10 Wrestlers Who Never Should've Signed With WWE
6. Yoshi Tatsu
Like most of New Japan's native stars, Yoshi Tatsu was a graduate of the company's dojo - in fact, he was part of the 2002 class that included Tetsuya Naito and Shinsuke Nakamura. Then wrestling under his real name of Naofumi Yamamato, the young star spend the next few years picking up experience on the undercard, and even forming a tag team with future superstar Hiroshi Tanahashi.
In 2007, Yoshi Tatsu signed with WWE, debuting for Florida Championship Wrestling. He would move up to the main roster in 2009, and spend the next five years as an enhancement talent. His only major victory in WWE came in a dark match battle royal at WrestleMania 26.
In 2014, Tatsu - who hadn't scored a televised victory in two years - was released from the company. New Japan Pro Wrestling welcomed him back with open arms, but he was never going to be a major player - while the then-37-year-old had wasted his time in WWE, his contemporaries had become some of the best workers in the entire world. Tatsu was many steps behind them.
A neck injury in 2014 kept Tatsu out of action until this past spring, when he finally returned to New Japan's undercard.