It is often remarked that professional wrestling is a family business that runs through someone’s blood. Companies such as World Wrestling Entertainment, World Championship Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, Impact Wrestling and others have pushed performers largely because of their famous last names. This hasn’t always been a negative for promotions. Randy Orton may not be your favorite wrestler because of his slow working style inside of the ring, but nobody can deny that the third-generation performer is one of the biggest stars of his time and somebody who is guaranteed a spot in the WWE Hall of Fame and other personal honors well before he retires. Truth be told, Orton could qualify for the WWE Hall multiple times; as a singles worker and also as part of the Evolution stable.

Unfortunately, a plethora of wrestlers have, fairly or unfairly, embarrassed their family names in a variety of ways inside and outside of the ring. In some cases, the individual pursued a wrestling career because of expectations or because of an internal struggle that resulted in the person going after something he or she didn’t truly love. Others were given bad gimmicks or pushes they didn’t deserve during their stints with national and even international companies. Probably the biggest name on the list is somebody who was involved in multiple storylines with his famous father. Unlike far too many stories in the industry, this one at least has a happy ending, as he got out of the wrestling business before it cost him more than several years off of his life.

20 Jeff Jarrett

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Jeff Jarrett has, over the years, received unfair amounts of criticism for his wrestling abilities and for the characters that he has played during his career. Still, let’s not ignore that Total Nonstop Action Wrestling was founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett as an alternative to the WWE, but it quickly became a promotion in which good ol’ Double-J became the main character and World Champion.

The words “Planet Jarrett” and the thought of his theme song during that run may bring nightmares to fans who stuck with the product and hoped it would improve. Somehow, Impact Wrestling has managed to survive through the spring of 2018, and Jarrett is on his way into the WWE Hall of Fame. We suspect WWE will leave the memories alone regarding his TNA history and the context pertaining to his WWE release. 

19 Brooke Hogan

Consider yourselves fortunate if you have managed to forget Brooke Hogan’s run in professional wrestling. The daughter of Hulk Hogan was involved in some hideous skits alongside Randy Orton back in 2006. Later, after the Hulkster made the jump to Impact, Brooke became an on-air authority figure and, in time, a love interest for Bully Ray as part of the Aces & Eights storyline that nobody anywhere should ever re-live.

We’re just glad Hulk didn’t convince Brooke that she needed to become a dominant wrestler capable of carrying a title with any company. Nevertheless, her time in the business did zero favors to her career or to her family name. All indications are that she is done working for mainstream wrestling promotions as of March 2018.

18 Barry Orton

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Barry Orton, the brother of “Cowboy” Bob Orton and uncle of Randy Orton, was nothing more than an enhancement talent — also known as a jobber — while working for bigger promotions, probably because he wasn’t all that good in the ring. As embarrassing as some of his matches could be considered, Barry O should be fondly remembered for a couple of reasons.

This Orton bravely spoke out against alleged harassment incidents that had occurred in the industry during an appearance on the The Phil Donahue Show. Barry is also credited for helping Randy become a pro during the early days of RKO’s career. In time, Barry made the jump from the ring to an acting career, and some diehard wrestling fans may not even recognize his name these days.

17 Goldust

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It should be pointed out that we are not talking about the current version of Goldust who is a respected veteran on the WWE roster and who will hopefully consider training potential future stars as part of the developmental system. The characters played by Dustin Runnels, the son of “American Dream” Dusty Rhodes, and also the man went through plenty of ups-and-downs over the years.

His time spent as “The Artist Formerly Known as Goldust” is actually difficult to watch roughly 20 years after the fact. Then, there were his stints as “Seven” and “Black Reign” that won’t be mentioned by the WWE when the company makes a tribute video for him after he retires. We’re still hoping to see “The Natural” Dustin Rhodes appear on Raw at some point in the near future.

16 Wes Brisco

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Probably the best part about Wes Brisco’s run in Impact Wrestling is that television ratings suggest plenty of people reading this sentence didn’t see any of his time with that promotion. The son of Gerald Brisco and nephew of Jack Brisco became one of the members of the Aces & Eights stable that dominated segments for months, but he was little more than a background figure before Bully Ray unceremoniously booted him from the group.

The company then wrote him out of storylines and had him do nothing meaningful until he was released in January 2014. Those of you who watched him work a handful of matches probably understand why he never became the next big thing in Impact or while learning as part of WWE developmental years ago.

15 Brian Christopher

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In fairness, Brian Christopher was, for a time, positioned to embarrass his family name during the early parts of his run in the WWE when it was often hinted that he was the real-life son of Jerry “The King” Lawler. Unlike his father, who managed to get over as both a babyface and a heel for multiple promotions, Christopher lacked the talent and the microphone skills needed to become a massive star worthy of winning a World Championship.

He does, however, deserve credit for making the Grandmaster Sexay gimmick something that made him money alongside partner Scotty 2 Hotty. It wasn’t the most serious character in the world, but the team of Too Cool became popular among fans who laughed along with the two wrestlers during WWE shows.

14 Lacey Von Erich

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Take a quick look at Lacey Von Erich, and you will understand why multiple promotions were quick to push the daughter of Kerry Von Erich and member of the famous Von Erich family. As harsh as it may be to say, these companies, particularly TNA Wrestling, did her career more harm than good by putting her in matches and storylines well before she was ready.

Von Erich was nothing short of terrible in the ring, so much so that it is hard to imagine she would receive more than even a workout with WWE developmental if she were to debut in today’s environment. She last worked for TNA in the fall of 2010, and most casual wrestling fans have not seen or heard from her since she and that promotion parted ways.

13 Ray Gordy

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Ray Gordy is the son of Terry “Bam Bam” Gordy, but you may not know that just from looking at the former WWE performer. Ray first appeared on WWE television as Jesse and one-half of a tag team along with Festus, who later became Luke Gallows.

While Gallows found success working overseas and as part of the Bullet Club, Jesse largely floundered because of an overall lack of talent as a pro wrestler. If not making it as part of a comedic tag team wasn’t bad enough, the WWE then had him perform as Slam Master J, which was a callback to a rapper character he used while in developmental. Let it be known that just because something once worked for John Cena, it doesn’t mean it will work for everybody.

12 Garett Bischoff

We wonder how differently things could have gone had TNA Wrestling just let Garett Bischoff be a regular referee not involved in a storyline with his father, Eric Bischoff. This is TNA we are talking about, though, so of course those making booking decisions for the company couldn’t help themselves, and placed Garett into a feud with Eric ahead of his time in — you guessed it — the Aces & Eights. Garett was a fine character, but he was put in matches with the likes of Samoa Joe and Sting when he wasn’t near being at a main-event level.

In 2015, Garett, Eric Bischoff and Jason Hervey sued the company over alleged unpaid wages. There’s a joke to be made about Bischoff family members and bad business deals, but we’ll leave making it up to you.

11 Erik Watts

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Erik Watts, the son of wrestler and promoter Bill Watts, embarrassed his family name by infamously delivering arguably the worst dropkick in the history of pro wrestling. For reasons that boggle the mind to this day, Erik attempted this move more than once, proof that those who do not learn from history are, sadly, destined to repeat it.

Even worse than his lack of ability in the ring was the fact that he received way too many opportunities to make it in the business because he wrestled for WCW when Bill was an Executive Vice President for that promotion. You didn’t have to be a trainer or even all that smart of a fan to realize Erik didn’t belong in the ring in the early 1990s. It’s somewhat amazing he didn’t seriously injure himself.

10 Shawn Stasiak

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Shawn Stasiak, the son of former WWWF Heavyweight Champion Stan Stasiak, has done well to find success and happiness outside of the industry as a chiropractor. Well before he landed in that profession, however, Shawn worked as a WWE performer known as Meat. Essentially, he was presented as a boy-toy for the female faction known as Pretty Mean Sisters; yes, P.M.S.. That, on it’s own, is embarrassing enough to land on any list of wrestlers who embarrassed family names.

Add in that Shawn wasn’t all that good in the ring despite being given multiple chances in WWE and WCW, and it’s not a wonder he’s spotlighted here. We wish him well on his future endeavors as a chiropractor and also as a motivational speaker.

9 Ted DiBiase Jr.

Depending on your age and/or when you first started watching the WWE, you may have either loved or hated the character of “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase. As entertaining and charismatic as DiBiase was during his time as a dastardly heel in the WWE, Ted DiBiase Jr., his son, missed out on all of those traits.

The WWE putting the Million Dollar Belt on DiBiase Jr. didn’t help his cause, as it put a bigger spotlight on the fact that he wasn’t as talented as his famous father. By the time DiBiase Jr. found something good with his idea for the DiBiase Posse, he was already in the closing stages of a career that was largely forgettable other than his time in the terrible Legacy faction along with Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton. At least DiBiase wasn’t the worst wrestler considered for that group.

8 Sim Snuka

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Oh, where to begin with Sim Snuka, the son of Jimmy Snuka? He debuted on the SmackDown roster in January 2007 as Deuce, one-half of a tag team along with Domino, and the two played roles of greasers straight out of the 1950s. Almost as bad as the gimmick, which made as little sense in 2007 as it does in 2018, was Snuka's wrestling ability.

