10 REAL Reactions From WWE Wrestlers Being Punished On Air

9. Lita (Survivor Series 2006)

Goldust Cody
WWE.com

WWE.com went to the trouble of uploading a touching photo gallery of Lita's last day through the prism of her preparation as she got ready to say farewell to life as a full-timer at Survivor Series 2006. It's little wonder they didn't keep the camera rolling for the aftermath.

For anybody that ever feels the need to defend the company for some of the good things they might do, consider endless moments such as these as a solid counterargument.

Lita's exit carried power because of its proximity to Trish Stratus' own departure just months earlier. The pair had debuted within weeks of each other in 2000 and hauled the bare bones of a women's division forward in the six years that followed. Stratus retired as Champion with her dignity celebrated and firmly in tact. Lita looked at the lights and lost hers.

After putting over Mickie James, she was forced to remain in the ring and sell the pain of Cryme Tyme selling her underwear and sex toys to ringsiders and John Bradshaw Layfield. Her expressions were precisely as pantomime as the company's pathetic decision to punish her - she had to go big to hide her uncomfortable displeasure.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett