Professional wrestling business is cut throat; there are very less spots, while hundreds of talents yearn to make it big in the business. In a global corporation as big as the WWE, with a talent pool of over 800 superstars at their disposal, the competition is even more intense to reach for the proverbial brass ring.While the younger talents try to climb the ladder, the old war horses and veterans tend to hang on to their top spot. Even in today’s scenario, the competition is fierce, with the new recruits in NXT exerting pressure on the superstars on the main roster, vying for their place.Many superstars in the past suffered the occasional injury, but by the time they returned to active in – ring competition, more often than not they found themselves falling down the pecking order, while other superstars fought for their spot. One of the hardest things to do as a professional wrestler is to sit on the sidelines with an injury and watch other superstars replacing you on the card.Back during the Attitude Era, due to intense competition within the organizations, superstars often hid their injuries from the management, while getting addicted to pain pills and other drugs to reduce the pain. Although such an atmosphere doesn’t exist in the WWE anymore, superstars have very few opportunities to make a name for themselves in the company. In the past, there have been several superstars who got injured in the midst of a major push, and had to relinquish their opportunity and were replaced by someone else.In this article, we take a look at five unlucky superstars who got injured at the wrong time.
#5 Sami Zayn
Last night on Monday Night RAW, the fans in Montreal clamored to see their hometown hero, and one of the breakout stars in NXT, Sami Zayn. Sami has been one of the very few universally loved superstars, and wrestled all over the globe before joining the WWE. He had been out with an injury, and had returned to competition just in time to make his debut on the main roster in front of his hometown fans in Montreal.
The stage was set for a phenomenal debut, with Bret Hart introducing Sami Zayn to a thunderous ovation from the WWE Universe. Sami answered John Cena’s United States Open Invitational, and during his entrance, Sami Zayn clutched his shoulder uncomfortably, and during the course of the bout, looked in considerable amount of pain.
The referee even stopped the match midway and called the ringside doctor to check on Sami Zayn, and although Sami rallied himself to finish the match, it was obvious that he couldn’t perform at the top level due to the injury.
WWE later addressed the rumors, stating that Sami Zayn had suffered an injury and the doctors were waiting for the MRI results to see how bad the injury is. If Sami has aggravated his previous shoulder injury, then he might be out of action for several months! Sami Zayn truly was unlucky, as he had just made his debut on the main roster after waiting for over 2 years.
#4 Bad News Barrett
The former WWE Intercontinental champion and the recent King Of The Ring tournament winner made huge waves in the wrestling circuit, when he, along with the other contestants from season one of NXT invaded RAW, and took Punk and Cena out. Wade Barrett led The Nexus faction until CM Punk took over the reins, and Barrett soon started challenging for the World Heavyweight championship.
In 2012, there were rumors about WWE getting behind Barrett, but all of those plans were nixed when Barrett got injured during a Battle Royal when Big Show threw Dolph Ziggler on top of Barrett, dislocating his elbow in the process. Barrett nearly missed 6 months of action, and returned with a new gimmick of a bare knuckled brawler.
After having couple of impressive runs as the WWE Intercontinental champion, it was once again rumored that Barrett, who was now repackaged as Bad News Barrett, would receive a push and would be inserted into the main event picture. Unfortunately, Barrett suffered yet another injury, when he separated his shoulder which required a surgery. WWE stripped him off the Intercontinental title, and once again nixed their plans of pushing him.
#3 Dolph Ziggler
Dolph Ziggler was always known to be one of the better workers in the company. His initial rise to fame, along with Vickie Guerrero gave glimpses of his remarkable in – ring talent and Ziggler worked his way up the ladder and became the WWE United States champion.
Ziggler then won the SmackDown Money In The Bank ladder match and earned the right to face the World Heavyweight champion, and as the WWE Universe got behind Ziggler, WWE finally gave him his big moment on the night after WrestleMania 29.
Ziggler cashed in his Money In The Bank briefcase on Alberto Del Rio after he was injured on RAW, and defeated Del Rio to become the World Heavyweight champion. Ziggler’s hard work and perseverance paid off, as Ziggler finally won the big one. His ecstasy didn’t last long however, as Ziggler suffered a legitimate concussion in a match and was out of action for over a month.
After Ziggler returned to in – ring competition, WWE made the decision to take the belt off Ziggler and put it back on Del Rio. Ziggler’s quest to climb the mountain didn’t last long, as his injury forced the WWE creative to take the title off Ziggler.
#2 Daniel Bryan
Daniel Bryan’s Cinderella story was the hottest topic of 2014, as Bryan became the only other superstar after CM Punk to challenge John Cena as the flag bearer of the organization. Daniel Bryan fought his way to the top, and no matter what the WWE asked him to do, he excelled at it, and in the process garnered a massive fan base. Bryan was then teamed up with Kane, as the duo became the most entertaining aspect of the 3-hour show.
Bryan’s quest to become the face of the company was ignored by the WWE management, but with the fans voicing their opinions, WWE was forced to put Bryan in the main event scene, as John Cena defended his title against Bryan at SummerSlam in 2013.
Bryan won the WWE World Heavyweight title, but WWE once again used him as a transitional champion to put the title back on Orton, but with the WWE Universe turning on the product as well as few other superstars, the management finally decided to give Bryan his big moment, as Bryan headlined WrestleMania 30 and won the WWE World Heavyweight championship.
Bryan’s world came crashing down however, as Bryan suffered a career threatening injury and was forced to undergo a major surgery, throwing his future in doubt. Bryan had to relinquish the title and was out of action for the remainder of 2014.
#1 Mr. Kennedy
When you talk about unlucky superstars, the one name that will constantly pop up will be of Mr. Kennedy’s. Kennedy will be remembered as a “what if” in the organization, as the talented superstar failed to grab the opportunity because of injuries or otherwise. WWE immediately pushed Kennedy on SmackDown after his debut, as he defeated numerous world champions, and got the better of the then World Heavyweight champion, Batista, before losing to him in their third match.
Kennedy was one of the few unlucky superstars to have won the Money In The Bank ladder match, but were unable to win the WWE or World Heavyweight title. Kennedy tore his right triceps muscle off the bone, and thus had to drop the briefcase to Edge. Kennedy took a couple of months off to recuperate, and the WWE then placed him in the title hunt for the Intercontinental championship.
Vince McMahon then decided to name Kennedy as his “bastard son”, which was the culmination of a long, drawn out storyline. WWE initially planned to push Kennedy, who would then compete for the WWE title, being the illegitimate son of the chairman. However, with Kennedy’s name coming up in the steroid scandal, the plans were nixed and Kennedy was suspended for a month.
Kennedy never recovered from the setback, and was released from his contract in 2009. This places Kennedy at number one in our list of unlucky superstars who were injured at the worst possible time.
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