10 Wrestlers Whose Careers TANKED After Winning Big
WWE giveth, then WWE taketh away! Big moments followed by big disappointment.
Fickle.
That's what the wrestling biz is by default. Something that's immensely popular at Halloween can be the dirt worst by Christmas, and that'll never change. Take WWE as a prime example - the company produces so much content every single week that even the freshest ideas look stale to some people less than a full month into their run.
That can make it difficult to avoid following up on big moments with big disappointments. Everyone here experienced some sort of massive success (a title win, major show of faith behind the scenes, a jump from one top promotion to another etc), but those were quickly tailed by crashing lows that had to be seen to be believed.
Not every story is the same. A lot of tut-tutting could be aimed at WWE itself, sure, but they're not 100% responsible for antics outside the ring and away from arenas. Wrestlers have to take ownership of their behaviour and actions when the cameras are dark and they're going about their day-to-day lives off TV.
There would've been some confused looks in the locker room though. Seeing your peers go from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows must make everyone mimic Goldberg and wonder, "Who's next?!".
10. Bart Gunn
Take it away, Bart!
Or, perhaps more accurately, get taken away...Bart. He was never meant to win the WWF's atrocious 'Brawl For All' shoot fighting tournament in 1998, but Gunn proved to be the hardest on the roster and had his hand raised in the end. Reportedly, Vince McMahon had hoped that gig would go to spent force 'Dr. Death' Steve Williams instead.
Rather than accepting the random lottery of their own ridiculous concept, the company punished Bart by feeding him to walking boxing glove Butterbean at WrestleMania XV. Bart was tough for sure, but that was a fight he was never winning; the promotion walked him into that brick wall themselves.
Post-knockout loss, Gunn was yesterday's news in a hurry. His career faded fast, and any hopes the guy might've had about parlaying 'Brawl For All' into a serious run at top stars like Steve Austin vanished overnight. McMahon ditched Bart as soon as humanly possible, and never looked back.