'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Getting pushed in WWE is often cyclical for most Superstars. However, for the core of top Superstars, they get pushed at the highest level until they retire. We've seen many examples of that before, and here are some modern-day examples in WWE:
#6. Brock Lesnar - WWE's most important part-time star
It's hard to name a bigger star in WWE in the last decade than Brock Lesnar. Returning to WWE in 2012 after an eight-year hiatus, he took up a part-time role. Vince McMahon seemed to value him so much that he constantly gave him lucrative contracts, even stating that Brock Lesnar as a part-timer gives him a bigger aura.
Brock Lesnar's WWE status has constantly been in question since 2016. But the reality is that he used UFC as leverage to get a better WWE contract. When looking at Brock Lesnar's time in WWE since 2017, he has always been involved in the World Championship picture - whether it was his record-breaking Universal Title reign or his most recent run as WWE Champion.
It's clear how important he is to WWE, and every appearance of his is seen as a valuable one. Brock Lesnar wrestles four-to-five times a year, but 2020 was an exception. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, WWE held back on his appearances, but there's little doubt that he will return in 2021.
He's a Superstar that will be in a main event spot regardless of how old he is. He's being paid big money, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him headline WrestleMania for the next few years to come.
It's hard to say how long Brock Lesnar has in WWE. But given that he's still in great physical shape and only wrestles a few times a year, he can likely go at it at the highest level for years to come.
#5. Charlotte Flair - The most decorated woman in WWE history
Charlotte Flair is the most decorated woman in WWE history, with 12 singles Championships to her name. She's not far from tying her father's tally of World Titles, and she's often seen in various Championship feuds.
Her most recent accomplishment was winning the Women's Tag Team Championship - making her a Women's Grand Slam Champion in the process.
She has also emerged as one of WWE's biggest stars across the board, and it's hard to see her ever being in a position where she isn't being pushed. Like Bayley and Asuka, she will likely end up with every possible accomplishment a woman can have in modern-day WWE.
#4. Randy Orton
Randy Orton was born into the wrestling business. Although many felt that he had a silver spoon in his mouth the whole time he was in WWE, he did well to fit into his role.
He is among the most accomplished Superstars in WWE history and has even outlasted many of his OVW batchmates in terms of tenure as a full-time Superstar. Randy Orton is going to be around until 2024 (having signed a five-year contract with WWE in 2019) and stated that at the time, he wanted to go on for another 10 years.
It wouldn't be surprising for him to do so, and if he did, he would have completed a staggering three decades working under Vince McMahon and WWE. While we don't expect him to become a 16-time World Champion, he will likely get pushed until he retires.
#3. Seth Rollins - One of WWE's most important Superstars
Seth Rollins has been number two in the WWE pecking order for a long time - with Roman Reigns being the clear first. When Roman Reigns had leukemia, Seth Rollins was positioned to be the top guy of WWE. He won the Royal Rumble, defeated Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title at WrestleMania 35, and then regained it from The Beast Incarnate in the main event of SummerSlam that year.
While he isn't in the number one spot anymore, he remains a pivotal part of WWE programming. He is among the most popular and reliable top stars in the company. Getting pushed doesn't necessarily mean a World Title, but always being in top feuds and important spots.
Seth Rollins has maintained relevancy, even changing his gimmick in 2019, and it will be interesting to see how things work out for him in the years to come. But one thing seems to be certain - barring any injury, Seth Rollins will be in WWE until he retires.
#2. AJ Styles - a multi-time WWE Champion
When AJ Styles arrived at WWE in 2016, most fans (and Styles himself) seemed to think that his ceiling was relatively low. In many fans' eyes, he was likely going to be an Intercontinental Champion-level Superstar at most.
AJ Styles proved everybody wrong. It only took WWE a few months to truly understand how special a talent AJ Styles was. While Styles stated that Vince McMahon thought his Royal Rumble 2016 reaction was a fluke, he learned based on the crowd reactions and matches that he had the best in-ring talent of this generation.
It was even reported that Vince McMahon wished he had signed AJ Styles years before. But it's good that he didn't. AJ Styles needed that two-year NJPW run to prove that he was the hottest International superstar in wrestling.
He's a highly accomplished Superstar in WWE, being a two-time WWE Champion, a former United States Champion, and Intercontinental Champion. Even though he has passed the age of 40, he is going at it without stopping. AJ Styles revealed that the latest WWE contract he signed would be his last, which means that we have a few more years to see him perform. He will likely get pushed until retirement.
#1. Roman Reigns - the most popular WWE Superstar of this generation
There's little doubt as to who is the most pushed Superstar in modern-day WWE. Vince McMahon spent years trying to establish Roman Reigns as the face of WWE, but fans never took to him.
It wasn't that he lacked the talent or potential - he simply wasn't ready to be in the role that he was given, nor was Roman Reigns ever going to be the next John Cena. 2020, however, has been a game-changer for him.
WWE decided to finally pull the trigger on a heel turn, possibly motivated by the fact that there was no crowd to react negatively to him. It's been a fantastic run so far and his most notable World Title reign since 2015.
Roman Reigns is the most important star in WWE, and given how well he is progressing as a heel, it wouldn't be surprising to see him emerge as a true breakout babyface once crowds return.
