10 Wrestlers Who Stopped Trying (But WWE Pushed Anyway)

6. Triple H - 2003

No Try Zone
WWE Network

This was particularly egregious.

Triple H wasn’t merely the main event focal point of WWE’s flagship brand, hardly as a result of his performance level; he was on course to run the whole damn show, and used this newfound power to put himself over again, and again, and again, and again.

This was an ego-fuelled tribute to his hero Ric Flair.

He wore the suits; he wore the shades; he dominated the World(’s) Heavyweight Championship to an extent that, by design, he became synonymous with it. He was The Man - only, Marc Flair couldn’t wrestle a ***** match with any opponent. Or cut amazing promos you felt charismatic just by watching. Or womanise, because that, ironically, wouldn’t allow him to be Ric Flair.

He presented himself as the greatest wrestler on the planet at the nadir of his in-ring career. This level of gall was not effective heel heat. His matches were lethargic as hell, and since he didn’t wrestle any match beyond a typical Trips affair, there was no difference to anything we’d seen from him before - only a drastically reduced level of quality.

It’s never the emerging midcard acts, is it?

Contributor
Contributor

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!