10 Terrible WWE Gimmicks That Were One Tweak Away From Perfection

6. Ted Dibiase (1994 - 1996)

Marc Mero
WWE.com

So few folk were watching WWE in the mid-1990s that it was easy to miss Ted Dibiase even retiring from in-ring action in WWE during the brief gap between his transition from full-time wrestler to retired manager/commentator. It's perhaps because of this that he never really quite felt like the loaded stable boss his Corporation so desperately needed.

For all the money he supposedly had at his disposal, Dibiase's hires were never all that successful, nor did he particularly hold many of them to account for multiple drab losses in the years he ran the group. Of all the dorks and losers linked to the team, only Bam Bam Bigelow paid the penalty for a heavy defeat, but in at least making the WrestleMania main event in 1995 he bettered the efforts of his colleagues. His firing resulted in the closest he ever came to a proper run atop the company.

Years later, Vince (and to a lesser extent Shane) McMahon fit this identical role to perfection. Obnoxiously rich folk paying goons to do their bidding, the bosses had believable clout Dibiase lacked despite all his years as the roster's richest wrestler. A bizarre case of what could have been, Dibiase's lack of an eye for talent undermined everything the company were trying to achieve with the gimmick.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 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 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, 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