10 Wrestlers Who Didn't Turn Up For WrestleMania

4. Scott Hall - WrestleMania 18

Paul Heyman Brock Lesnar
WWE.com

One half of one of WrestleMania's greatest ever matches at 1994's WrestleMania X, the former Razor Ramon experienced a culture shock upon his return to the WWF in 2002.

He coasted in WCW - his contract stipulated that he was guaranteed massive wealth and creative control, irrespective of performance level. He literally did not have to try - and that, combined with personal demons, rendered him a shell of the performer he was in the mid nineties.

Steve Austin famously turned down the chance to face Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania X8. Though it was a prescient choice - Austin's fears of sabotage were made a reality, but at The Rock's expense - he can't have been too thrilled at his consolation prize. The dose of poison with which Vince McMahon injected the WWF wasn't lethal - but it was sufficiently powerful to put fans into a coma. Hall, still in WCW mode, could not or would not acclimatise to the frenetic and fast-paced WWF Attitude Era environment. Austin, it must be said, shouldered the blame. He took his demotion to the midcard literally, refusing to showcase the main event aura he'd generated to reach superstardom.

Hall attempted to overcompensate, by making even The Rock's Stunner bump look tame, but it did not erase the memory of a halfhearted performance.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!