10 Beloved Wrestlers FIRED By WWE

10. CM Punk

This one was more of a technicality, but still.

CM Punk infamously walked out of WWE the day after the 2014 Royal Rumble. A convergence of several factors drove his exit.

He was mentally unwell. He was disgusted by the fact that he was the one who had to do jobs for part-timers the Rock, Brock Lesnar and the Undertaker; shockingly, going over Ryback was no equaliser. That idea, and indeed the actual experience, was painful to him.

As was the experience of life in WWE generally; he said, in the Art of Wrestling podcast that forever altered the trajectory of his life, that he was given antibiotics for a concussion. He also claimed that he was put under intense pressure to return early from injury, when still healing, and that he had what a doctor not affiliated with WWE told him was a "full-blown staph infection" on his ass.

In a pretty funny attempt to win him back, Triple H held aloft the boom box in his 'Say Anything' moment and said "You can pin me at WrestleMania".

Punk laughed, said no, and walked.

WWE then fired him on his wedding day in a very typical troll move.