10 Wrestlers Who Never Should've Signed With WWE

1. Mistico

DDP wwe
WWE.com

In the mid-2000s, Mistico wasn't just the biggest star in Mexican wrestling - he was the biggest draw in the wrestling world. He became the hottest thing in lucha libre in a generation, making him less like a Mexican equivalent to John Cena and more like The Rock or Steve Austin.

In 2011, with WWE having become more popular in Mexico, Mistico signed with the sports-entertainment giant. Renamed "Sin Cara," he skipped over development and went straight to the main roster. Unfortunately, it was an immediate mismatch. Mistico rubbed people the wrong way by refusing to learn English and "carrying himself like a star" (he was one), while WWE management tried to change an in-ring style that had made him popular. Before long, he was failing drug tests and getting hurt, and it looked like both sides regretted their decisions.

In 2014, Mistico left WWE and headed back to Mexico, but the damage had been done. Despite the fact that there was some fanfare surrounding his debut in Triple A, fans already saw their top star flop on a worldwide stage, and not only did it hurt him, but it hurt Mexico's native wrestling scene altogether. Though Mistico has since returned to CMLL, where he first became a star, he's only got a sliver of his former popularity.

Contributor
Contributor

Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried. *Best Crowd of the Year, 2013