8 Wrestlers Who Ruined Their WCW Career With One Huge Mistake
At one point or another, WCW had some of the most talented wrestlers on their roster. Wrestlers like Bret Hart, Sting, Ric Flair, and even future stars like Chris Jericho, Eddie Guerrero, and Rey Mysterio all wrestled in WWE towards the late 90s. WCW, although briefly, had more momentum and was getting better ratings for 83 weeks in a row before eventually capitulating to WWE.
Many wrestlers in WWE seemingly had promising careers with the promotion, but that was all tanked by a mistake or incident. Whether on-screen, backstage, or even further behind the scenes, these wrestlers all encountered issues in WCW that affected their careers with the promotion. Had these moments not happened who knows what the future of WCW could have held?
8.Shockmaster (Debut)
On arrival, the Shockmaster was supposed to be placed in a major feud. The Shockmaster was going to team up with Davey Boy Smith, Dusty Rhodes, and Sting in a war games match against a heel team of Sid, Vader, and Harlem Heat. The spot could have been incredible but was effectively ruined when he tripped while breaking through a wall during a promo at Clash of the Champions to build up the match for Fall Brawl.
While there was no coming back from that, the wrestler behind the shiny stormtrooper mask had already had a decent career in WWE, wrestling as Tugboat and Typhoon from 1989 to 1993.
7.Sid Vicious (Backstage Fight)
In 1993, Sid Vicious made his return to WCW after a brief stint in WWE where he was placed in top-level feuds. On his return to WCW, Sid was also supposed to be one of the company’s top stars. After a feud with Sting, Sid was set to face Vader for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at Starrcade and likely win the title.
Before Starrcade could occur, Sid got into a heated conversation with Arn Anderson later escalated into a fight. While the events that led to the fight are unclear, Sid Vicious was promptly fired from WCW while Anderson was suspended. Sid would eventually return to WCW in the late 90s, and would eventually hold the WCW World Heavyweight Championship but it took several years longer than it was supposed to.
6.Rey Mysterio (Unmasking)
Unlike Sid’s mistake, Rey Mysterio’s error didn’t mean that he left the company but more that it ensured that he wouldn’t reach his full potential. Mexican masked wrestler, Rey Mysterio Jr, would sign for WCW in 1996 and wrestle for the company until its eventual closure in 2001.
In 1999, Konan and Rey Mysterio lost a tag match to Kevin Nash and Scott Hall meaning that Mysterio lost his mask. Mysterio would continue to wrestle without his mask until he signed for WWE. Mysterio later stated that he was against the decision to unmask, but the order came from Eric Bischoff and WCW management.
5.Chris Jericho (Calling Out Goldberg)
Chris Jericho had a promising position in WCW holding the WCW Cruiserweight Championship multiple times and even winning the WCW Television Championship. In late 1998, Jericho began calling out WCW World Heavyweight Champion Bill Goldberg. At the time, Goldberg was on a seemingly never-ending win streak that had already reached the triple-digits.
Despite Jericho calling Goldberg out, nothing ever came of it and marked a very clear ceiling over Jericho’s head in WCW. Jericho would leave WCW in mid-1999, signing for WWE and becoming a multiple-time World Champion for the company.
4.Bret Hart (Debut)
When Bret Hart left WWE in November 1997, he was the hottest wrestler in professional wrestling. The Montreal Screwjob at Survivor Series 1997 was the most talked about event in Wrestling and everyone knew that Hart was signing with WCW. After making his debut on an episode of Nitro, Hart would appear as a guest referee at Starrcade.
At Starrcade, Hart would also get involved in the main event which was supposed to be a recreation of the Screwjob. Hogan was supposed to defeat Sting via a referee fast count. Unfortunately, the count was regular making Hart’s intervention poorly timed. As a result, Hart’s run as a main-event wrestler in WCW was stalled and his career would never regain the same momentum it had.
3.Mike Awesome (Fat Chick Thriller Gimmick)
Like Bret Hart, Mike Awesome was red-hot before joining WCW. When he was signed by WCW, Awesome still held the ECW World Heavyweight Championship but WCW refrained from using him for fear of legal repercussions. Awesome would eventually drop the title before making his WCW debut.
In WCW, Awesome would receive the moniker Fat Chick Thriller. In the gimmick, Awesome would be accompanied to the ring by overweight women he was trying to impress and seduce. After a few months, the gimmick was scrapped but it was too late to recover any hope for a decent WCW run.
2.William Regal (Fighting Goldberg)
In February 1998, William Regal faced Bill Goldberg on an episode of Nitro. Before the match, Goldberg had been crushing opponents within minutes in squash matches during his incredible win streak in WCW. The streak would eventually see Goldberg becoming the United States and World Heavyweight Champion.
However, unlike his previous opponents, Regal appeared to work a more technical match with Goldberg before eventually losing. Goldberg and WCW management were irate with Regal, claiming that he went into business for himself. Regal claims that management told him to see if Goldberg could work during their match, and was thrown under the bus because he was still green.
1.Steve Austin (Untimely Injuries)
Before becoming the Texas Rattlesnake, Steve Austin wrestled in WCW as one-half of the Hollywood Blondes and Stunning Steve Austin. At the time, Austin had the beginning of a promising career in WCW, winning the Tag Team, Television, and United States Championships.
Unfortunately, Austin would suffer a knee injury that would keep him out of action from mid-November 1994 until February 1995. In June 1995, Austin injured his tricep while wrestling in Japan. While recovering, Austin was let go by WCW due to being out of action for too long. It also didn’t help Austin that WCW management didn’t see any marketable value in Austin and that he was reportedly too difficult to work with among his roster.
Automotive manufacturers got the chance to reveal new models, concepts and vehicle series at CES 2024. Autovista24 journalist, Tom Hooker, looks at this year’s showstoppers.
While a major automotive theme of CES 2024 was artificial intelligence (AI), there were still plenty of exciting vehicle reveals. The likes of Honda, Kia, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen (VW) used the show to unveil brand-new concept cars or updates to existing models.
Honda unveiled the ‘0 Series’ by throwing the covers off two new concepts, the Saloon and the Space-Hub. Both are due for a global launch in 2026. The brand also premiered its new H mark logo which will feature on the next-generation of electric vehicles (EVs). Three principles detail Honda’s 0 Series approach to EV development: thin, light, and wise. This means designing lower models based on a dedicated ‘thin’ EV platform to create more aerodynamic performance.
The models will advance Honda’s ‘man maximum, machine minimum’ philosophy. This means maximising the space available to the driver and passengers while minimising the space taken up by mechanical components.
As well as this, advanced driver-assistant system (ADAS) technology will also be available at launch. Automated driving (AD) will be offered at a later date, featuring improved AI, sensing, decision-making, and driver monitoring technologies to make more human-like and accurate risk predictions. Efficiency will also be enhanced, with increased power conversion from a new e-Axle system. The Saloon and Space-Hub will benefit from connected technologies, capable of learning user preferences and driving behaviours.
