15 MORE Failed Experiments From WWE Developmental

4. Hugo Knox

The Revival The Mechanics
WWE

The weather was at least an improvement for Stuart Tomlinson when he made the move from the UK to Orlando, Florida to follow his WWE dreams in 2013.

Tomlinson had played in goal for Crewe Alexandra, Burton Albion, Barrow, Port Vale and Altrincham and with it built enough size along the way to look like he belonged amongst the best and brightest at the Performance Center.  After a year of getting to grips with the career change, he made it into the ring after a year and notched up an impressive 62 matches before ultimately getting released in 2016.

He'd struggled to connect with audiences in that time, despite briefly sneaking onto television for a loss to The Vaudvillains alongside Tucker Knight. Less of a failed experiment and more noble failure, "Hugo Knox" was a nothing-or-something gimmick name that suited neither him nor the NXT heart-on-sleeve style of the time. 

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 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. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, 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