10 Wrestlers Who Never Recovered From Their WWE Release
7. Rikishi
In his heyday, Rikishi was one of WWE’s more entertaining upper-midcard acts. His portly (and that’s being kind) appearance belied his surprising agility and nimbleness, and while the dancing gimmick sounds corny in 2016, it was a huge hit with Attitude Era crowds, and Rikishi & Too Cool were massively over in their prime.
Things took a downturn when Rikishi was laughably revealed as the man who ran over Stone Cold Steve Austin at Survivor Series ‘99. His heel turn failed to connect with the crowd, and while Rikishi would later turn face again, it was clear that his popularity had long since peaked. Rikishi was released by WWE in 2004 after repeated requests from WWE to lose weight, and he headed to the independent circuit.
Unfortunately, Rikishi’s WWE reputation didn’t earn him the appearances he thought they would. He made brief appearances for All Japan Pro Wrestling and Mexico’s AAA, but nothing stuck, and his 2007 TNA run barely lasted two months before Rikishi fell-out with TNA management over a pay rise. Rikishi once again fell into the wrestling abyss, and while he’s made a handful of brief WWE appearances in recent years, his career took a massive nosedive after his WWE release, and he never recovered.