3 WWE Superstars who were punished for botches and 3 who weren't

Randy Orton convinced WWE to punish Mr. Kennedy; Brock Lesnar wasn't punished for his botch
Randy Orton convinced WWE to punish Mr. Kennedy; Brock Lesnar wasn't punished for his botch

WWE presents scripted storylines and matches on a weekly basis to millions of fans across the world. WWE Superstars follow scripts that lead to blow-off matches on big stages like WrestleMania. Even though the entire presentation is pre-determined and part of a script, the art of pro-wrestling isn't something to be taken lightly.

WWE Superstars are trained professionals who are skilled enough to have matches with fellow wrestlers without getting hurt or hurting the other. That certainly doesn't mean that a Superstar never makes mistakes in the ring, and WWE's history is full of instances where Superstars botched a move.

In this list, we will focus on three WWE Superstars who were punished for botching moves. We will also take a look at 3 Superstars who evaded punishment for major botches.


#6 Mr. Kennedy is released by WWE following botch with Randy Orton

Randy Orto
Randy Orto

Mr. Kennedy had tons of potential to become a top WWE Superstar, and his abrupt release in mid-2009 was a genuine surprise for many. Kennedy had returned to WWE TV on the May 25, 2009 edition of Monday Night RAW, after being on the sideline for months due to an injury. The match pitted five babyfaces with five villains, with Kennedy and Randy Orton on opposite sides.

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Kennedy botched a Back Suplex on Orton during the match, and The Viper was seemingly hurt by the same. Orton complained to management immediately after.

“He literally blew up in front of all the talent including Vince and Stephanie and began to lecture me about how I had to be careful and his health was very important. It just doesn’t make sense to me…”

Mr. Kennedy never competed for WWE again

Mere four days later, Kennedy was let go by WWE. The timing of the release can't be discounted as a coincidence, and it was clear as day that Orton was responsible for Kennedy being let go. Kennedy revealed years later that things were fine between the duo, and they had a good half-hour talk in a backstage area when he attended a RAW show back in 2019.

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Mr. Kennedy was a guest on SK Wrestling's UnSKripted with Dr. Chris Featherstone, where he discussed the infamous Undertaker chair shot, squashing beef with Randy Orton, and more. Check out the video above.

#5 Backstage unhappiness with Nia Jax push following botch that legitimately hurt Becky Lynch

Nia Jax
Nia Jax

On an episode of WWE RAW, mere days before the 2018 Survivor Series PPV, Nia Jax hit Becky Lynch with an accidental punch that gave her a bloody nose. The visual of a bloodied Becky Lynch surrounded by fans has become one of the most iconic images in history, which was followed by a mega push for Lynch that involved a WrestleMania main event win. Jax didn't suffer consequences for the botch and was instead pushed on WWE TV.

Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported at the time that several people in the back weren't happy with Nia Jax's push after she injured Lynch on RAW.

“Rewarding someone for basically messing up bad and hurting someone and knocking them out a PPV and the biggest match on that show and of their career is not right."

Nia Jax is still a mainstay on WWE TV

Nia Jax has been involved in several other botches in her WWE career, with the latest taking place in mid-2020 with Kairi Sane. She received tons of negative press for being reckless in the ring against Kairi but won the Women's Tag Team titles soon after.

#4 WWE lets Sim Snuka go after WrestleMania 25 botch

The botch that led to Sim Snuka's release
The botch that led to Sim Snuka's release

Sim Snuka made a name for himself in WWE as Deuce but never managed to achieve the kind of success that his father, WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Snuka, did. By early 2009, Sim Snuka had become an afterthought and was being rarely used on WWE TV. On WrestleMania night, he faced Dolph Ziggler at Axxess, which was his final match for the promotion.

He was used as a cameraman for the singles match between The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 25. At one point during the match, Snuka was supposed to catch The Undertaker as the latter dove out of the ring, but he ended up botching the spot. The Undertaker reacted to the spot years later.

“I’ve got a lot but I tell you what, WrestleMania 25 with Shawn. Man, that’s just one of those matches that everything went the way it was supposed to go, for the most part. It would’ve been nice to do the dive and land on somebody but, other than the lawn dart over the top rope, that was really special.”

Snuka was released by WWE soon after

Sim Snuka's WWE stint came to an end in June, and he wasn't featured in any of the shows between WrestleMania and his release. Snuka competed for NWA following his WWE release and also had a multiple-year stint on the indies.

#3 Goldberg gets an opportunity at regaining his self-confidence following the Super ShowDown debacle

Goldberg
Goldberg

Goldberg returned to WWE TV in early 2019 and went on to compete with The Undertaker at Super ShowDown in Saudi Arabia. The match, as many are well aware, was full of botches. Goldberg was heavily criticized for his performance in the match, and WWE received tons of flak for putting the duo's health at risk by putting them in a match against each other. In a disturbing visual, Goldberg could be seen collapsing outside the ring after the match.

Goldberg made several more appearances following WWE Super ShowDown

Goldberg didn't suffer any consequences following the botch-filled affair and was instead given bigger and better opportunities in his latter runs. He was given a squash against Dolph Ziggler at SummerSlam 2019 as a way to compensate for the WWE Super ShowDown failure.

In early 2020, Goldberg squashed The Fiend in Saudi Arabia to win his second Universal title. The WCW icon is all set to challenge Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship at Royal Rumble 2021, and many believe that he will come out victorious when all is said and done at the PPV.

#2 Perry Saturn punishes wrestler for botching a move

Perry Saturn
Perry Saturn

This one's an unusual case, as it wasn't WWE that punished the Superstar for his botch, but a fellow wrestler who took things into his own hands.

Mike Bell worked for WWE in the 90s, as well as early 2000s. He was mostly remembered for his infamous match against Perry Saturn on WWE Jakked on May 7, 2001.

During the contest, Bell botched a Snapmare Armdrag, and Saturn wasn't happy. He decided to teach a lesson to the wrestler and legitimately beat him up.

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WWE put Perry Saturn in an embarrassing angle following the incident

A scary spot following the botch saw Saturn throwing Bell out of the ring and the latter landing on his head in a disturbing visual. The duo managed to finish the match somehow, with Saturn being punished by WWE management for taking liberties with Bell in the ring and not being professional. You can watch the entire incident in the video embedded above. Mike Bell didn't do much of note in WWE and would tragically pass away on December 14, 2008, due to a heart attack.

#1 Brock Lesnar remains unscathed following botch that could have ended his career

Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar

The main event of WWE WrestleMania 19 saw Brock Lesnar challenging Kurt Angle for the WWE title. The classic outing was marred with a major botch from Lesnar, which could have possibly ended in disaster for him.

During the final moments of the match, Lesnar attempted a Shooting Star Press on Angle, a move that he had effectively executed on multiple occasions in the past. This time around, though, he botched it horribly and messed up his neck. Lesnar was incapacitated for the remainder of the match but somehow managed to hit an F-5 on Angle and pin him for the WWE title.

Lesnar was WWE's hottest commodity at the time

Brock Lesnar wasn't in a good mood following the botch and could be seen causing a ruckus backstage. At the time, Lesnar was untouchable, and there was no way WWE would have punished him for the botch.

He went on to score big wins over the likes of John Cena, Big Show, Kurt Angle, and many other top SmackDown Superstars. He remained WWE SmackDown's hottest act for a year following the botch and finally quit WWE after his outing against Goldberg at WrestleMania 20.

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