5 Wrestlers Worse Off After Leaving WWE

Throughout skilled wrestling history, WWE has been viewed as the corporate that each performer strives to work for, knowing that they’ve the chance to turn out to be certainly one of the most important stars on the planet, while earning a life-changing income. Nevertheless, where some wrestlers reach their peak following their initial stint in WWE, others fail to duplicate the identical success they once had with the corporate. Earlier this 12 months, WrestlingInc. released a listing highlighting AEW talent who struggled to succeed after leaving WWE. This time, we’re looking back at performers whose careers went downhill after departing from the Connecticut-based promotion.

The five wrestlers listed below haven’t only been forgotten about, but additionally endured their very own individual challenges outside the ring, comparable to substance abuse, political controversies, or were simply unsuccessful in attempting to recapture the identical magic they’d with the WWE Universe.

Throughout the early 2010s, Damien Sandow, also referred to as Aron Stevens, had quickly turn out to be certainly one of WWE’s hottest mid-card stars, having built himself a cult following after his Money In The Bank win in 2013. Unfortunately, Sandow’s momentum was completely halted when he didn’t defeat John Cena for the WWE Championship after cashing within the briefcase on “WWE Raw,” a creative decision that many believed would sink Sandow’s profession. Thankfully, Stevens would catch lightning in a bottle together with his “Damien Mizdow” gimmick alongside The Miz, which led him to capture the WWE Tag Team Championships.

Sandow’s partnership with The Miz felt like a second opportunity to launch himself into the major event scene, especially after Damien finally betrayed “The A-Lister” by eliminating him through the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 31. That said, after engaging in a brief feud with The Miz, Sandow returned to his “Mental Savior of the Masses” persona and never managed to succeed in the identical level of recognition attributable to a scarcity of creative direction. This ultimately led Sandow to be released in 2016, and though he’s had moderate success on the independent wrestling scene, he was unable to catch lightning in a bottle again.

Today, Sandow continues to make transient appearances either as a manager or on the commentary desk for specific indie corporations and continues to compete on a semi-regular basis for the National Wrestling Alliance. Outside of a brief run in TNA, Sandow never had one other opportunity to compete for a significant wrestling promotion.

Muhammad Hassan famously had certainly one of the more controversial wrestling gimmicks in WWE history, together with his character portraying an Arab-American competitor who faced prejudice following the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001. Nevertheless, shortly after his WWE debut in 2004, Hassan would quickly be positioned as certainly one of the corporate’s next top stars, together with his solid in-ring work and excellent promo ability catching the eye of fans, but his thought-provoking persona also made him certainly one of the higher heels through the Ruthless Aggression era.

Hassan would eventually find himself wrestling the likes of John Cena and Shawn Michaels, while being given multiple opportunities to capture among the promotion’s top titles, but one match on “WWE SmackDown” would completely change the trajectory of his profession.

Within the midst of his feud with The Undertaker, Hassan’s manager, Daivari, competed against “The Deadman” on a pre-recorded episode of “SmackDown.” The Undertaker quickly defeated Daivari, however the post-match angle stays certainly one of the ill-fated moments in WWE history. Before The Undertaker made his exit, Hassan began a prayer ritual, which was followed by a bunch of masked men wearing black entering the ring and attacking “The Phenom.” The disturbing segment, which resembled a terrorist attack, unfortunately took place just days before the 2005 London Bombings, leading WWE to face severe backlash on a worldwide scale following the published. 

In response to the controversy, Hassan’s push was completely diminished within the months that followed, and he was fired from WWE in September 2005. Outside of a brief stint competing in The Dynasty seven years ago, Hassan has left the wrestling world behind him, as he went back to school after his WWE profession and is now a principal at Fulton Junior High School.

