10 Embarrassing WWE Debuts You’ve Totally Forgotten About

by Jamie Kennedy

1. Edge (22 June 1998 - Raw)

Edge Debut
WWE

Weren't expecting this guy to be here, were you?

It's true. Back on the 22 June 1998 edition of Raw Is War, future great and comeback king Edge had quite the stinker during his full, in-person TV debut. During a flip dive to the outside, Edge's boot caught opponent José Estrada Jr right on the head, and led to painful pinched nerves in the Puerto Rican's neck.

The situation was a distressing one for all parties involved. Once it became clear that Estrada was out the game and unable to continue, the referee counted him out and raised a miffed Edge's hand high into the air. The Canadian was not thrilled, but also realised the seriousness of Estrada's plight. At the same time, he was probably worried about the backlash a WWF newbie would get for injuring one of the roster.

The ending wasn't popular with the live crowd either. Edge had been booked to hit Estrada with his new 'Downward Spiral' finisher and then roar like the "tormented soul" (Jerry Lawler's words) he was as the camera zoomed in on his moody expressions.

This future 'Rated-R Superstar' wasn't off to a hot start.

What other embarrassing WWE debuts can you think of? For more like this, check out 10 Secret Conversations That Changed Wrestling History Forever and 10 WWE Moves That NEVER Win Matches!

Advertisement

Watch Next


In this post: 
Fandango
 
First Posted On: 
Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.