17 Wrestlers Who Took Forever To Get To WrestleMania (and Why)
12. Duke "The Dumpster" Droese
Unlike most wrestlers on this list, the surprising thing about Duke Droese isn’t that he took nearly seven years to reach Wrestlemania, but that he made it to Wrestlemania at all. Given that during his first run with the company from 1994 to 1996, Duke only wrestled three matches on pay-per-view (two of which were 30-man Royal Rumbles), it’s no surprise that he missed Manias 11-16, but given that he was a wrestling garbage man, it’s a wonder how The Dumpster ever wound up at the Showcase of the Immortals.
The answer: the Gimmick Battle Royal. For Wrestlemania 17, a much edgier WWF decided to celebrate some of the most outlandish gimmicks of its campier past and rounded up 19 of its old-timers. Making it to the big stage wasn’t just a matter of dumb luck for Droese, however, as Duke had created the dustbin man gimmick himself. It might have led to a rubbish career in the 90s, but it did earn him a Wrestlemania pay day and a moment in the spotlight.