Wrestling’s 10 Biggest Missed Opportunities Of 2023
Lost dream matches, lacklustre debuts, and other fumbled 2023 opportunities in wrestling.
A whole lot of epic moments, matches, and events have already established 2023 as one of the very best years in modern wrestling history.
But for every staggering arrival of a new star or mouth-watering clash that unquestionably delivered, there have unfortunately been a number of other chances to create something special this year that didn't quite go to plan.
And the most frustrating part of it all? Pretty much every entry to come could have been saved or fixed with some fairly simple tweaks or decisions.
In the end, though, due to everything from just wanting to head in a different direction creatively, to various wrestlers refusing to get along, these potentially majestic occurrences will forever be remembered, sadly, as the ones that got away.
There's a solid chance a number of other bouts, debuts, or angles could be added to this very list before 2023 reaches its end, too. For now, though, it's time to take a closer look at the wrestling moments that could have been sensational this year, but were ultimately fumbled or ignored by the folks in charge.
10. The Outcasts' Lacklustre Implosion
Managing to successfully transition the recently arriving Saraya into a heel leader figure, whilst simultaneously giving the evidently talented Toni Storm and Ruby Soho something a bit more interesting to do, the formation of The Outcasts seemed like a shrewd AEW move back in March.
And while the team's never-ending war with Britt Baker and the "home-grown" All Elite stars was somewhat hit-and-miss, it did at least keep the villainous unit busy in the lead-up to an inevitable implosion.
Said dramatic break-up appeared to have gone down on the night of the monumental All In PPV, with the soon-to-be "timeless" Toni accidentally decking Saraya's mother before the Brit lifted the AEW Women's World Championship.
Only... it wasn't.
Instead, Storm stopped by at All Out a week later to oddly cost Soho her TBS title match against Kris Statlander by nicking her spray can and chuckling to herself, with even the commentary team not being entirely sure if this bizarre and anti-climactic moment was the official end of the squad.
The faction finally went their separate ways proper after Saraya eventually overcame the increasingly over Storm at Grand Slam. But by that point, folks didn't care all that much about Storm colliding with her former mates and were more interested in who she would be chucking her shoe at next.
What should have been the thrilling destination for these three engaging characters instead became a pretty disappointing separation, with none of the women involved really being elevated by the long-awaited Outcast collapse.