10 Fascinating WWE WrestleMania 23 Facts
9. Carlito Complained About His Lack Of 'Mania Match To The Detroit Free Press
It was decided that WrestleMania 23 would roll with eight matches on the main show, which meant that a lot of wrestlers in the three-brand era would be shut out of a pay-per-view payday. One of those stars was Carlito, who wound up teaming with Ric Flair in the pre-show match against Gregory Helms and Chavo Guerrero, while every other unused male wrestler acted as a lumberjack.
In an interview with the Detroit Free Press days before the show, Carlito ached, "Apparently, they had to make space for Kane vs. Khali and Melina vs. Ashley. How can I be at Wrestlemania? If I politic and kiss ass, I should make it. I'm not going to cry or be bitter, there's always next year, and I don't want to get fired. But they're showing disrespect by not having Ric Flair at Wrestlemania and even more disrespect by not having Carlito there."
Yikes. One imagines it didn't go over too well when Carlito publicly held himself in higher wrestling esteem than "The Nature Boy".