8 Exact Moments WWE Fans Turned On Popular Wrestlers

5. Dolph Ziggler (Royal Rumble 2019)

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WWE

Or: exact moments fans decisively stop caring about popular wrestlers.

For years, one of the more well-worn narratives amongst the wrestling fandom was that Dolph Ziggler, in addition to being a seller worthy of Dragon's Den, was a grossly underutilised (if not underused) talent. If only WWE would show off The Showoff in a stratosphere more befitting his apparent abilities. He could be the industry's next star!

Or not.

By 2018, Ziggler's race had run. Brief flashes of direction had ultimately petered out into nothing, with a big retirement angle inspiring indifference rather than intrigue. When Dolph 'shocked' the world with a surprise reversal of his retreat at the close of Royal Rumble 2018, it marked barely a notch on the Richter scale.

After promising he'd miss the event for the first time in a decade due to his comedy commitments, Ziggler - once again fighting on the side of good - pulled the same gag. Except no huge babyface ovation met his unexpected and unscheduled appearance at number 28, but rather, complete disdain that he wasn't someone else. Besides booting Nia Jax in the mush, Dolph did nothing of note, and hasn't been seen since.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.