10 Wrestlers Who Were Notoriously Difficult To Work With

9. Austin Aries

shawn michaels sid
WWE.com

Austin Aries is so difficult that he is currently in the process of using this IRL trait as his latest gimmick; apparently inspired by the who's-working-who leanings of Brian Pillman, the 'Greatest Man That Ever Lived' is now 'The Guy Who No-Sells Doing Jobs Because He Is Pissy". This explains the Vince Russo-tastic conclusion of Impact's recent Bound For Glory main event, immediately following which Aries shot up, exposing his long match as a sham, and "stormed out" of the promotion.

This was ill-advised, not particularly entertaining, but wholly believable.

Jim Cornette, as ROH figurehead, deemed Aries not worth the hassle. That is true also of WWE, who quietly released Aries last year because they had "nothing for him". Creative has nothing for most in 2018, but WWE keeps everybody around to stem the rising tide of the Independent circuit. Tellingly, Aries' contract was not frozen, like WWE rival Neville's was. He was simply let go, just as people relieve pressure on their eyeballs as a headache recedes.

The long and short of it (pause) is that Aries sees himself not as the excellent pro wrestler he is, but rather a legitimate difference-maker. That nickname of his is no work; Aries believes he is a "special" talent, and f*ck you for questioning his genius.

Ex Zelina Vega tweeted earlier this year that she no longer wishes to be "associated" with him. Strangely, given his demonstrable talent, many top-tier promotions share this POV.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!