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In the same way that athletes work together on a sports team, WWE Superstars rely on each other to entertain audiences all around the world.
Roman Reigns, for example, is arguably the top Superstar in modern-day WWE, but his list of accomplishments would not look as impressive if the likes of Triple H, The Undertaker and John Cena did not agree to lose to him in high-profile matches.
On rare occasions, Superstars have no-showed events due to their frustration at the way that WWE’s higher-ups have wanted to book them, with some performers outright refusing to face a certain opponent.
Similarly, for a variety of reasons, some Superstars have even left the arena on the day of a show after disagreeing with a decision that has been made about their future plans.
In this article, let’s take a look at two WWE Superstars who walked out before a show, as well as three who never turned up.
#5 Neville never turned up to a WWE show
In October 2017, it was widely reported that Neville walked out on WWE before he was scheduled to face Enzo Amore in a Cruiserweight Championship match in the main event of RAW.
Neville, now known as PAC in AEW, has remained quiet on his time in WWE since leaving the company. Amore, in contrast, has told plenty of WWE stories since his departure, including his take on what happened on the night that Neville was believed to have walked out.
Speaking on Talk Is Jericho in 2019, Amore clarified that, contrary to reports, the Brit did not actually walk out on the day of the show. Instead, he simply decided not to turn up.
“When he wasn't going to the main roster, he just didn't show up to RAW. And I was the only one talking to him that day, so I knew he wasn't there and I get the script handed to me. Enzo and Neville in the main event of Monday Night RAW. Neville's not even there.” [H/T Wrestling Inc.]
Kalisto stepped in and ended up winning the Cruiserweight Championship from Amore, while Neville never returned to WWE and officially left the company in August 2018.
#4 CM Punk walked out before a WWE show
In January 2014, CM Punk walked out on WWE shortly before the post-Royal Rumble episode of Monday Night RAW.
As Punk explained during his infamous appearance on Colt Cabana’s Art of Wrestling podcast, he vented his frustrations about his injury problems and the direction of his WWE character in a backstage meeting with Vince McMahon and Triple H.
“I will go somewhere else and I will get more f***ing over because I know I can. You have shackled me, you have creatively stifled me, you have made this a very toxic environment. I no longer want to be here.” [H/T Cageside Seats]
The five-time WWE World Champion also questioned why he had never main-evented WrestleMania, prompting McMahon to say that the plan for WrestleMania 30 – Punk vs. Triple H – was a main event, even though it would not have been the last match of the night.
Punk responded by criticizing Triple H for not allowing him to win their previous one-on-one match at Night of Champions 2011.
“I turned to Hunter [Triple H] and I said, ‘All due respect, I do not need to wrestle you, you need to wrestle me. I do not want to wrestle you. I seriously resent you for not putting me over three years ago when you should have. That would have been best for business but you had to f***ing come in and squash it.’”
Punk walked out that day and he officially received his release from WWE in July 2014.
#3 Steve Austin never turned up to a WWE show
One day after facing Ric Flair in a steel cage match at a WWE live event in June 2002, Steve Austin was booked to lose a King of the Ring qualifier against an up-and-coming Brock Lesnar on RAW.
Austin had no problem with losing to Lesnar but he felt that the match should take place as part of a long-term storyline between the two Superstars, as opposed to a throwaway match that WWE had not even advertised.
Frustrated with his WWE storylines at the time, Austin decided not to show up to RAW. He then took seven months off before returning to WWE shortly before the final match of his career against The Rock at WrestleMania XIX.
The WWE icon explained on Barstool Sports' Pardon My Take podcast in 2019 why he chose not to face Lesnar that day.
“Because it wasn't time for me to do the favors yet for Brock in an unadvertised match in a tournament-style TV match whereas hey, man, I love Brock Lesnar, I'd lose to him any day of the week, but build it up so we can all make money off of it and it's going to mean something.”
Vince McMahon fined Austin $650,000 for his actions but the amount was later decreased to $250,000.
#2 Brock Lesnar walked out before a WWE show
Amid speculation that he could return to UFC, Brock Lesnar signed a new three-year contract with WWE shortly before his WrestleMania 31 main event against Roman Reigns.
One month prior to WWE’s annual extravaganza, it was widely reported that Lesnar had a “shouting match” with Vince McMahon before the February 23 episode of RAW in Nashville, Tennessee.
PW Insider reported [H/T Wrestling Inc.] at the time of the alleged disagreement that Lesnar was “visibly angry about something” before he walked out. It was also claimed that McMahon acknowledged the issue in a SmackDown production meeting the next day but he did not go into the details.
Former WWE producer Arn Anderson addressed the reports on a 2020 episode of his ARN podcast, saying that Lesnar simply wanted the best deal he could get from either WWE or UFC.
“He was smart enough to know that not only did WWE want him, in the worst way, so did the UFC. He was just sitting in a position to go, 'Okay, we’re all aware of what’s going on here. I know you want me. You know you want me. It’s up to you guys to decide who’s gonna get me. Who’s going to make me the sweetest deal?'”
Lesnar returned to UFC in 2016 to fight Mark Hunt at UFC 200, but he remained under contract with WWE.
#1 Goldust never turned up to a WWE show
In June 2006, Goldust no-showed three WWE live events and an episode of Monday Night RAW due to issues that he had outside of the ring with drugs and alcohol.
As WWE director Bruce Prichard recalled on a 2017 episode of his Something to Wrestle With podcast, this led to Vince McMahon deciding that it was time for the Superstar’s fourth run with the company to come to an end.
“I think it was too much, too soon, and I think that old habits started to repeat themselves when he got out on the road. He fell back into old habits and, before you know it, his demons had caught up with him. He was no-showing and that was it. Vince was done at that point.”
Fortunately, as you can see below, the man behind the Goldust character, Dustin Rhodes, turned his life around and he has been clean and sober since 2008.
Goldust had two more spells with WWE in 2008-2012 and 2013-2019 before leaving the company to join AEW.
