50 Worst Wrestling Moments Of The 2020s (So Far)

38. Karrion Kross Debuts On The Main Roster

Karrion Kross WWE Raw
WWE.com

Karrion Kross is enjoying a cracking 2025…in backstage segments, in his funny guise as a puppetmaster character, before the bell rings. He’s mischievous and somewhat menacing.

He didn’t enjoy his main roster run in 2021.

He did well in NXT…in kayfabe. The matches weren’t dynamic in the least, when he wasn’t working Tommaso Ciampa, but he was at least presented as an invincible force with a heavy metal aesthetic and entrance. Triple H’s large adult son was quickly awarded with the NXT championship.

Now, the cast of NXT rarely fared well on the main roster, what with Vince McMahon being drastically unfit to do his job, but Karrion Kross at least had Vince’s coveted size. He was bound to do okay eventually.

Nope.

Firstly, the guy born to win a squash match on his WWE debut did a job to Jeff Hardy within minutes, stigmatised instantly as a literal loser. This was impossible to receive as anything less than a firm instruction to Paul Levesque: your guys are bad, and if that weren’t true, why is AEW kicking your ass?

Kross was then paraded to the ring in a gimp mask, just in case the first burial was too subtle.

Awful and mean-spirited fiction, yes, but a fascinating insight into WWE’s political landscape.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!