10 WWE Wrestlers That Can’t Be Harmed By Always Losing

Bullet(proof) Club

finn balor
WWE.com

It was quite something for SmackDown Live! producer and mid-level WWE executive Brian James to rip away the mystique of an industry he was born into just to try and bat back reasoned criticisms of a product he's overseen for some time back in 2016.

The above tweet wasn't the only time he'd alluded to a rather reckless "results don't matter" philosophy, though his ranting was only really triggered by a fruitless need to reply in the first place. He was unnecessarily wading through a Twitter swamp formed from by the bile of WWE's p*ssed off and p*ssed on audience. In this particular case, one fan wanted to support Kevin Owens (or at very least his next babyface opponent) but didn't deem it possible based on the booking. James - as Owens' primary puppet-master - was telling fans he was a winner without showing them. This in turn made him an even bigger loser than he was before.

This is WWE now, though. So many matches and so much time with so little reason and so little rhyme. James wasn't wrong, the wins and losses don't count, but they absolutely should. This malaise is only beneficial because nobody sinks below ground. In a 'Universe' where so few get over, at least these 'Superstars' don't slip under...

10. Samoa Joe

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WWE.com

'The Samoan Submission Machine' hasn't been permitted to practice what he preaches all that much on major stages since bursting on to the main roster from NXT in 2017.

His 'Great Balls Of Fire' shot at Brock Lesnar was temporarily exciting before 'The Beast' gave his topline prospects a hard reset, whilst appearances in multi-man main event matches at SummerSlam and Survivor Series later that year ended in similar defeat.

His loss to Roman Reigns at May's Backlash didn't do half the damage it could have, not least because less than half the crowd even stayed to watch. The mass walkout was a protest at the persistent pushing of 'The Big Dog' (the performer that can't ever afford to lose and yet still does with bizarre regularity), and Joe's intricate understanding of the industry he's spent nearly two decades in ensured he was rehabilitated as early as two nights later.

It's that in-built self-care that keeps propelling Joe back to the summit. He'll even be fine if he ultimately falls to AJ Styles - fans know he's a winner without Brian James having to literally instruct them to think it.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett