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The ongoing big push for Kofi Kingston on SmackDown has been quite surprising - he replaced an injured Mustafa Ali inside Elimination Chamber for the WWE Championship. Before this match he competed in a gauntlet match with all the five competitors, where he lasted for more than an hour and was really praised for his performance. Now he is scheduled to face WWE Champion Daniel Bryan at the next pay-per-view, Fastlane.
Surely, every WWE superstar dreams of a similar push in their career but again it just depends on the WWE management's views and also on the fans reactions too. Kingston was always popular among his fans not because he is part of The New Day but due to his in-ring action and athleticism.
There are many other superstars who have the same amount of talents but yet are not being utilized properly. Some of the honorary mentions; Shinsuke Nakamura, Rusev, Jeff Hardy, Baron Corbin, Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley etc.
So here are five superstars who deserve a big push before the WrestleMania season arrives...
#5 Elias
If someone definitely deserves to be on the top of the card it should be Elias. The guy has been lately doing next to nothing, he has not been involved in any major feud or a championship match for nearly six months.
The last time he was involved in a major feud was against Seth Rollins for the Intercontinental Title at Money in the Bank 2018. After which he turned face in the following months and begin feuding with Baron Corbin.
At the Royal Rumble pay-per-view, he once again turned heel when he eliminated Jeff Jarrett from the Royal Rumble match and next few weeks he continued his feud with Jarrett and Road Dogg. This past week on Raw, he lost against the new NXT debutant, Aleister Black.
There is still no clear plan of what he will do during WrestleMania season. Last year's WrestleMania, he was involved in a forgettable angle with John Cena who just kicked him out of the ring before facing The Undertaker.
Elias has been taking shots at various former WWE superstars such as Triple H, John Cena and The Undertaker, facing any of them on the show of shows would do wonders for his career. As of now, its unknown whether these superstars will compete at the big event.
#4 Andrade
Ever since he arrived on the main roster, fans have been clamouring to push one of the former top NXT superstars. Last month he was involved in a hot feud with Rey Mysterio which truly showcased his in-ring skills with tremendous back-and-forth action.
This past Sunday, he missed the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view where he could have taken an injured Mustafa Ali's spot in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match. But instead, it was given to Kofi Kingston whose performance was also incredible.
This past week on SmackDown he lost against the new NXT debutant, Aleister Black. WWE has to seriously consider giving a big push to Andrade and it won't happen if he continuously losses matches and misses pay-per-views.
It is rumoured that he will face Mysterio in a Hair vs. Mask Match at WrestleMania 35. This will, of course, be another thrilling contest between the duo or WWE can possibly give Andrade his first main roster championship at the event.
#3 Bobby Roode
Another main event star of NXT turned out to have a lacklustre main roster run was Bobby Roode, his run was also similar to Andrade' s main roster run. When he joined SmackDown in the beginning, he missed a lot of episodes as well as pay-per-views.
Although he became United States Champion, his run with the title was underwhelming. Then he was moved to Raw during Superstar Shake-Up which was surprising and it seemed WWE could be preparing to push Roode.
But nothing happened again, he wasn't involved in any major feud and neither in any championship match. Later on, he began to team up with Chad Gable and won the Raw Tag Team Championships by beating AOP.
They lost their titles to The Revival two weeks ago on Raw, and now is the right moment for Roode to turn heel on Gable, move into the main event picture where he was expected to be after his NXT run. Because the main problem for Roode has been that he is a natural heel but until now he has been working as a face instead.
So, a heel turn will bring Roode's big momentum back which will help him to be in a major match for this year's WrestleMania. One option that would be great is facing Finn Balor for the Intercontinental Championship as not only the match would be exciting to watch but also it would begin Roode's big push in the main roster.
#2 Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe was the first to be eliminated in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match. But that has been the case since he has debuted on the main roster, as he has yet to achieve anything big in WWE after two years of his main roster career.
Joe's run in NXT was exceptional and he was the first-ever two-time NXT Champion, before that he competed in other promotions such as TNA, Ring of Honor, etc. were he earned huge amount of respect with his rivalries and title wins.
He is one of the best wrestlers in the world today and has god gifted promo skills which is the best part about Joe, still, WWE have not utilized this massive star properly. As he yet has to win the main roster title in WWE.
WrestleMania 35 is nearly a month away, and still, there seems no plan for Joe at the event. Its high time WWE realize his worth and give him a big push that he deserves. It would be amazing to see him win his first main roster title on the grandest stage of them all.
#1 Mustafa Ali
The former 205 Live star is the newest member of the SmackDown roster and he has already begun his way to the main event picture. Since arriving on the main roster he took WWE by storm when he pinned WWE Champion Daniel Bryan.
He lasted nearly 30 minutes in the Royal Rumble match and he was set to be one of the participants in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match until he injured himself. He was later replaced by Kofi Kingston in the match.
It was earlier reported that Kingston's performance in the gauntlet match as well as in the Elimination Chamber match was intended for Ali instead Kingston got the push. This has impacted Kingston's career since he will get another chance at the WWE Championship.
Now, this clearly means WWE was indeed very high on Ali until he suffered an injury. It is possible that his massive push resumes once he recovers. He could perhaps face Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35 which would surely make him a top star in WWE. Already he is known as the "Heart of 205 Live" soon he will become "Heart of SmackDown".
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
