9 Wrestlers Who Vanished Off The Face Of The Earth

3. Ryback

Blitzkrieg WCW
WWE

Ryback was a WWE guy through and through.

He started out in Tough Enough, went through Deep South Wrestling, and was somehow able to string a few power moves together after that. Much like Mr. Kennedy, Ryback benefitted enormously from the scene in which he emerged. WWE was still telling the over, very talented members of the roster that they weren't good enough, and Ryback had the look, and thus got the push. And it worked!

For a while!

With a hearty "Might as well", WWE fans, enjoying the brutal squash matches and Ryback's under-appreciated grasp of crowd control, went with it. He wasn't John Cena, and while a critic of John Cena would say that, it really did help. Briefly. They turned him too early and he slid down the midcard until he requested his release - or saw it coming.

Weirdly, he never did what was thought to be an inevitable TNA run. That might have something to do with the fact he appeared to have lost his goddamn mind.

There wasn't much of one to begin with, in fairness, but hoo boy did he start coming out with some baffling awld sh*te.

 
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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!