10 WWE Rejects Immediately Pushed By TNA Impact Wrestling

8. Test

Raven TNA
ImpactWrestling.com

Andrew 'Test' Martin died in March 2009 following an accidental overdose of oxycodene, with doctors revealing he was also suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the symptoms of which were evident when Chris Benoit's brain was examined and those that also forced the early retirement of Daniel Bryan in 2016.

Unfortunately, Test had become one of the bywords for drug-related wrestler deaths due to his ginormous and chemically-enhanced physique. His ring name was allegedly either a derivative of 'Testosterone' or in reference to an actual steroid 'Test', depending on the backstage hubbub of the day.

His last spell with the organisation was almost entirely predicated on his size, with his role as a heel killer for Paul Heyman in the flailing ECW relaunch going against just about everything the last remaining fans of that brand wanted.

Saddled with a wellness policy violation in early 2007 (long before that was a regular occurrence) and released shortly after, he sat out his no-compete clause then turned up in TNA as Andrew 'Punisher' Martin to save Abyss and Sting from an attack by Christian, AJ Styles and Tomko.

He'd wrestle only one official match for the company, co-main eventing Hard Justice 2007 in an absurd 'Doomsday Chamber of Blood' scrap with the 'Christian Coalition', before ironically losing his spot with the company whilst focus was on hiding 'big' performers in the wake of the Benoit double-murder/suicide.

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Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett