Test never lived up to the expectations that WWE seemed to have for him despite having a lot of things going his way. He was athletic, good looking and big, three traits that Vince McMahon looks for in his talent. The company appeared to slowly be getting behind him in The Attitude Era by involving him in a major storyline with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. In the angle, Hunter ended up stealing Test's fiancee, and instead of getting revenge, he never got a big match out of it. That was basically the peak of his career, and he spent the rest of his time in forgettable tag-teams and stables like T & A, The Alliance and The UnAmericans. A couple years after his departure, Test returned to the new version of ECW. He looked a bit scary, and not in a good way. While Test was always muscular, this was just ridiculous. It was a clear warning sign to everyone except for those in management that he hadnt gained that bulk naturally. That didnt matter, as he was soon pushed to the top of ECW and feuded with champion Bobby Lashley. While Test had the appearance of a star (for McMahon's criteria), he never developed the wrestling ability or the promo skills to justify his spot. After failing a wellness policy test, and becoming increasingly frustrated with the company, Test left WWE again. It would be his final run with them as he passed away in 2007.
As Rust Cohle from True Detective said "Life's barely long enough to get good at one thing. So be careful what you're good at."
Sadly, I can't solve a murder like Rust...or change a tire, or even tie a tie. But I do know all the lyrics to Hulk Hogan's "Real American" theme song and can easily name every Natural Born Thriller from the dying days of WCW. I was once ranked 21st in the United States in Tetris...on the Playstation 3 version...for about a week.
Follow along @AndrewSoucek and check out my podcast at wrestlingwithfriends.com
