10 ECW Flops In WWE That Should Have Been Huge
3. The Sandman
Perhaps The Sandman and WWE was a marriage doomed to fail from the start. The beer-swigging, Singapore cane-swinging brawler was the physical embodiment of ECW’s heart and soul, but the antithesis of Vince McMahon’s squeaky clean entertainment organisation. Nonetheless, he should have been a vital link to the past when ECW was revived as a WWE brand in 2006, but much like the show itself, Sandman didn't work out.
Sandman’s trademark ring entrance was a huge part of his act, but WWE took that away from him. He was soon forbidden from drinking beer too, as that would’ve stepped on Steve Austin’s toes, and WWE’s watered down idea of “hardcore” neutralised him as a competitor. With all that stripped away, Sandman was no more than a broken down extremist with nothing to make him stand out, and while he lasted until 2007, he accomplished little of note.
His situation is very similar to Sabu’s, in that he was almost the polar opposite of a typical WWE Superstar, but could’ve retained his cult-like popularity had the company not gutted his act. Much like the ECW revival itself, Sandman’s run was a flop, and only good for a handful of nostalgia pops.