While the career of a pro wrestler can go from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows over the course of time, very rarely does it happen in the blink of an eye. But it has happened on occasion, most notably in 2009, twice. First there was Mr. Kennedy, who made his return in May 2009 by competing in a “Raw” ten man tag team match. It would turn out to be his last ever match with the promotion, as Kennedy was released just four days after. One year later, Kennedy confirmed rumors that he was let go due to complaints from Randy Orton about how Kennedy worked in that aforementioned ten man tag. The Minnesota native would later wind up in TNA and won the World Heavyweight Championship twice, but for many, his career became more of a cautionary tale, rather than one about success.
Alas, Kennedy blowing up his career wasn’t even the biggest example of that within WWE during that time period. Just a few weeks after Kennedy’s release came the WWE departure of one Sim Snuka. The son of controversial WWE Hall of Famer “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka was best known as one half of the tag team Deuce N’ Domino, a unit straight out of the film “Grease,” complete with a roller skating valet named Cherry. While the duo did have a brief reign as WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champions, they were largely treated as an afterthought by fans until the duo disbanded in June 2008, prompting Snuka’s change to his Sim Snuka persona. But the acknowledgement of his heritage, and a brief association with Randy Orton’s Legacy stable, ultimately went nowhere, and by the time WrestleMania 25 rolled around in April 2009, Snuka was out of sight, out of mind again. In hindsight, he likely wishes he’d stayed that way.
Sim Snuka’s Career Was Ruined Over A Match Involving The Undertaker
When one thinks of WrestleMania 25, their first two thoughts are likely “my goodness, why did Triple H vs. Randy Orton main event over Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker?” and “hot damn, how great was Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker?!” Indeed, the clash between HBK and Taker, their first in a couple of decades, has since gone onto become what many feel is the defining match of WrestleMania history. It also included one terrifying botch, when Taker attempted a dive onto Michaels. While Michaels moved out of the way, as planned, the “cameraman” who was supposed to catch Taker before he hit the ground failed to do so, resulting in Taker landing head first on the floor. Though Taker shook it off and the match continued, ridicule and scorn was immediately directed to said “cameraman,” who turned out to be none other than, you guessed it, Sim Snuka.
Why Snuka was tapped for this role remains a mystery, but the fact of the matter is he was in that spot, and he dropped the man who defeated his father at WrestleMania VII (the WrestleMania that kicked off Taker’s famous streak no less). The heat was instantaneous for Snuka, both from within the locker room and within the fanbase, and in retrospect, the only surprising aspect of Snuka’s release from WWE a few months later was that it happened a few months later, and wasn’t the night after. Whatever caused the delay in letting him go, Snuka never wrestled for WWE again after that night, and his post-WWE career isn’t much to write home about either, with only a brief NWA stint and a handful of matches on the independent circuit. At least with Kennedy, his one mistake harmed his career but didn’t ruin it. For Sim Snuka, failing to catch Taker on that WrestleMania 25 left his career in complete disarray, never to recover.
