Rusev hasn't been seen on WWE's weekly programming since losing to Jey Uso in "The Last Time Is Now Tournament" Quarter Finals last November, and a new report has outlined details regarding "The Bulgarian Brute's" absence from the ring.
In a recent edition of the "Wrestling Observer Radio," Dave Meltzer revealed that Rusev is scheduled to return in the near future, but also voiced that WWE has dropped the ball with his character and shared how the Netflix series "WWE Unreal" seemed to indicate that the 40-year-old was initially being positioned in the main event scene.
"He's been a huge disappointment, I mean if you saw that 'WWE Unreal' stuff, I mean you could see that he was being groomed for top spot. He was going to lose the King of the Ring final to Cody Rhodes. He was going to face Jey Uso for the title on a pay-per-view and obviously none of that happened. So there you go, I mean it's not like they brought him in to marginalize him. They brought him in, they wanted to make him a monster, he didn't get over and that's where he's at right now."
In addition to not appearing on "WWE Raw" or "WWE SmackDown" Rusev had a couple of matches on "WWE Main Event" in December, but hasn't competed in any televised or dark matches for the promotion this year. That said, with the Royal Rumble taking place this upcoming Saturday, Rusev could possibly be one of the surprise entrants in the match after Meltzer claimed that his return is on the horizon.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Wrestling Observer Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
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