10 Times WWE's Smackdown Brand Got Shafted
7. Muhammad Hassan Gets Kicked Out (2005)
Hassan debuted in the fall of 2004 with an interesting character: an Arab-American who was tired of being discriminated against by knee-jerk civilians that equated him with terrorism based on colour of skin.
That's certainly more intriguing than another kick at the stereotypical Iron Sheik routine, but before long, that's exactly what Hassan would be playing: another broad stereotype designed to evoke hate for his garden-variety anti-American views.
Things took a turn for the ghoulish when Hassan's character authorised a group of ski-masked militants to bludgeon and strangle Undertaker, as though they were a terror cell. That the incident aired the same day as a deadly attack on London's mass transit system made the senseless Smackdown skit come off even worse.
Hassan, who was drafted into Smackdown the previous month from Raw, was supposed to be a main event player on the show. Instead, the UPN Network barred him from appearing ever again, as though it was his fault.