Out of all the performers discussed in this article that WWE unwisely let go, no one caused the company to leave more money on the table than Marcus "Buff" Bagwell. One of WCW's biggest stars during the hottest period in wrestling history, the former "Handsome Stranger" could work crowds into a frenzy. When he finally appeared on Raw in July of 2001 facing WCW champ Booker T for the title, fans were treated to a match for the ages. An all-time classic, Bagwell and Booker put on quite the show. At the following SmackDown! he took a powerbomb from The Acolytes, selling their usual cotton-soft offense as if he was dropped from a building. It took a true artist to make Bradshaw and Ron Simmons look stiff, and Bagwell pulled it off masterfully. Inexplicably, for reasons that defy logic, Buff was released from his contract less than a week later. The reason given was "attitude problems" and his nagging mother meddling in his business affairs, but the more likely scenario is that WWE's top stars banded together to get Bagwell fired in order to halt his rapid ascension to the top of the company. Recently Buff Bagwell made his debut on the Showtime reality series Gigolos. He's now working as a male escort, showing wealthy, haggard old women why he's buff and he's the stuff. With WWE's love of any and all mainstream publicity it's not hard to imagine they're all kicking themselves right now at the thought that Buff Bagwell could be one of the biggest stars in the business.
Brad Hamilton is a writer, musician and marketer/social media manager from Atlanta, Georgia. He's an undefeated freestyle rap battle champion, spends too little time being productive and defines himself as the literary version of Brock Lesnar.