Throughout his seven-year stint with WWE, Ryback often found himself within the major event scene against the likes of CM Punk and John Cena following his run with the Nexus, as the corporate pushed him as its next powerhouse star. Despite his quite a few world title opportunities, Ryback never managed to capture the WWE Championship, and quickly began to be featured as a mid-card star somewhat than a major event player by 2014. Many fans often feel that Ryback’s lack of victories on Premium Live Events was when he began to lose momentum, with failing to defeat Punk for the world title at Hell In A Cell being viewed as the beginning of his downfall.

Ryback would spend the following two years attempting to obtain mid-card titles, and eventually became Intercontinental Champion, but he never felt as necessary as he did in 2012. Ultimately, Ryback began to grow frustrated together with his creative direction in WWE, with things reaching a boiling point when he was bumped to the pre-show of WrestleMania 32 against Kalisto for the USA Championship. After losing to Kalisto again at Payback, Ryback would explain in a lengthy Tumblr post that he was not serious about staying with WWE attributable to the sum of money he was being offered to proceed working for the corporate.

Ryback would enjoy a brief run on the independent wrestling scene, but ultimately stopped competing in 2018 and has since grown a large social media following on TikTok and Instagram, where he answers fan questions on the business and opens up about his WWE experiences. Nevertheless, it’s value mentioning that Ryback’s controversial comments on social media about WWE or other wrestlers have hurt his profession, having burnt bridges with many he used to work with.

Despite Adam Rose never being considered a major event talent in WWE, he definitely earned himself a cult following during his time with the promotion, having entertained fans together with his energetic persona, comedic segments, and most significantly, his entrance to the ring alongside the “Rosebuds.” The previous WWE star would also find himself in certainly one of the more unique factions in company history, having joined Bo Dallas, Heath Slater, and Curtis Axel within the Social Outcasts in 2016. Nevertheless, that very same 12 months, Rose could be indefinitely suspended for violating WWE’s wellness policy, and shortly afterward,s asked for his release from the corporate following a domestic violence arrest.

Although Rose’s domestic violence charges were eventually dropped, the incident not only put an end to his WWE profession but additionally made it difficult for the previous FCW Heavyweight Champion to search out work elsewhere. Nearing the top of the 2010s, Rose competed on the independent wrestling scene for 3 years, but would officially hang up his boots in 2019. Before his retirement announcement, Rose had completely transformed his physique, having bulked up after being sober for over 400 days due to WWE’s assistance. This created fan speculation that Rose would reacclimate himself with the corporate, but he’s decided to remain out of the highlight for the past six years.  

Rose has kept a low profile since 2019, having been silent on social media and featured in only a few interviews, but has thankfully found peace following his WWE profession.

Throughout the early 2010s, Alex Riley was most known for being The Miz’s apprentice in “WWE NXT,” before eventually being called as much as the major roster to accompany “The A-Lister” throughout his rise to becoming WWE Champion. Nevertheless, Riley would get a probability to solidify himself as a singles star after betraying The Miz in 2011 and defeating him at Capitol Punishment, but a famous behind-the-scenes incident has unfortunately turn out to be what he’s most remembered for today.

Although multiple wrestlers and personalities have detailed several versions of the story, Riley reportedly engaged in a backstage altercation with John Cena, which effectively ended his push in WWE despite being popular with the fanbase. Between Cena being overly critical of Riley’s in-ring work, ribbing him backstage, and attempting to take him under his wing, there’s been many various interpretations of what truly transpired between each stars. Ultimately, Riley seemingly stood up for himself at any time when he felt that he was being mistreated, causing him to be involved in lots of controversies backstage. 

After his singles push quickly diminished, Riley found himself on the commentary desk before eventually starting a social media campaign titled #FreeRiley, to assist persuade management to place him back within the ring. The campaign led him to return to “NXT” where he would feud with Kevin Owens, but the next 12 months, Riley was rarely booked on television and was featured in a round of talent cuts after WrestleMania 32. Riley briefly returned to wrestling three years ago where he enjoyed a brief run on the indie scene, but otherwise has remained inactive. That said, he has appeared during several interviews throughout the 2020s where he shares his perspective of his downfall in WWE.