10 Times Wrestlers Cried And Made Everybody Feel Really Awkward

4. Roman Reigns (Survivor Series 2015)

vince mcmahon crying
WWE

Whether the company even consider it an actual problem anymore is another discussion entirely, but WWE's reckless booking of Roman Reigns following The Shield's split ensured that 'The Guy' would never be the universally beloved top babyface.

After completely blowing his first singles push for the title to such a degree that his Royal Rumble 2015 victory was utterly despised and his WrestleMania deconstruction by Brock Lesnar was greeted with roaring support, his first title win and loss at the conclusion 2015's Survivor Series mini-tournament for Seth Rollins' vacated championship.

Scoring the win over his friend Dean Ambrose, he then succumbed to Sheamus cashing in his Money In The Bank contract just over five minutes later after shunning Triple H's endorsement as confetti rained down.

Flat on the canvas surrounded by the multi-coloured decorations and good-humoured derision from the capacity crowd, the direction for Roman to tearfully stare into the wilderness was yet another rotten decision.

His first ever title win had been obnoxiously punctuated, but he could only share the expression of a sad puppy rather than an enraged 'Big Dog'. His tears were yet another misfire, only highlighting the disconnect between the creative team and a large section of WWE's support.

Contributor
Contributor

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