7 Times WWE Tried To Unbury Someone (& Failed!)

5. Apollo Crews

Amidst some major, major names parting ways with WWE in 2026, Apollo Crews' departure didn't generate a lot of discourse.

The former Intercontinental Champion had spent the bulk of a decade on the main roster examining the finer details of catering rather than making a mark between the ropes, and when the likes of The New Day, The Wyatt Six and Kairi Sane were all amongst those leaving, his name was deemed a little more digestible or - to be careful with the wording here - understandable.

The wrestling business doesn't ever favour wrestlers. They can do everything right, only to find out that "right" is wrong now, or at very least isn't quite what it used to be. They can do the everything right the new way, only to find themselves short on good booking or interesting creative that makes the most of their gains. The job is to "stay ready" (or insert your own hustle culture cliche here) for the opportunity, but that's incredibly difficult when the terms of readiness are themselves unclear.

This is the long way of saying that Crews never really got much support from those above him, but the one time he did, it was hard to come back from. A controversial 2021 rebranding as Nigerian Royalty led him to WrestleMania and a secondary title win over Big E, but the death of the act was effectively the death of his chances on the main roster. His bizarre NXT retooling as a man with the ability to see through time (!) completely overshadowed any casting of him as the experienced veteran amongst new developmental hands, and he found himself lapped by those he was expected to comfortably defeat.