WWE has wished many superstars the best in their future endeavors over the past few years, but, in some cases, the company was a little quick to do so. Certain former superstars have thrived outside of WWE, either because WWE just didn’t see their potential or because of poor booking by WWE management. Even among the superstars who have struggled after their WWE tenure, many wrestling fans wonder how high these talented and popular superstars could have risen had WWE done more to keep them around. Despite some blatant misuses of talent, WWE fans also realize that not every former superstar was a missed opportunity for the company.
Off-screen incidents that involve real life incidents, suspensions or poor attitude backstage are all completely justifiable reasons for the firings of certain superstars. WWE is trying to keep a positive and clean image while also avoiding major distractions behind the scenes. Other issues such as contract disputes or creative differences could be seen as failures attributed to WWE’s upper management, but if these issues are compounded with other backstage drama as well, then WWE is certainly reasonable in those releases.
WWE is prone to “Spring Cleaning” shortly after WrestleMania Season, and the WWE Universe could be seeing some more releases on the way, especially with NXT call-ups on the horizon. The question is, will WWE be sending away talent that could be used more appropriately or will WW be completely justified in these releases? Fans have witnessed some of these surprising and not-so-surprising departures, and, in this article, we review a few of them from years past. Tell us what you think as we review 10 wrestlers that WWE was wrong to let go, and 10 that deserved to be released.
20 Wrong: Cody Rhodes
All in all, Cody Rhodes had a pretty nice career in WWE. He was a two-time Intercontinental Champion and won the WWE and World Tag Team Championships three times a piece. Cody was a huge part of the Randy Orton-led faction known as The Legacy and created some memorable gimmicks under the WWE banner. Still, Cody Rhodes could have been so much more.
Cody Rhodes was given the Stardust character and, despite hating it, tried his best to make the gimmick work. Eventually, Cody couldn’t take it anymore and asked for his release. Since then, Cody has flourished outside of WWE winning championships and becoming one of the hottest free agents in the Independent Circuit. Cody may come back to WWE, but without question, WWE should have used Cody better when they had him.
19 Deserved: Enzo Amore
It’s not easy to defend Enzo Amore these days, but he definitely had the “gift of gab.” Enzo had an overabundance of charisma and became widely popular in the Tag Team and Cruiserweight Divisions. Unfortunately, for Enzo, his antics outside of the ring made WWE’s decision to release him an easy one.
Enzo’s big mouth also came with a big head “and you can’t teach that.” Amore was apparently despised by his peers for breaking backstage etiquette and had heat for appearing at the Floyd Mayweather/Conor McGregor fight. Enzo’s legal incident (without informing the company) was the final straw for WWE, and he was released. WWE is doubtfully upset by their decision, seeing as Enzo is as obnoxious as ever, having crashed the latest WWE Survivor Series event.
18 Wrong: Wade Barrett
Wade Barrett seemingly had a bright future ahead of him in WWE. He won the first ever NXT Competition, became the leader of the upstart faction known as The Nexus and surprisingly held Intercontinental Championship a total of five times. Despite possessing all the tools to succeed, Wade Barrett would be released from the WWE regardless.
Barrett was good on the mic, had solid in-ring skills and came up with a great character in “Bad News” Barrett. Unfortunately, WWE had some bad news for Barrett as well and changed his character after it started getting too over. With that insane reasoning, Barrett will go down as one of the most misused wrestlers ever in WWE. Hopefully, Barrett can succeed in Lucha Underground, and prove just how wrong WWE was in quieting his widely praised Bad News character.
17 Deserved: Big Cass
There are actually a few words to describe Big Cass in WWE, and none of them are good. Colin Cassady had it made in WWE. He could talk, he was seven feet tall and had the look that normally gets over with Vince McMahon. Even after a torn ACL, Cass returned to WWE in line for a huge singles push. Unfortunately, Big Cass couldn’t listen to simple directions and got himself fired.
Cass was already not well-liked backstage, but his “going into business for himself” got him in serious trouble with management. During a segment designed to mock Daniel Bryan, Big Cass delivered a Big Boot to a little person dressed in Bryan ring gear and piled on by dropping some punches after being told by McMahon not to do so. Big Cass was released not long afterwards, and it’s hard to defend the ignoring of directions from the owner of the very company he works for.
16 Wrong: Damien Sandow
Damien Sandow spent a great deal of his early career in the WWE’s developmental system. In 2012, Sandow finally made his main roster debut as the “Savior of the Unwashed Masses” and got over as one of the top heels in the company. Unfortunately Sandow got nothing from creative.
Damien Sandow would lose his Money in the Bank cash-in opportunity and fall to lower-tier status afterwards. However, despite this burial, WWE was still delusional for letting Sandow go. Sandow was a great performer in the ring and on the mic. He could turn any gimmick into gold which he did while impersonating other superstars such as The Miz. Despite being immensely popular and entertaining, WWE still had nothing for him. Without a doubt, Sandow will go down as one of the most wasted superstars in recent memory.
