10 Wrestling Mysteries That Were Supposed To End Differently
5. Who Kidnapped Samoa Joe?
The unexpected end of an episode of TNA Impact in 2009 saw a despondent Samoa Joe leaving the arena after suffering a loss to Orlando Jordan. That’s enough to put anyone in a bad mood but it was about to get worse.
After being almost taken out by a speeding white van, the former TNA World Heavyweight Champion would be attacked by a bunch of hooded men. These so-called “ninjas” grabbed Joe, threw him in the back of their vehicle and sped off into the night - quite literally never to be seen again.
Speaking in a 2014 shoot interview, Joe said the mystery was the work of Vince Russo’s inability to write a storyline. The general concept was to have Joe go away and then return as a psychopath heel character. There wasn’t much thought put into who was behind the kidnapping or why and as the months span on, the idea of paying off the story became secondary to Impact’s need for top babyfaces.
With a clear hole in the roster, Joe was sent back out to get some cheers like nothing had happened.
In 2020 Samoa Joe referenced the story on WWE commentary, saying that “ninjas can really ruin a night” but hey, at least he got a pretty sweet three month vacation out of it when it happened to him.