10 Wrestlers You Were Totally Wrong About
Inevitable main eventers, over-the-hill veterans, and the other wrestlers you were wrong about!
Transcript
00:00 On paper, some of these talented souls look destined for greatness after certain company
00:04 moves or character shifts, whereas others were consistently classed as over-the-hill,
00:09 poor workers or just another disrespectful celeb trying to lazily make some money off
00:14 the business at one point or another.
00:16 For better or worse, though, this bunch of wrestling figures all proved their doubters
00:19 or supporters entirely wrong further down the road.
00:23 Gareth here from WhatCulture Wrestling and here are 10 Wrestlers You Were Totally Wrong
00:27 About.
00:28 10. Miro Rather than doubling down on the undoubted
00:31 popularity Rusev experienced from 2017 to 2018, WWE largely kept the potential main
00:36 event star away from the top of the card and eventually dumped him into a silly love triangle
00:41 storyline instead.
00:42 And that worked out perfectly.
00:43 So when the performer eventually known as Miro ultimately made his way over to the land
00:47 of all elite in September 2020, after being released by WWE earlier that year, those who
00:52 cried out to see the big man get an opportunity to show what he was truly capable of were
00:56 understandably salivating.
00:58 And while his initial best man persona didn't exactly get him off to the best of AEW stats,
01:02 his eventual stint as the dominant TNT Championship holding redeemer looked to be setting the
01:07 bulldozer up for bigger things in the future.
01:10 Said bigger things didn't actually come to pass, however.
01:12 Instead, Miro has largely gone missing since losing his belt in September 2021.
01:17 And with the absent star only wrestling four times in 2022, along with it recently being
01:21 said that he turned down an idea that would have led to a full gear match last year, those
01:25 who thought Miro was finally going to get a shot at main event superstardom as part
01:29 of the All Elite roster are likely feeling a touch underwhelmed at this current moment.
01:33 9.
01:34 Carlito
01:35 A debuting Carlito swiftly bested John Cena for the United States Championship in 2004,
01:40 with a little help from the face that runs the place's steel chain.
01:43 In a case of perhaps peaking a little too soon, though, those who justifiably assumed
01:47 WWE would eventually throw everything behind the clearly charismatic, apple-spitting villain
01:52 were proven wrong as the cool figure never really topped that initial spell in the spotlight.
01:56 Despite picking up the odd Intercontinental and World Tag Team Championship, Carlito never
02:00 fully delivered on the main event potential he showed flickers of in his battles with
02:04 Cena and interactions with the likes of Stone Cold Steve Austin and rowdy Roddy Piper on
02:09 the grandest stage.
02:10 Instead, Carlito was often branded as lazy and too nonchalant by folks backstage, and
02:15 a wrestler that could have been a top-level star of tomorrow ultimately ended up leaving
02:18 the company in 2010.
02:20 Although his virtual crowd-popping Royal Rumble 2021 return did at least offer a glimpse
02:24 of what could have been, had Carlito grown into the main event-calibre presence he once
02:28 threatened to be?
02:29 8.
02:30 Nikki Cross
02:31 For a time, the masked superhero persona actually managed to somehow catapult the star formerly
02:35 known as Nikki Cross to a Money in the Bank and Raw Women's Championship win, with that
02:40 admittedly surreal summer of 2021 sitting as the most successful period of the one-time
02:45 NXT performer's main roster career by far.
02:48 Before long though, the blue and yellow gimmick lost much of the super-steam it had picked
02:52 up early on, and Nikki A.S.H. soon became little more than another 24/7 title-jobber
02:57 depressingly sprinting around arenas.
02:59 And it was at this point when some fans began trying to wield the more unhinged Nikki Cross
03:03 persona that once made her a black and gold hit back into existence.
03:07 Far from being the beginning of a long-awaited return to form for Cross, however, that eventual
03:11 reverting back to the character associated with all things sanity last year arguably
03:15 made less of an impact than her previous super-switch-up.
03:19 Hopefully Nikki's return to her crazy ways lead to something more compelling than getting
03:22 battered by the majority of the division and stalking Candice LeRae backstage.
03:27 7.
03:28 Logan Paul
03:29 It turns out that Logan Paul is far better at this pro wrestling stuff than anyone could
03:32 have possibly imagined.
