10 Wrestlers WWE Failed In 2022

3. Lacey Evans

Sasha Banks Failed
WWE

Whether or not Lacey Evans can become a true top tier player in the WWE women's division is up for debate, but man, WWE did the Sassy Southern Belle no favours upon her return to action in April 2022.

Having been off WWE TV for over a year due to pregnancy and the subsequent birth of her second child, big things were expected of Lacey. One has to remember, prior to her time away from the company, there was talk that Evans was to dethrone Asuka at the 2021 Elimination Chamber pay-per-view to become the Raw Women's Champion and then feud with Charlotte Flair for that title.

As part of Lacey's return, WWE leaned into the star's very real, very emotional past, airing several vignettes where the former Marine openly discussed her troubled upbringing. That upbringing involved parental drug and alcohol addiction, homelessness, legal issues, and the death of Evans' father. To detail that, and to then detail the Georgia native's time serving in the Marines, was extremely heavy stuff for WWE - and it really gave fans a connection to Lacey Evans and what she'd been through.

So, after weeks of making Lacey the ultimate babyface who had overcome such staggering odds, WWE switched her from SmackDown to Raw and made her a villain. If that wasn't head-scratching enough, the talent was moved back to Smackers just a few weeks later, was quickly positioned as a babyface, then turned heel again and started to berate the fans.

For WWE to have the the 32-year-old show such strength and make herself so vulnerable by putting her real life front-and-centre for an international TV audience, it's disappointing and disrespectful to then use Lacey as the company did after her return to action.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.