10 Great Wrestlers That Suffered Burials

When Davey Boy Smith Jr. joined NJPW back in 2012, the sky seemed the limit for the son of the British Bulldog. Over the next two years, he picked up clean singles wins over the likes of Hiroshi Tanahashi, Shinsuke Nakamura and Katsuyori Shibata as well as dominating the heavyweight tag division with Killer Elite Squad partner Lance Archer.

A menacing big man and key member of the popular Suzuki-gun stable, Smith had come a long way since his disappointing run in WWE. After a stay in Pro Wrestling NOAH with the rest of his Suzuki-gun allies, Smith returned to NJPW in 2017.

This time around however, it appeared NJPW had lost the interest they once held in him. Beyond some brief tag title reigns with Lance Archer, Smith was denied entry into the G1 Climax and did little in singles beyond first round losses to comedy favourite Toru Yano at the 2018 and 2019 New Japan Cups.

With fewer and fewer tour dates and next to no storylines or match-ups to sink his teeth into, a frustrated Smith left the promotion last year. Given how well received tag partner Lance Archer’s solo run in 2019 was, it’s especially frustrating that Smith was kept so low on the totem pole during his final years with the promotion.