8 Legitimate Reasons Dean Ambrose Has To Be Unhappy With WWE
5. Failed WWE Championship Run
The Great Dean Ambrose Rebuild commenced in summer 2016, with 'The Lunatic Fringe' winning that year's Money In The Bank briefcase, then cashing in on new WWE Champion Seth Rollins that very same night.
Though the moment came several years too late, it was a cathartic release that bred great hope for the popular Ambrose. This was only amplified when he beat Rollins and Roman Reigns in a riveting Battleground Triple Threat, taking WWE's top title to SmackDown following the 2016 Draft, and seemingly establishing himself as a brand leader in the company's new era.
It didn't work out that way. WWE would undermine Ambrose first by going second in the Draft (who doesn't pick their "top champion" first?!), then presenting a lack of credible challengers on SmackDown. The Dolph Ziggler feud saw him turn into a weird pseudo-heel at a time when fans were desperate for him to ascend as a top babyface. Then, unfortunately, Dean would harm his own standing in the company during that infamous, jittery appearance on the Stone Cold podcast, which remains an awkward watch in 2019.
While it's great that Ambrose had a run with the belt, his was hardly flattering. Perhaps he wouldn't feel compelled to leave had it not panned out so poorly.