At its best, professional wrestling is an emotional roller coaster. As fans, we fall in love with the characters. We invest ourselves in their stories and support them through the good and bad times. Like a sports team. For that reason, there are some defeats that are absolutely crushing to the men, women and children in the stands and watching at home. They elicit passionate responses and even can force tears. Some are occurrences that fans knew were coming but still could not adequately prepare themselves for. Others are like sucker punches, unexpected losses that shook the wrestling world and left fans deflated. They are the kind of defeats that have the ability to make fans question everything they have ever thought they knew. The more likable the loser, the more devastating the loss.
10. RKOing Christian's Title Dreams
For years, Christian was a popular midcard villain whose charisma struck a chord with the audience. He was, at times, an over-the-top goof and at others, an intense performer capable of vile acts. As much talent as he showed, he was never given the opportunity to run as a main event star in WWE. He was always seen as second fiddle to more established stars, such as Chris Jericho and Edge. In 2011, following the untimely retirement of the aforementioned Edge, the SmackDown brand was left without a World Heavyweight champion. It was decided that his real life best friend, Christian, would replace him in a Ladder match against Alberto Del Rio to determine a new champion. That contest was outstanding. The competitors wrestled a different style of match that favored harder hitting and logical bumps as opposed to the high risks that helped make Christian a household name a decade earlier. In the end, it was Captain Charisma who overcame a game Del Rio and interference from Brodus Clay to stand atop a ladder, the new World Heavyweight champion. The celebration was an emotional one as he shared the spotlight with Edge, whom he had grown up with and achieved great success with as a tag team competitor. Fans across the internet rejoiced, some replacing message board icons with the images of Christian's title victory. There was a measurable excitement for the future of SmackDown with the talented Canadian leading the way. Two days after the win, the wrestling world was brought crashing back to earth when Christian leaped off the middle rope and right into an RKO from Randy Orton. The Viper covered the champion, kept his shoulders pinned for three seconds and became the new World Heavyweight champion. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FhSzrsTJJI The response was a mixture of disappointment and anger. Fans were sad that Christian's moment in the spotlight had ended so quickly but enraged that Orton, a made man in WWE, was being given another run with the championship at the expense of a deserving fresh face. Of course, the title change necessitated a heel turn that led to one of the best programs of 2011 but it still did not lessen the emotional blow of Christian dropping the title just 48 hours after winning it.
Erik Beaston is a freelance pro wrestling writer who likes long walks in the park, dandelions and has not quite figured out that this introduction is not for Match.com. He resides in Parts Unknown, where he hosts weekly cookouts with Kane, The Ultimate Warrior, Papa Shango and The Boogeyman. Be jealous.
