Highlights

• Chris Masters, known as "The Masterpiece," had potential to be a breakout star in WWE but was ultimately misused by creative booking.
• Masters made an impact upon his WWE debut in 2005, with his narcissistic persona and powerful in-ring presence.
• Despite physical improvement and noticeable improvements in the ring, Masters' second run in WWE was forgettable and he was released in 2011 due to violations of the company's drug policy.

Chris Masters was one of the first WWE superstars to be prominently featured during the second half of WWE's Ruthless Aggression Era. Although he was never known as the most charismatic or the best in-ring performer, Masters looked the part of a main-event talent, thus dubbing himself "The Masterpiece" due to his incredibly muscular physique. And because he was in his early 20s when making his main-roster debut, Masters appeared on track to becoming WWE's next breakout star. However, despite his potential, his WWE career didn't pan out the way some people thought it would, as some might be under the impression that he was misused by WWE creative booking.

RELATED: Why Chris Masters Was Released By WWE & His Post-WWE Career, Explained

Chris Masters Makes An Impact Upon His WWE Debut In 2005

At a time when physically-imposing performers got a head start to the main-event scene, one man among those very performers who was instantly pushed upon making their main roster debut in 2005 was Chris Masters. Starting his in-ring career in 2002, Masters joined WWE in 2003, training in the company's developmental system for two years.

In 2005, Chris Masters made his WWE main roster debut on the Raw brand on a February 2005 episode of Monday Night Raw. Nicknamed "The Masterpiece," his on-screen persona was that he was a macho narcissist heel who'd take the time to show off his physique every chance he got. Simultaneously, he also got hyped as a dangerous individual in the ring whenever applying his Full Nelson finisher, or The Masterlock as it was called.

Furthermore, part of Chris Masters' gimmick was doing Masterlock Challenges to see which person could break the hold. It'd be over two years before someone won the Masterlock Challenge, as the challenge was a crucial part of the overall presentation of Masters' persona.

During Chris Masters' run on the Raw brand from 2005 to 2007, he was a prominent performer for most of that time before getting drafted to SmackDown in 2007. Throughout that time, he's battled the very best the professional wrestling industry had to offer, wrestling top legends including John Cena, Kurt Angle, and even a PPV singles match with Shawn Michaels.

RELATED: 10 Most Muscular Wrestlers From The 2000s: Where Are They Now?

The Downfall Of Chris Masters In WWE

While things were looking bright for Chris Masters, his WWE career took a turn for the worst towards the end of his first run in the company, stemming from taking time off in 2006 due to drug rehabilitation. And although he returned to the Raw brand that year and appeared physically leaner, he wasn't getting pushed the same way he was before.

To make things worse, with Bobby Lashley being the first to win the Masterlock Challenge in early 2007, Chris Masters had nothing much going for him for the rest of his first run. After getting drafted to the SmackDown brand in 2007, he went on to have a forgettable run on that brand before getting released in late 2007 after violating WWE's Substance Abuse and Drug Policy for the second time.

Why Chris Masters' In-Ring Career Didn't Work Out In WWE

Although some might argue that Chris Masters didn't have much to offer regarding talent and was someone who just had a good physique, in his defense, it's worth noting that WWE creative booking didn't give him much to work with. Especially when he returned to WWE in 2009 for his second run in the company, Masters' entire second run was forgettable, considering that there was nothing of importance for him to do.

During Chris Masters' second WWE run, he still looked the part physically and noticeably improved in the ring, but at the end of the day, WWE had nothing meaningful for him. He got booked as a lower to mid-card talent throughout his second run until getting released again in late 2011.

RELATED: 10 Things WWE Fans Need To Know About Chris MastersHowever, it's also important to know that Chris Masters has had numerous violations regarding WWE's drug policy, possibly never reaching main-event success because of it. Despite his overwhelming potential and improvements in his in-ring work, it's understandable why WWE may not have wanted to push him if the company felt he was unreliable in its drug policy.

Fortunately for Chris Masters, he was able to continue his in-ring career after departing from WWE in 2011. Currently, Chris Masters is an active performer for NWA as Chris Adonis.