10 Wrestlers Who Could Have Been Franchise Players For WWE

Roddy Piper is rightly remembered as one of the all-time great heels, but he had a perfect babyface turn in 1986.

He was the biggest villain in the business at the time, but Piper’s performances were so strong that he was soon attracting cheers from the crowd. Roddy was an edgy alternative to fans who’d grown sick of Hulkamania’s inherent cheesiness, and his turn started when Roddy took a hiatus from his interview show, Piper’s Pit.

Adrian Adonis stepped into the beach. He didn’t just take the timeslot and concept, but also Piper’s bodyguard (Ace Orton), and when Piper returned a few months later, he was disgusted by what had become of his segment. Rowdy confronted Adonis & co. who beat the tar out of him, but Piper wasn’t deterred: he returned with crutches and a baseball bat later than evening, declaring war on Adonis.

The angle culminated in a huge WrestleMania grudge match, but it was impossible for Piper to become WWE’s franchise player with Hulk Hogan around. As successful as he was, Piper was never WWE’s poster boy, and he’s widely regarded as one of the best wrestlers to never become WWE Champion.

Piper’s unpredictability and dangerous edge made him the antithesis to Hogan’s squeaky clean showmanship. He lives on as one of the most influential characters in wrestling history, but things could’ve been oh so different had Hogan relinquished his status as the company’s franchise player.