10 Moments That Caused Huge Rifts Between Wrestlers

Social distancing.

Alexa Bliss Sasha Banks
WWE

The workplace is a breeding ground for animosity.

It can be a stressful, anxiety-inducing environment, unless you and Andy Murray scheme to gently tease Michael Hamflett by booking a match from his beloved NXT by walking towards one another while one of us holds up an imaginary belt and good God I miss The Boys so much please stay indoors so we can ascend from the depths of hell far quicker than is projected.

It can be bullsh*t. It's easy to take a disliking to somebody - or more specifically the stupid f*cking look on their face - if you happen to be in a bad mood when they do something wholly innocent.

Blood feuds are born when you send an email precisely because you require a written response to evidence something, and the complete prick fobs you off with a fast phone call designed to evade questioning and make that chaser email very awkward. People drop their unwashed spoons in the sink and it is such an arrogant gesture of superiority that you still resent the person you've fingered for the crime months into WFH.

Then you add the ego, politicking and violence of pro wrestling into the mix and the chances of a rift drastic go up...

10. Jon Moxley Buries WWE; Seth Rollins Fires Back

Alexa Bliss Sasha Banks
WWE.com

On Talk Is Jericho, and in a podcast with Wade Keller of PWTorch, Jon Moxley incinerated the WWE bridge which, if it were an angle penned by Vince McMahon, would have been lit with a comically over-sized match slung over his shoulder.

Moxley in a multi-hour outburst cathartic for himself and jaded, insulted fans alike excoriated WWE for its directionless, over-produced booking undermined to parody by an insistence on abysmal comedy. That Moxley is such a private individual only legitimised his argument.

In response, former Shield stablemate Seth Rollins uploaded video testimonials to YouTube and Facebook voicing his support, emailed his friends and family stating why he is a WWE fan, befriended WWE on Facebook, made "I'm Standing Up for WWE" his Facebook status, wrote a letter to the editor of his local newspaper, shared his favourite WWE stories on Twitter and Facebook, read a story that was unfair to WWE and emailed the reporter, created "I Stand Up For WWE" signs and t-shirts for live events and forwarded Stand Up For WWE videos to his friends.

Rollins mid-meltdown claimed it was very presumptuous (sic) of Moxley to bury the company, and accused him of taking his ball and going home...

...to the G1 Climax tournament, in which Tomohiro Ishii headbutted his soul from his body, which doesn't sound much like quitting.

Moxley in response to that, when cutting a fabulous post-match NJPW presser made pointed references to a "Universe", and the people inside it - who know who they are - that can go to hell.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!