10 Wrestlers Promoters Were Afraid Of

In the latter half of his career, Jake Roberts, in spite of the fact he was once one of the business' most compelling draws, became as venomous to promoters as the snakes he wrapped around his neck.

He already had a fractious streak in him - Jake demanded WWE release him in 1992 with an ultimatum that he'd no-show otherwise - and this only worsened as his personal problems began to mount. A post-WCW run as Smoky Mountain Wrestling's top guy threatened to tank the company when he failed to arrive for a string of defences. His hiatus and subsequent Christian reawakening proved a false dawn; no sooner was Jake back on the independent scene than he was back off the wagon, infamously bringing the Heroes of Wrestling special into complete disrepute with his drunken antics.

After that high profile incident, no booker would dare hire Jake; the potential for disaster was just too great. Though he's seen a dramatic if occasionally faltering turnaround in his life since, largely in part thanks to the intervention of DDP, Roberts is still handled with care. Upon signing with AEW last year, Dave Meltzer mused that ultimately the promotion would regret it - as every other one in the last thirty years has.