7 Wrestlers The IWC Has Turned On In 2016
Wrestling fans can be brutally fickle.
Wrestling promoters are notoriously fickle. You can be the talk of the town one day, only to make one wrong step and immediately find yourself at the back of the queue as the latest shiny toy takes all the affection of the man with the pen. Today's Kevin Owens can quite easily become tomorrow's Zack Ryder.
If you think promoters and writers are fickle, then hot diggity, hardcore wrestling fans are an entirely different kettle of fish. We live in a world where being seen to like something is arguably more important than legitimately liking things, where 'guilty pleasure' is a widely accepted term, and where people's preferences change depending on whether others consider it acceptable or not.
Generally known as the IWC (Internet Wrestling Community), hardcore fans tend to be more hot potato than most when it comes to flavours of the week. Back in 2003/04, a green but charismatic rapper was the hottest thing going. Just three years back, everyone and their dog was crowing about a sexy Samoan prince becoming a huge star. Christ, even Zack Ryder was a thing.
2016 has seen WWE enter what it constantly refers to as a 'New Era'. With the extra exposure afforded to individuals, the penny has dropped for many, and the tide has turned against a number of former internet darlings.
Here are 7 stars (well, technically 9) the IWC has turned on this year.