10 Wrestlers WWE Realised Weren't 'The Man'

2. The Ultimate Warrior

Ultimate Warrior WWE champion
WWE

By 1990, having mined the money pit that was 'Hulkamania' for over half a decade, Vince decided to try something different and see if he could make another marketable box office smash. At WrestleMania VI, The Ultimate Warrior was handpicked as Hulk Hogan's successor. He was the guy who was supposed to lead wrestling through the '90s.

What McMahon quickly found out was that Warrior wasn't Hulk. Sure, he had legions of followers and had become a popular star, but his in-ring work was even more limited than Hogan's and business was hardly red hot with him on top. By the time 1991 rolled around, McMahon was already reverting to type and booking Hulk as 'Mania's focal point again.

Warrior wasn't 'The Man'.

Generally, according to the likes of Bret Hart and Ted DiBiase over the years, the roster didn't rally behind Warrior's cause like they had with Hulk. He wasn't a champ they were proud of, and few enjoyed working with him. The whole thing was a failed experiment.

Advertisement
In this post: 
Becky Lynch
 
Posted On: 
Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.