10 WWE Rejects Immediately Pushed By TNA Impact Wrestling
7. Elijah Burke
At one point, it actually appeared as though TNA were about to prove WWE's decision to release Elijah Burke from his contract to be a huge mistake. However, despite most WWE refugees getting a glowing welcome from the Orlando outfit, it could be argued that Burke wasn't elevated enough in his maiden run with the company as D'Angelo Dinero.
Nicknamed 'The Pope', Dinero had briefly honed the character in dark matches with WWE before being released in late-2008 after a p*ss-poor two year run on third brand ECW.
Gift-wrapped for TNA after a short spell on the independent scene, he was an immediate hit in the Impact Zone, and even took headline spots on the group's rare house show loops and UK tours such was his overwhelming babyface popularity.
Unfortunately, he got over at just the wrong time. Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff's January 2010 arrival cynically triggered something of a hard reset for the TNA roster, with cornerstones such as Dinero, Beer Money and Desmond Wolfe (Nigel McGuinness) all cruelly lost in the shuffle.
As if to make good on his sudden de-push, TNA gave 'The Pope' a token World Title shot against AJ Styles. With the crowd red hot for his coronation, the company instead booked him to lose after Styles stole a pen from a ringside cameraman and stabbed him in the face with it. His character never truly recovered.