While there are many WWE “lifers” who stay in WWE from the beginning all the way until the end of their career, there are several who take many absences over the years, with some even returning to the company multiple times over.
When looking at those who left and came back again, there are certain individuals who stand out for having a truly terrible second run with the promotion. This can be down to poor booking, or even down to the individual themselves if they are in a worse shape and older than they were to the point where they are simply not the same performer that they once were.
10 Kurt Angle
By the time Kurt Angle returned to WWE in 2017, he wasn’t in his prime by any means, with him taking up an on-screen authority role. Unfortunately, he was often overshadowed by the likes of Stephanie McMahon, making his time as General Manager sometimes pointless.
From an in-ring standpoint, his match at WrestleMania 34 was good, but aside from that, it proved to be an awful run to end his career. Winning battle royals dressed as a conquistador, getting squashed by Drew McIntyre, acting as an afterthought in Royal Rumbles, and an awful final match ever against Baron Corbin put a sour note on the end of his time as an active performer.
9 Gail Kim
After a fairly short and uninspiring run in WWE between 2002 and 2004 (in which she briefly won the Women’s Title), Gail Kim received an untimely release, taking her talents to TNA instead, becoming the first TNA Knockouts Champion and having a successful time.
In 2008, she made a return to WWE with the hopes of being pushed, but was constantly losing matches and feuds, and used in awful storylines. For her talents, she was grossly misused, being put in “girlfriend” positions and not taken seriously.
8 Lord Tensai
Throughout the Attitude Era and Ruthless Aggression era, A-Train or Prince Albert was a decent midcard act, and that was a perfect spot for him. In 2012, he made a return to WWE after several years in Japan.
His look, with fake tattoos all over his face and a dominant, monster gimmick was fine, but fans just couldn’t take it seriously and failed to overlook his previous time with the company. Not only that, but his booking became very lackluster, and a win over John Cena had fans scratching their heads. From there, Tensai dropped down the card, eventually becoming a comedy act in an even worse position than his first run.
7 Dudley Boyz
When the Dudley Boyz returned to WWE in 2015, they were (at the time) the most successful tag team in WWE history. However, they weren’t presented like that. Instead, they lost, lost, and lost again.
Instead of a nice year of dream matches and one more title reign, the Dudley Bozy were afterthoughts for the most part, relegated to pre-shows and the Main Event show alongside other glorified enhancement talent.
6 Test
Test was a decent act in the Attitude Era, with notable achievements to his name like the Hardcore, Intercontinental, and Tag Team titles. He left WWE in 2004 following spinal surgery and a release.
WWE decided to bring him back in 2006 as a top name for the brand-new WWE version of ECW, with the brand going downhill quickly. He competed in the disastrous Extreme Elimination Chamber match at December to Dismember, failed at challenging Bobby Lashley multiple times for the title. He then received a suspension due to a Wellness Policy Violation, and then got released.
5 EC3
As Derrick Bateman, EC3’s initial run in WWE was nothing special, but after making a name for himself in TNA, he was a certified star in the professional wrestling business. He would sign for NXT to a huge buzz, with fans seeing potential World Title gold in his future.
Upon a call up to the main roster, EC3 was barely used, had no feuds, and wasn’t allowed to do what he is best at - cutting promos. He was relegated almost immediately to the 24/7 Title division, squandering any chance of him making it in his second run with WWE.
4 Mickie James
During her first run in WWE, Mickie James became a multiple time champion, with her being one of the few “Divas” who managed to put on some good matches in very little time. In 2016, after a few years away, James returned at a time when WWE’s women were booked much better, so things looked on the up.
However, James had the role of Alexa Bliss’ lackey, and proceeded to do nothing of note for several years, aside from a few title matches here and there. When she finally left WWE, there was controversy due to her allegedly having her things put in a trash bag upon a release. It was a complete farce of a stint.
3 Eva Marie
Eva Marie’s first WWE run wasn’t anything special, but her second was even worse. She returned in 2021 with some decent hype, but it was quickly clear that she hadn’t improved in the ring.
A rushed storyline with Doudrop and a terrible angle with Alexa Bliss was all she did in her time back, before once again getting released after spending just four months on television.
2 Ultimate Warrior
Throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Ultimate Warrior rose the ranks to challenge Hulk Hogan for the top spot as the number one babyface in WWE, with him even beating Hogan to win both the WWE and IC Title belts at WrestleMania.
After a near four-year absence, he returned to WWE, though he was nowhere near the same caliber of performer, and he came back at a time when the landscape of wrestling was changing, and acts like Warrior didn’t work. Whilst he won the IC Title, he overshadowed younger names, taking unnecessary spotlight before yet another ugly exit after only a few months.
1 Scott Hall
Scott Hall as “Razor Ramon” was a phenomenal upper midcard talent throughout the 1990s, and it was a big deal when he left WWE to join WCW, in which he became an even bigger name in the nWo.
He returned to WWE following the WCW Invasion angle, alongside his fellow nWo members. However, Hall’s personal issues made him a much lesser performer, and it was clear that he wasn’t in the right place to be back in WWE. After a poor “dream match” with Steve Austin, he was later fired due to his participation in the Plane Ride From Hell, ending his comeback on a disastrous note.