10 Plain Wrong Wrestling Myths Perpetuated By The IWC

1. Zack Ryder Deserved A Push

John Cena Kevin Owens money in the bank slam
WWE

Zack Ryder is an enterprising talent, one who undoubtedly has been treated unreasonably throughout his WWE career.

But he's bang average between the ropes. Yes, he has a decent arsenal - his dropkick in particular is a thing of beauty - but it rarely amounts to a memorable whole. His selling is a little overwrought - even in the jobber role. He lives down to his reputation.

His acting during the painful Eva Torres angle was dreadful. Cena's was, too, admittedly. The writing was so trite that nobody escaped from the ordeal fully intact, but that was WWE back then. They demanded their talents extract diamonds from coal. Daniel Bryan and Alex Riley emerged from far worse treatment on the original NXT - Ryder on the other hand helped cast himself as a jabroni.

He got himself over with live crowds following his Iced Z! True Long Island Story web series, but his in-ring game simply didn't have the same level of invention.

Ryder is a more effective symbol of WWE's harebrained pushing policy than an example of it. He's not even the best Jersey Shore imitator in wrestling - that honour goes to Robbie E.

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 current Undisputed WWE 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!