15 Deserved: Austin Aries
No one can deny that Austin Aries has incredible talent. Sadly, it’s Aries’ personality that made his release from WWE a smart one. Aries was a big independent signing, coming off successful stints in Impact Wrestling and Ring of Honor. Aries hoped to follow the success of fellow ROH superstars like Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins, but Aries’ career didn’t quite measure up.
While in WWE, Aries remained predominantly in the Cruiserweight Division but never won a single title there. Aries wanted to move up to the main roster but was supposedly difficult to work with among the writers and other staff members. Aries went back to Impact after being released from WWE, but WWE was vindicated by their decision considering Aries’ actions leading up to and after Impact's big event, Bound For Glory.
14 Wrong: Christian
As a nine-time Tag Team Champion with his partner Edge, Christian should definitely be in the WWE Hall of Fame for his tag team accolades alone. However, Christian’s singles career was extremely successful as well. Captain Charisma won nearly every championship there was to win in WWE, with the WWE Championship being the one title that eluded him.
It took over ten years in WWE for Christian to win the World Heavyweight Title and, of course, Christian would lose the title on the very next episode of SmackDown. This comes after toiling in the mid to lower card and after becoming red hot among his “PEEPS” years prior. Even after attaining World Champion status, Christian would then be forced into retirement from in-ring competition and wasn’t even allowed an official announcement. Despite a decade of service to WWE, Christian deserved much more than what this company gave him towards the end of his in-ring career.
13 Deserved: Rich Swann
There weren’t too many superstars that stood out in the WWE Cruiserweight Division, but Rich Swann was one of them. He had a flashy moveset, he had charisma, and he appealed to both adults and kids alike. He was also one of the few cruiserweights that Creative didn’t abruptly turn heel and was even able to capture the WWE Cruiserweight Title. However, outside of the ring issues forced WWE to release him, and Swann has no one to blame but himself.
Rich Swann could have been a rising star in the WWE as he was quite popular with the WWE Universe. That is until Swann did what he did, forcing WWE to suspend and eventually release him. Although the release was mutually agreed upon, in light of these issues in other sports, no one can blame WWE for coming to terms with his release.
12 Wrong: Eva Marie
Wrestling fans certainly were not a fan of Eva Marie. She was a model who was signed only for her part on Total Divas and struggled mightily in the ring. Naturally, she was vilified by the fans after she appeared destined to become a top star of the main roster’s Women’s Division regardless of proper wrestling skills. However, a wellness violation caused a WWE suspension for “All Red Everything,” and, ultimately, WWE and Eva Marie parted ways.
Despite Eva Marie’s troubles in the ring and suspension, WWE may have given up on her too quickly. She clearly wasn’t technically sound in the ring, but after all the time the company spent marketing her and training her to wrestle, just releasing her seemed like a waste. Her over-the-top entrance was slowly getting over, and she could've been used as a manager like Maryse, Lana or Zelina Vega while her wrestling skills caught up.
11 Deserved: Simon Gotch
Coming from the entertaining tag team, The Vaudevillains, Simon Gotch finally reached pinnacle success after signing with WWE, teaming with Aiden English, winning the NXT Tag Team Titles and eventually making it to the main roster. Unfortunately, while Aiden English remains thriving in WWE today, Simon Gotch got the ax in 2017, and it’s understandable why.
Simon Gotch was totally capable in the ring, but unlike Aiden English, he wasn’t so well-received backstage. Gotch was said to have a “big mouth” and rubbed a lot of wrestlers the wrong way. His incident with Sin Cara at catering was the final straw for WWE who released him shortly afterwards. With Aiden English moving onto Rusev Day, the WWE has also moved on quite nicely without Gotch.
10 Wrong: Emma
It’s all about her, according to Emma, but apparently WWE didn’t see it that way. Emma introduced herself and her bad dancing character to the WWE fans and teamed with Santino Marella. She would then be demoted to NXT but developed her more serious “all about me” villainous character. Despite her great ring-work and popularity, the injury bug, and her failure to pull off the “Emmalina” character, caused her surprising release from WWE.
While it can be argued that Emma was and still is injury prone, Emma should never have been let go. She would be perfect for the Women’s Evolution of today and was way more over than some of the women wrestlers on the roster now. Hopefully, Emma returns to the company in the future so that WWE can really #GiveEmmaAChance next time around.
9 Deserved: Summer Rae
The WWE Universe wasn’t exactly heartbroken over the release of Summer Rae. She was used as Fandango’s dance partner and allied with Rusev during her brief feud with Lana, but Summer Rae never really connected with the fans.
Summer Rae wasn’t the best in the ring, but, in her defense, she was also extremely underrated as well. She had the diva look and diva gimmick, but Summer Rae was totally capable of wrestling. Unfortunately, Summer’s character ran its course, and without any sort of character change, it’s understandable, in her case, why creative probably didn’t have anything for her after her Lana feud.
8 Wrong: Jack Swagger
It’s a wonder why Jack Swagger wasn’t released from the WWE sooner, as his character didn’t really make any sense. However, Swagger would become a World Champion and gain massive popularity while paired with Cesaro and of course, Zeb Coulter.