Once the greasers were dismissed from WWE programming, the company teased that Snuka would join the previously mentioned Legacy group. After the promotion left him on the outside of that stable, he was positioned as an unnamed cameraman meant to catch the Undertaker during ‘Taker’s WrestleMania XXV match against Shawn Michaels. Snuka failed on that mission, and that proved to be the last major moment of his lackluster WWE career.

7 Manu

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Afa Anoaʻi Jr. is another wrestler you may have forgotten about considering his brief run in the WWE. The son of one of the famous Wild Samoans, this wrestler was better known as Manu while with the biggest wrestling promotion in the world. He stalled-out almost as quickly as he debuted, however, in part because he was the worst of the bunch of wrestlers considered for the Legacy group. In fact, part of the storyline was that Legacy was floundering and losing matches, so Orton eventually dismissed both Manu and Sim Snuka from being allowed to hang with what became a trio.

After Manu and the WWE parted ways, Orton told WWE Magazine that Manu lacked the respect needed to be part of a stable meant to take part in main-event storylines.

6 Bo Dallas

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Mike Rotunda may have never been a World Champion or one of the best wrestlers of his time, but at least his Irwin R. Schyster gimmick is still fondly remembered by fans to this day. That’s more than we could say about Bo Dallas if Bo, Mike’s son, were to leave the WWE this spring for whatever reasons.

Dallas did well to get over in NXT as an over-the-top obnoxious heel fans wanted to see take losses against bigger stars, but the gimmick never had any life after he was called-up to the main roster. Bo, who has seemingly struggled with his weight following his time in NXT, is now a member of The Miztourage duo that serves only to get beaten-up during editions of Raw.

5 Curtis Axel

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If not for the Internet and search engines such as Google, you’d never know that the artist currently known as Curtis Axel is the son of "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig. Axel’s WWE career started off poorly when he debuted under the name Michael McGillicutty, and things didn’t get much better from there even though the company tried to help him along, including putting him with Paul Heyman for a time. Simply put, Axel didn’t have the goods to become a main-eventer regardless of what the company tried.

Not even a lengthy Intercontinental Championship reign could save his career. These days, Axel is teamed-up with Bo Dallas as The Miztourage. Things could be worse, as there’s something to be said for keeping a job in the promotion.

4 Scott Putski

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If looking like a bodybuilder was all that was needed for one to get over and become a star in the wrestling industry, the son of “The Polish Hammer” Ivan Putski would have earned a World Championship during his stints in the WWE or WCW. Unfortunately for his career, Scott Putski required more than a good look to make a name for himself.

Scott failed to show any considerable amount of improvement after multiple stays in the WWE, and he later failed to climb up the ranks while in WCW. This was no mistake or oversight, as Scott was a lousy wrestler who didn’t belong on national television. It’s possible the “best” moment of his national career involved getting thoroughly squashed by Goldberg during a match on Nitro. Nobody can take that away from you, Scott.

3 David Sammartino

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Following a legend can be a difficult, and sometimes even an impossible, task, and David Sammartino faced such a situation due to being the son of Bruno Sammartino, maybe the greatest champion in the history of the WWWF/WWE. It has been reported that Bruno wanted his son to pursue a career away from the wrestling industry.

David probably should have listened to his famous dad, as the younger Sammartino was only good enough to work in significant matches whenever Bruno was involved. Vince McMahon’s treatment of David probably played a role in Bruno declining multiple invites to join the WWE Hall of Fame before he ultimately accepted the honor in 2013. David, obviously, will never receive such an invite, and those who never saw him wrestle didn’t miss much.

2 Teddy Hart

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There was once a time when it was believed Teddy Hart could be the next big star to emerge from the famous Hart wrestling family that gave the industry multiple icons and legends. Hart seemed to possess unique athleticism and skills needed to win titles, but he reportedly lost favor among those working in the WWE for attitude problems. Those issues allegedly followed him wherever he went, and they apparently prevented him from receiving pushes in the WWE, TNA, ROH and other promotions.

The enigmatic talent who has frustrated fans over the years turned 38 years old earlier this year, so we we'll probably never see him rise to fame for a major promotion. That’s too bad, as he is now a case of what could have been had be avoided becoming his own worst enemy.

1 David Flair

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Many fans and respected wrestling observers regard “Nature Boy” Ric Flair as the greatest wrestler in history. David Flair, his son, couldn’t follow in his father’s footsteps despite receiving chances from WCW, the WWE, TNA and independent promotions. David often appeared uncomfortable inside the ring, almost as if he knew that he couldn’t live-up to expectations had for him because of his family name.

Unlike so many others who became tragic figures after failing to become stars in the business, David retired and then found peace. Now, so many years after he had his last experience inside of a WWE ring, we can laugh at the fact that he could barely hit the ropes properly, let alone actually work a match. It’s good to know he is seemingly doing well outside of wrestling.