10 Wrestlers Who Eventually Rewarded Fans For Sticking With Them

4. Drew McIntyre

Drew McIntyre
WWE

For those who've continued to back Drew McIntyre over the years, there was nothing better than seeing the one-time Chosen One climb to the top of the mountain and topple Brock Lesnar to become the WWE Champion at this year's WrestleMania 36.

Few stars have had as rocky a road to success as the Scottish Psychopath.

After being touted as one of WWE's next big stars, McIntyre found himself dropping down the card and becoming a comedy jobber before being released by the company in 2014. From there, the one-time Intercontinental Champion found himself working the independent scene as he looked to find his true identity.

That soul searching took in Insane Championship Wrestling, TNA, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, EVOLVE, and more as Drew reinvented himself and worked towards making himself a must-see part of the wrestling business. A WWE return happened in 2017 under the NXT banner, and McIntyre has spent the subsequent three years doing his utmost to prove why WWE decision makers were so high on him a decade prior.

To see Drew McIntyre live up to the WWE hype thrown his way back in 2009 was phenomenal for the fans who have forever been championing that, yes, Drew really is the Chosen One.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.