It’s because of this surge in WWE appeal that WWE should have thrown more money at Jack Swagger to keep him around. Especially with the brand split in place, either main roster could definitely use a former World Champion at the moment. He was killing it with his patriotic gimmick, and “We The People” demand that Jack Swagger receives another run in WWE.
7 Deserved: Darren Young
Darren Young was one of the last competitors from the first NXT Competition and from the original Nexus faction. However, in 2017, Mr. No Days Off found himself out of a job after being released from WWE, and it’s hard not to side with WWE on this one.
Darren Young was formidable in the ring, but never really caught on with the fans as a singles star. All of his success stemmed from tagging with Titus O’Neil as the Prime Time Players where he actually became a Tag Team Champion. However, his character as Bob Backlund’s protégé didn’t “make Darren Young great again.” In fact, it made him far worse, and his release was not surprising after that gimmick flop.
6 Wrong: Jimmy Jacobs
While he wasn’t an in-ring competitor in WWE, Jimmy Jacobs had an extensive career in the independent circuit and had success in Ring of Honor along with Seth Rollins. In 2015, Jacobs finally joined Rollins in WWE, not as a character but as a writer for WWE’s Creative Team. However, his tenure with WWE lasted barely over two years before WWE canned him over an Instagram photo.
The photo in question was a selfie Jacobs took with friends from the rival wrestling organization New Japan Pro-Wrestling during their "invasion" of Raw. Naturally, WWE was upset about the post, but the firing seemed like an overreaction. Jacobs came up with Chris Jericho’s widely popular “List of Jericho,” and with the status of the company right now, firing what few good writers they had is seemingly coming back to bite them.
5 Deserved: Ryback
As WWE fed him a steady diet of jobbers, fans chanted along with Ryback, “Feed me more!” The catchphrase launched Ryback’s remarkable popularity and helped him rise to the top of WWE. This rise took a 180 after an unexpected and unwise heel turn, but WWE didn’t hurt Ryback’s WWE career as much as Ryback did himself.
Ryback wasn’t a maestro in the ring, but he remained popular and could cut a decent promo. However, his subpar ring skills caused injuries to fellow superstars, and his over-the-top tweets making light of his recklessness didn’t endear him to his peers or to management. The final straw was Ryback criticizing creative and tweeting about the lack of equal pay for the wrestlers. For someone who is hazardous in the ring and a headache behind the scenes, Ryback may have had his last meal in WWE.
4 Wrong: Neville
The Man That Gravity Forgot has apparently been forgotten by the WWE as well. Neville was a star in NXT and a former WWE Cruiserweight Champion that carried the Cruiserweight Division since its inception. However, a contract dispute between WWE and Neville couldn’t be resolved, and The King of the Cruiserweights walked out never to return.
While it’s not necessarily WWE’s fault that Neville walked out, the company could have done more to keep Neville happy. Neville was said to be unhappy within the company for a while and who can blame him? As a former NXT Champion, Neville was far too talented to be restricted to the Cruiserweight Division, jobbing to Enzo Amore.
3 Deserved: Alberto Del Rio
Alberto Del Rio deserved to be released from WWE, but you already knew that. Mexico’s Greatest Export was given everything in WWE, a Royal Rumble win, and two WWE, World Heavyweight and United States Championship reigns each. Still, with Del Rio’s run-ins with the law and WWE wellness violations, it was Del Rio’s destiny to be released.
Alberto Del Rio had all the talent in the world and was given significant pushes during both of his stints in WWE. Still, he was reportedly unhappy with his position in the company. Given the fiasco with Paige, all the bad publicity that came from that pairing and his public ripping of the company, WWE definitely isn't upset about exporting Del Rio out of WWE.
2 Wrong: Alex Riley
Although he had limited success in WWE, Alex Riley could have been a lot more. He came through WWE’s developmental system and found himself aligning with his mentor, The Miz. A-Ry seemed to get a popularity boost after breaking from The Miz, but that push came to an abrupt end after having backstage problems with John Cena.
After some backstage altercation with the Leader of the Cenation, Riley’s push stopped. He was designated to commentary and had sporadic appearances on WWE’s lower card. Understandably, WWE is going to stick up for John Cena, but Riley had a lot of untapped potential. He could wrestle and could cut a very good promo. It’s a shame that a petty backstage incident ruined a talented wrestler’s entire career.
1 Deserved: Cameron
Cameron’s WWE career started off on the wrong foot by stating her favorite match was Melina versus Alicia Fox during her Tough Enough appearance. Her subpar ring skills garnered criticism from fans and officials alike, especially after somehow managing to botch a pin attempt. Her backstage demeanor didn’t help either, after looking as if she didn’t even want to be in NXT.
Cameron went to NXT and to the WWE Performance Center to work on her wrestling abilities. That would've been admirable had Cameron not projected disdain for her demotion there. Unlike her fellow Funkadactyl, Naomi, Cameron managed to get worse in the ring. To top it all off, Cameron sided with Ryback in his “equal pay” tweet annoying upper management. All of these incidents just confirms that WWE made the right call in letting her go.