10 Times WWE Stars Were Scapegoats For Bad Booking

You all know the story by now.

In 1998, then-WWF head writer Vince Russo booked a shoot-fighting tournament called the "Brawl For All". According to Russo, he originally devised the tournament to try to punish Bradshaw, who would apparently boast that he could beat anybody backstage in a bar fight. The other reason for creating the tournament, however, was to act as a vehicle for legitimate tough-guy "Dr. Death" Steve Williams to enter a main event feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin over the WWF Championship.

Unfortunately, not only did the tournament result in multiple injuries to the wrestlers - it also didn't go the way they'd planned.

Williams didn't even get past the second round, suffering a KO loss to Bart Gunn following a hamstring injury. Though Gunn would go on to win the tournament, knocking out Bradshaw in the finals, officials weren't happy that their chosen guy lost.

So they punished him.

Seven months after the Brawl For All tournament ended, Gunn was booked against professional boxer Butterbean at WrestleMania XV. Needless to say, the plus-sized pugilist knocked Gunn out cold within seconds, prompting the WWF to release him from his contract, something I'm sure they'd liked to have done a lot sooner.

In short, Gunn was penalized for unexpectedly winning a series of non-worked fights that never should have been booked in the first place. Any questions?