I like the "out of nowhere" push. I thought he was relevant from when he won the royal rumble thru ppv loss to cm punk. He is on a list of several mid carders who aren't really relevant. That's nothing personal against him. But he now occupies the same space as Ryback, Christian, maybe Ziggler, Sandow and Swagger as just another mid card heel.
This is where I think belt unification and lack of focus on Intercontinental/US Titles hurts WWE. It gives a bunch of people nothing to do and lowers their relevance.
I agree that emphasis on the IC and US titles should be stronger than it's been during WrestleMania season. On the bright side, however, at least they're not being buried like they were last year. Also, once WrestleMania season is over and with no World Heavyweight Championship around, that leaves more time to put to the IC and US titles.
As far as mid-carders who aren't relevant, there are
ALWAYS wrestlers like that at any given time and in any promotion. It's especially noticeable in WWE during this time of year because, as one would expect, most of the company's attention is going to be towards their top guys and the top matches. From a traditional perspective, putting more emphasis on the IC and US titles during WrestleMania season makes sense. At the same time, however, you have to consider where there's more money to be made. For instance, if it comes down to Big E vs. Cesaro vs. Swagger or Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar as far as money goes, there's no contest. There's
FAR more money to be made for Taker vs. Lesnar, so it's gonna get more focus.
In the case of Alberto Del Rio, I have a feeling that his time as a top level guy in WWE is finished. Del Rio's a damn fine in-ring guy that's put on some great matches, but he's never gotten over to the degree that someone given as strong of a push as he's gotten should be. Del Rio's a 4 time World Champion in WWE but whether he's been a babyface or heel, he's not gotten the sort of interest from fans that you'd expect. That's not to say that Del Rio can't be an asset to WWE, I personally think he could be a strong mid-card or tag team player at this point. During WrestleMania season, Del Rio isn't relevant because there are other guys that fans are much more into. If given a choice between putting emphasis on Bryan vs. Triple H, Taker vs. Lesnar, whatever The Shield winds up doing and a Del Rio match, it's obvious that the latter's level of importance is miniscule. He's had his opportunities, he's done the best he could and has worked hard, but it's been time for WWE to move onto someone else for a while now.
