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Wrestling is technically a business that relies on trust and teamwork but, despite knowing that they have to rely on one another, it's still a dog eat dog world in WWE.
This means that many WWE stars in the past have complained about others, or even reached the point where they have cost someone else their job. Whether it's made common knowledge or not, there are some wrestlers who are more disposable than others, which means that if someone has an argument or causes a scene backstage, then the company is likely to side with the bigger star.
In the past, there have been a number of wrestlers who have cost other employees their jobs, either inadvertently or on purpose.
#5. Alicia Fox cost Arn Anderson his job
Arn Anderson was one of WWE's longest-tenured employees before he was dismissed back in 2019. The WWE Hall of Famer was employed by WWE from 2001 through the current era until a problem at a live event caused Vince McMahon to utter those infamous words.
According to various reports, Alicia Fox turned up at a WWE Live Event whilst intoxicated and at the time Anderson was the agent for her match, despite obviously not being in a condition to perform, Anderson allowed her to wrestle.
This news got to Vince McMahon who was obviously livid that Fox had been allowed out in front of an audience and had another wrestler's life in her hands when she was in no fit state to wrestle.
Anderson was given his marching orders, but he has since been able to make the move over to AEW where he's now seen as The Enforcer for the Nightmare Family which consists of Cody and his wife Brandi.
#4. Ric Flair cost Jim Ross his job
One of the best-known incidents where another star got their co-worker fired was back in 2013, when Ric Flair cost Jim Ross his WWE employment.
2013 was a rough year for The Nature Boy, as he lost his son Reid Flair and was obviously devastated. Despite this, he continued to work his commitments which included being part of a panel ahead of the launch of the WWE 2K14 video game.
Flair had been drinking that day and took over the event that was hosted by Ross to tell some stories about his time in WWE - stories that probably shouldn't have come out. According to The Wrestling Observer, Vince McMahon was obviously not happy that Ross hadn't closed Flair down when he started to take over the event, and decided to fire him for not acting faster.
"A few weeks ago, Ross had hosted the WWE 2K14 symposium, a yearly promotional thing for a video game. But once Ric Flair started talking, "he didn’t stop and took over the show, Flair entertained the audience with funny stories, like how wrestler John Cena doesn't have to do cardio. Then it got a little dicey, like when he mentioned Cena was once a teetotaler. [He] said 'good luck with that'," Flair said, indicating that one might rely on alcohol in the world of professional wrestling, and then noting that Cena drinks a lot now."
#3. Melina cost John Morrison his job
Melina was fired from WWE back in 2011 because she was having a number of issues backstage with fellow performers. Melina had been kicked out of the locker room by Lita earlier in her career but refused to drop her backstage issues with other women.
This led to WWE deciding to let her go back in 2011, but Melina refused to walk away since, according to Bleacher Report, the former Women's Champion continued to show up at the arena alongside her then-boyfriend John Morrison following her release.
"It would be one thing to come to visit a few months down the line but to show up at the next shows after being released, it's a complete lack of understanding and respect. It sucks you are fired but you don't come to see the boyfriend that dumped you the next day and you don't go to the office to hang out after getting your pink slip. She did that and made eyes roll. There were some worried she was going to physically cause a problem and with John facilitating that by having her there, well, you saw what happened on Raw."
Melina caused a number of issues for Morrison at that time in his WWE career and, after the current star spoke out about Melina not being part of his mixed tag team match at WrestleMania, he was pushed further down the card and eventually released from the company.
#2. Edge and Lita cost Matt Hardy his job
When Matt Hardy was injured back in 2005, he was written off WWE TV, but the company wanted to keep Lita on screens, so Lita was aligned with Edge instead. This led to the couple famously going on to have an affair that was made public not long afterwards.
Matt Hardy was obviously heartbroken and decided to speak about his issues online, which obviously wasn't the right response. The management team made the decision to terminate Hardy's contract since they knew that something was brewing in the locker room and they wanted to avoid it at all costs.
Of course, the WWE Universe was not happy about this decision and caused issues for Edge and Lita at every live event. The company was then forced to rehire Hardy and the entire love triangle was turned into a fantastic feud on WWE TV, something that Hardy opened up about on the Cheap Heat podcast back in 2019. The feud culminated with the Loser Leaves Raw ladder match seen above.
Hardy has since moved on and married former Impact Wrestling star Reby Sky, the couple now has three sons. Edge is married to Beth Phoenix and the couple has two daughters.
#1. Randy Orton got Mr. Kennedy fired from WWE
Mr. Kennedy faced off against Randy Orton back in May 2005 on an episode of WWE Raw and just four days later he was fired from the company. This obviously isn't a coincidence since it's reported that a botched belly to back suplex in the match was considered to be dangerous by Orton, who went backstage and pushed for his release.
Orton later revealed his side of the story:
"He never said sorry, and even called me a liar after the match. I remember looking at him in disbelief. And yes, I did tell management I did not want to work with him after that. Who wouldn’t? That’s my side.”
Interestingly back in 2016, Kennedy himself spoke to WrestlingInc and revealed that John Cena had also played his part in his dismissal.
“So anyway, here’s the thing, he went to Vince and said something, that I was dangerous to work with. And I think Cena had a hand in that too. Like, Cena helped out and he said, ‘hey, we need to go to Vince.’ I didn’t get along with him too well”
Of course, this wasn't the end of Mr. Kennedy's career since he went on to appear on Impact Wrestling as Mr. Anderson and has had a lengthy few years at the top of his game.
