Ronda Rousey’s ROH debut has taken fans on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. Her feud with Shayna Baszler marked the end of her WWE run and she is now all set to mark a new beginning in the promotion. Ronda Rousey’s latest WWE run wasn’t impactful, which is now expected in ROH.
Ever since its formation, WWE has served as a great platform to bring success to many stars. However, there are other stars whose careers went uphill after they parted ways with the Stamford-based promotion. Here are the top 5 stars who found success after leaving WWE.
5. Drew McIntyre
Drew McIntyre is one man who left the fans bewildered after his release from WWE. He signed with WWE in 2007, but not being able to deliver in the ring to his full potential, he was released in 2014. Consequently, he went to try his hand at other promotions.
For the next three years, he performed for ICW, Evolve, TNA and PWG. During these years, he garnered much fame and went through a drastic transformation. McIntyre also earned numerous championships in these promotions, becoming one of the biggest WWE picks the following year.
4. Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine, aka Chris Jericho, is a well-known face in the professional wrestling industry. He became popular with his stint with WWE starting in 1999. Despite having numerous breaks in between, his major release came in 2019 when he joined AEW.
#AEW World Champion Chris Jericho (@IamJericho) makes his way to the ring in a packed @CapitalOneArena on the debut episode of #AEWDynamite pic.twitter.com/4zYtVerarE
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) October 3, 2019
The Tony Khan-led promotion helped Jericho earn the respect that he had lost in WWE. Despite having multiple championships in WWE, many fans do not know him as a WWE legend. It took Jericho a mere 4 years to regain his legacy in AEW. It wouldn’t be incorrect to say that Jericho gained success after quitting WWE.
3. Jon Moxley
Jon Moxley made his WWE debut as Dean Ambrose alongside Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins in 2012 as The Shield. Working for the promotion for the next 7 years, Dean often got to the limelight, but he couldn’t cross his former teammates in establishing his superiority. While Roman Reigns carried the division on his shoulders, Ambrose never got that opportunity.
Eventually, he bid goodbye to the Stamford-based promotion in 2019 and joined AEW soon after. The Tony Khan-led promotion gave him the recognition that he deserved in the professional wrestling world. Apart from a massive salary, the company also brought Jon Moxley to the mainstream. In a nutshell, if it wasn’t for AEW, Dean Ambrose would have remained a midcard star for the rest of his life.
2. Paige aka Saraya
Paige came out as one of the youngest yet greatest stars to ever walk her way to WWE. At the age of 21, she had achieved the Divas Championship as well as the NXT Women’s Championship simultaneously. However, her career ended on a rather heartbreaking note after she broke her neck.
Despite recovery, her neck remained feeble, putting her pro wrestling career in jeopardy. However, it was Tony Khan who kept the spirit of the same alive in her heart. He gave her the freedom and opportunity to make a comeback, and she did. Paige joined AEW as Saraya in 2022 and has been escalating her personality ever since.
1. Cody Rhodes
Topping the list of comebacks is Cody Rhodes. He worked for WWE for almost a decade. During this tenure, he worked with many top stars but lacked a major storyline. His ‘Stardust’ character wasn’t taken in good spirits by many, which eventually led to his departure from the company in 2016.
Stardust is coming to an end.
— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) January 25, 2016
Despite the potential of working as a top star, his storylines were restricted to the midcard division. Following his disappointment with the WWE Creative, he walked his way to various promotions, including ROH, NJPW, TNA and AEW. These promotions brought the best out in him and he went ahead to build a huge fan following for himself.
Considering all these successes, fans are curious to see what ROH has in store for Ronda Rousey. It would be interesting to see how she would blend her experience gained from the UFC and WWE to make a massive comeback in another professional wrestling promotion.
