8. Working Eddie Guerrero Into The Ground (And Then Demoting Him)
Eddie Guerrero admitted in his autobiography that he was ready to win the WWE Title but he wasn't ready for what holding the title meant. Did he have the talent of a main eventer? Absolutely. Did he have the temperament to deal with declining attendances and ratings and the insanely busy World Title schedule? Evidently not. Latino Heat could not handle the pressure, true, but WWE didn't help matters by working his kanckered body into the ground and then, when his title run didn't work out, demoting him. There were many instances of Eddie snapping throughout the year (such as the time he turned himself heel before a house show match in Germany when he was rustled by a small ground of hecklers), due to the physical and mental toll being 'the man' was having on him. Eddie lost the WWE Title to JBL at The Great American Bash, ending his reign after a disappointing five months. The fiery Latino Heat was actually relieved when they took the belt off him. He had a rematch for the title on Smackdown but, after that, he slowly began moving down the card. By Autumn, he was booked in lower card matches against the hopeless musclehead duo of Mark Jindrak and Luther Reigns. Even though WWE might have felt they were doing it for his own good, to ease the pressure he was feeling, it was a mistake for them to so blatantly demote him like that. It took him a while to get his swagger back to the point where he felt he could headline as champion once more. By that point, it was already too late.