03:34 On the back of countless annoying celebrity guests stopping by to lend their star power
03:38 to the WWE machine, only to make a mockery of fan-favourite performers or the business
03:42 in general, the sight of the easily detestable YouTuber strutting down the ramp back on the
03:46 road to WrestleMania 37 led to many a justifiable eye-roll.
03:50 Fast forward a year though, and not only had Paul raised the celeb bar recently set by the
03:54 impressive Bad Bunny and Pat McAfee, but he'd actually more than proven that he could have
03:58 a rather successful future as a consistent part of the main roster.
04:02 Who'd have thunk it, eh?
04:03 Those first two decent showings alongside Unvs The Miz were already enough evidence
04:07 to highlight just how wrong many were about Logan's commitment to the role of part-time
04:11 attraction and ability to actually goo in between the ropes.
04:14 His main event battle against Roman Reigns and subsequent jaw-dropping Royal Rumble display
04:18 though, they have left a frankly absurd amount of egg on the impulsive ones many doubters
04:23 astounded faces, myself included.
04:26 6.
04:27 Samoa Joe
04:28 When it became known that the absolute wrestling legend that is Samoa Joe was officially walking
04:32 through Tony Khan's All Elite doors, it's safe to say some mixed feelings were present
04:36 in those waiting for his incoming debut.
04:38 While the Samoan submission machine undoubtedly sat as a talented soul who could offer a great
04:42 deal behind the scenes, many felt that Joe's best days in the squared circle were definitely
04:47 behind him.
04:48 And those assumptions were seemingly proven right for a spell, with Joe noticeably not
04:52 exactly hanging with much of the All Elite roster and feeling like a bit of an afterthought
04:56 despite reigning as the Ring of Honor Television Champion.
04:58 A rather dull pairing with Wardlow soon followed as the mid-card champs fought off Jay Lethal
05:03 and his goons, and the sight of Joe eventually picking up the TNT strap felt like another
05:07 step in the wrong direction for all involved.
05:10 This unexpected shift soon set the stage for something of a revival for Joe, however, with
05:14 the King of Television soon rediscovering his menacing edge in violent brawls with Darby
05:19 Allen.
05:20 The guy absolutely murdered him, didn't he?
05:21 His incoming rematch with Wardlow on the back of mercilessly chopping off the deeply personal
05:25 locks of his one-time partner now feels like one of the hottest blow-offs of the year,
05:30 and it wouldn't have been possible without a star many once classed as an All Elite signing
05:34 misstep.
05:35 5.
05:36 Ted DiBiase Jr
05:37 At a glance, the decision to throw Ted DiBiase Jr and Cody Rhodes into a unit alongside WWE's
05:42 resident legend killer Randy Orton seemed like a surefire way to groom two potential
05:47 stars of tomorrow into a pair of main event sensations.
05:50 And while Rhodes would ultimately go on to deliver the goods much further down the road,
05:54 the son of the legendary Ted DiBiase never quite caught fire in the way many assumed
05:58 he would do.
05:59 He absolutely looked the part, could hold his own in between the ropes, and was definitely
06:02 growing more confident as a character on the mic before the aforementioned group's eventual
06:06 split.
06:07 However, when DiBiase Jr was finally given some room to breathe as a solo act, WWE lazily
06:12 attempted to simply make him the second coming of the Million Dollar Man, as expected, that
06:17 failed miserably.
06:18 And on the back of doing very little of note in the years that would follow, DiBiase Jr
06:21 eventually decided enough was enough in 2013, turning down the chance to re-sign with the
06:26 company after suffering from depression and anxiety.
06:29 And just like that, a star many felt had all the makings of another second-generation top-level
06:33 talent would never step in between the WWE ropes ever again.
06:36 4.
06:37 John Cena Throughout much of his time sitting at the
06:40 top of the WWE mountain, it wasn't exactly uncommon to hear the deafening sound of thousands
06:44 of fans reminding John Cena that he most definitely could not wrestle.
06:48 And while it's fair to say that the vast majority of standard Cena encounters weren't
06:52 exactly overflowing with code reds and springboard stunners, to class the face that runs the
06:56 place as a performer who couldn't work in between the ropes was about as far from the
07:00 truth as you could get.
07:01 But feeling the need to prove those very much audible doubters wrong, the second big match
07:05 John reclaimed the United States Championship at WrestleMania 31, Cena decided to take things
07:10 up a notch.
