10 Wrestlers Who Got Much Worse (But WAY More Over)

2. The Outsiders

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It’s often said, accurately, that Kevin Nash and Scott Hall stopped giving a toss about their in-ring work when they turned up in WCW. 

The sheer extent to which this is true remains astonishing. It never goes mentioned, since the world changed forever during the post-match angle, but the main event of Bash At The Beach 1996, between Kevin Nash and Scott Hall and Lex Luger and Sting and Randy Savage, was pretty loud without being too exciting. It went 16:00 - around 12:00 of which was an abdominal stretch. 

Hall was awesome as Razor Ramon. The way he lunged into his explosive lariat was incredible. In WCW, he wasn’t as dynamic. Nash was great as a hoss, provided he was working the right opponent; in WCW, there was nobody as good nor as motivated as Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart. 

They were never more over across 1996 and 1997. That they were detached and smug worked in the context of their above-it-all disruptors act, in a way. They were cool enough as it is. Too cool. Perhaps they thought that a series of blinding in-ring performances would make the concept of WCW as the babyface promotion that bit more untenable. 

Or, they simply didn’t give a toss!

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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!