15 Great Wrestlers Who Had Very Brief WWE Careers
8. "Dr Death" Steve Williams
Much like Dan Severn, Steve Williams was a legitimate tough guy and a great worker, having earned his reputation in the NWA and All Japan Pro Wrestling. Between 1987 and 1997 he claimed to have never been pinned in the United States, a streak which eventually concluded after he lost an ECW Championship match to Raven.
Williams had been signed by the WWE specifically to win the Brawl For All tournament, a competition of unscripted fights. Due to his credentials, he was perceived as the favourite to win the whole thing, except he didn't.
During a semi-final match with Bart Gunn, Williams tore his hamstring and was knocked out by his opponent. This sidelined him for months and ruined any legend that surrounded him. If you believe rumours, Williams was being groomed as a contender for the WWE Championship and would have worked a feud with Steve Austin but that was scrapped following his embarrassing loss to Gunn.
Upon his return in 1999, Williams was managed by Jim Ross but he was released shortly afterward. Due to how badly his WWE run had gone, there was said to be bad blood between Williams and Ross, who were real-life friends.
Williams tragically passed away in 2009 after a long battle with throat cancer.