07:11 And it was that weekly US title open challenge that soon set the stage for some of the greatest
07:16 Raw encounters of the 2010s.
07:18 Simultaneously, a defiant Cena managed to both make the US title belt one of the most
07:22 prestigious in the company, and wave his hand at those infamous "You Can't Wrestle"
07:26 chants.
07:27 3.
07:28 Karrion Kross Remember when a solid section of the fandom
07:30 lost their damn minds over the terrible treatment of then-undefeated NXT Champion Karrion Kross?
07:35 On making his rather underwhelming Monday Night Raw debut back in 2021?
07:39 Well, if the star's second attempt at a main roster debut is anything to go by, all
07:43 the spooky red lighting and fireballs in the world still wouldn't have saved the bringer
07:47 of doomsday from the excruciating sound of apathy that first time around.
07:51 Admittedly, the former Black and Gold Monster's second stint in the big leagues likely hasn't
07:55 been helped by the average fan taking one look at the floppy haired nutjob, and instantly
07:59 remembering his disastrous run as the Bondage Spartan on Monday night.
08:03 But those feeling that life under Papa H's guidance would at least bring with it something
08:06 resembling a dominant return to form for Triple H's one-time NXT overlord, have been left
08:11 wondering why they bothered banging the drum for Big Bad Karrion in the first place.
08:15 Now, there's still time for the game to actually transform the Kross-Scarlet duo into
08:18 more than a pair of seriously mid-heels to be swatted away by whatever babyface needs
08:23 a just-about-notable notch in the W column, yet at this current moment, Kross' lacklustre
08:27 comeback can only be defined as forgettable at best.
08:30 2.
08:31 The Acclaimed 2022 saw The Acclaimed and Daddy Azz become
08:35 quite possibly the hottest group on the planet for a spell there.
08:38 However, around two years earlier, as Tony Khan himself was quick to note in an exchange
08:42 with a seemingly frustrated fan, pointing out how odd it was to see the Trust Busters
08:46 pushed in the main event of Rampage, some fans weren't exactly doing backflips at
08:50 the idea of the fresh young teen taking up a decent spot on Dynamite.
08:54 Sticking with the loudmouth twosome over the next few years through injuries and rather
08:58 foolish disraps, TK refused to give up on the idea of Caster and Bowens being a set
09:02 of genuine all-elite stars of the future.
09:05 An organic connection with an audience that simply had no choice but to love The Acclaimed
09:09 eventually became so hard to ignore that the AW president had no choice but to hand the
09:13 tag title ball to the cheeky duo over an FTR enjoying a career-best 12 months.
09:18 Tony clearly saw something special in the charismatic lads from day one, and he's
09:22 now reaping the rewards for defying those who initially doubted the scissoring squad.
09:27 1.
09:28 Kofi Kingston There was never any question over how talented
09:30 and entertaining the New Day's Kofi Kingston unquestionably was and had been throughout
09:35 his sports entertainment run.
09:36 Yet as the years rolled by, many felt that Kingston's time as a potential world champion
09:40 for the company had come and gone, with the Valiant babyface and equally hysterical heel
09:45 never quite making that step up to main event level solo star.
09:49 That all changed in the lead up to the 35th show of shows though, on the back of a substitute
09:53 WWE Championship Elimination Chamber appearance that forced fans to unexpectedly believe,
09:58 KofiMania soon spread across the land and made the concept of a Kofi main event battle
10:01 with the despicable new Daniel Bryan too glorious to pass up on.
10:05 Weeks of leaping and sometimes failing to overcome the obstacles sent his way finally
10:09 led to Big E and Xavier Woods earning Kingston the Mania WWE title chance even his most passionate
10:14 supporters assumed would never become a reality.
10:17 But it did, and one of the most satisfying visuals in the event's history soon graced
10:22 the grandest stage, as the long time bridesmaid finally lifted the big one under the brightest
10:26 of lights.
10:27 And that's our list, know of any other wrestlers people were totally wrong about?
10:30 Let us know all about them in the comment section right down below and do not forget
10:34 to like, share and click on that subscribe button while you're at it.
10:37 Also if you like this kind of thing then please head on over to WotCulture.com and find some
10:40 more fantastic articles just like the one this video you're watching right this second
10:44 is based on.
10:45 I've been Gareth from WotCulture Wrestling, be kind to your good self today and hopefully
10:48 I will see your faces very very soon.