10 Wrestlers Who Did Their Best Work In TNA/IMPACT

Derrick Bateman looked like he had at least a little potential on NXT. Brought in as Daniel Bryan's rookie for season 4 of the old gameshow format, Bateman's promos were funny and well-delivered. Unimpressed, WWE left him in the unending purgatory of NXT: Redemption before letting him go.

With a sharp new haircut, Bateman arrived on IMPACT as Ethan Carter III, Dixie Carter's insufferable nephew. The gimmick had people rolling their eyes initially. Dixie Carter's presence on screen as a heel authority figure had bombed hard and EC3 was feared to be merely an extension of her angle.

Instead, he cut the finest promos of his career, had a genuinely great blood feud with Rockstar Spud of all people and went on a heat-building unbeaten streak. EC3 managed to strike a chord with the often deflated IMPACT crowds, drawing genuine hatred for his spoilt brat antics. Assuming the mantle of top heel quicker than anyone in the promotion's history, EC3 became the show's must-see star for several years.

The high anticipation surrounding his WWE return was matched only by its eventual disappointment. Eating pin-falls left, right and centre in the NXT midcard, EC3 wasn't even granted the chance to speak when he moved to the main roster. The Top One Percent wound up getting totally jabronified by WWE and has sadly failed to live up to his original IMPACT run in the years since.