyman on-screen, but quit the company in December 2003 after noting that WWE's heavy travel schedule had become too much.

#4 Cain Velasquez - With WWE for 6 months

Cain Velasquez made a surprise appearance on WWE TV back in October 2019, when it was revealed that he was Dominik Mysterio's godfather and had a reason to pick a fight with Brock Lesnar.

The two men already had history from their days in UFC and it was a masterstroke from WWE to bring him into the company. The issues between Velasquez and Lesnar came to a head at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia on October 31st.

Velasquez lost the match and didn't appear on-screen again. Instead, the former MMA fighter was scheduled to be part of the Royal Rumble match in 2020, but suffered an injury and the company was forced to scrap their idea.

In April 2020, Cain Velasquez became one of the victims of the COVID-19 pandemic when he was released from the company, along with a number of other WWE stars. This meant that Velasquez was only contracted to WWE for six months from his debut all the way through to his official release.

#3 Muhammad Hassan - With WWE for 9 months

In 2004, WWE approached OVW, looking for a wrestler who could play an Arab American character. Muhammad Hassan was the man who was chosen for the role.

Hassan went on to make his WWE debut later that year in an in-ring segment with Mick Foley, before he became one of the most controversial characters in WWE history.

In July 2005, Hassan was part of an interesting segment on SmackDown, where he prayed until five masked men made their way to the ring and took out The Undertaker. This was just a week before the London Bombings took place, which led to a lot of backlash surrounding the Hassan character.

Hassan lost a match to The Undertaker at The Great American Bash and was then written off TV after pressure from the network. He was then released from the company in September 2005.

It was later revealed that he was originally scheduled to win the World Heavyweight Championship from Batista at SummerSlam, which would have made him the youngest world champion in WWE history.

#2 Diamond Dallas Page - With WWE for a year

When WWE purchased what was left of WCW back in 2001, Diamond Dallas Page was one of the stars who immediately signed a contract with WWE. Page debuted in the summer of 2001 and immediately stepped into a storyline with The Undertaker.

Page later suffered an injury at SummerSlam, which kept him sidelined until October when he returned with a new character who was a motivational speaker. Page defeated Christian to become European Champion in January 2002, but later lost the title to William Regal in March.

The following month, in a match against Hardcore Holly, Page suffered a serious neck injury that marked the end of his career. Page announced his retirement in June 2002, just a year after he first signed for the company and left WWE.

Page later went on to return to wrestling a few years later and appeared for IMPACT Wrestling from 2004 to 2005. He then made his return to WWE in 2011, which led to him being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2017.

#1 Serena Deeb - With WWE for a year

Serena Deeb recently made her way over to AEW after working as a trainer for WWE at their Performance Center. However, as an active wrestler, Deeb's career with WWE was much shorter.

Deeb was signed by WWE back in 2009, before making her debut on an episode of SmackDown in January 2010. Deeb became the only female member of The Straight Edge Society, alongside CM Punk and Luke Gallows.

As part of her debut, Deeb agreed to have her hair shaved off before becoming an official member of the group. The former WWE star went on to compete in her first match on TV later in the year. She teamed with Luke Gallows against Big Show and Kelly Kelly, where they would be removed from the group if they lost. Deeb was able to pick up the win.

The following month, Deeb was released from her WWE contract after reportedly not living out her "straight edge persona" in public. She later returned to WWE in 2017 as a trainer, before being released as part of the April 2020 budget cuts.