The story of ECW basically centers around Paul Heyman tapping into controversy to enhance an alternative promotion when WWE and WCW were the dominant forces. ECW wanted to be cutting edge and have a wilder atmosphere to attract fans sick of the stale wrestling in the major promotions. However, some names developed controversy behind the scenes as a person more than a talent.
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ECW had a unique locker room that consisted of both teamwork and unity while also having chaos and drama at other points. Heyman played into that at times since the ECW fan base was more aware of backstage things than WWE or WCW fans. The following ECW wrestlers were the most controversial in the company’s history.
10 Taz
Many ECW wrestlers viewed Taz as taking himself too seriously and believing his gimmick backstage. Fans treated Taz like an unstoppable force, and he apparently started to alienate a lot of people in the locker room by acting as if he believed that.
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Rob Van Dam having a backstage scuffle may have been the peak story about this as he asked Taz to pick a hand before slapping him with said hand over an issue after their match. Taz often separated himself from the locker room with RVD claiming that he often just had the Team Taz students blocking others from speaking with him.
9 Shane Douglas
ECW made Shane Douglas a top star due to his controversial nature of not being afraid to rub others the wrong way. Douglas partially got over by bashing wrestlers that he had issues with back in WWE and WCW to the huge support of ECW fans loving that brash style.
Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels getting insulted by Douglas’ shoot promos was shocking at the time since promotions didn’t like to mention names in other companies. However, Douglas used it to his advantage as arguably the most successful ECW main eventer due to his controversial promos.
8 Tammy Sytch
WWE witnessed Tammy Sytch becoming an all-time popular and all-time controversial female talent during the 1990s. Sunny could be argued as the first major sex symbol in pro wrestling due to the success she had as the most searched woman on AOL and a noteworthy part of WWE’s program.
However, the backstage issues led to her becoming a free agent and working with her boyfriend Chris Candido in ECW. Paul Heyman was criticized for taking advantage of Sytch’s controversial reputation by booking a wild “tell all” segment that tabloid shows usually did with celebrities in the news for scandals.
7 Mike Awesome
Mike Awesome became a controversial figure in ECW history due to one decision he made at the end of the road. Paul Heyman made Awesome a top star after losing most of his established names to WWE and WCW after discovering Awesome’s work in Japan.
However, the lack of consistent pay in ECW led to Awesome leaving the day his contract expired while still holding the ECW World Championship. WCW tried to convince Awesome to bring the title to their show to likely throw it in the trash until Heyman’s lawyers got involved. Awesome had to return for one night to drop the belt at a house show and refused to go into the ECW locker room due to the heat on him.
6 Brian Pillman
WCW allowed Brian Pillman to use the Loose Cannon persona when blurring the lines between reality and script. Pillman tried to make fans believe that he was breaking character and not following the script, but it was a bit confusing in WCW since many fans bought into the reality of the show.
ECW fans were a bit different and knew everything was scripted to create a different dynamic in working them. Pillman showed up in ECW after WCW and took his gimmick to new extremes. There was a moment where he threatened to pee in the ring as the ultimate disrespect. Chris Jericho referenced most of the locker room thinking Pillman was just crazy and believing his controversial side.
5 Steve Austin
The ECW run of Steve Austin was short, but it played a huge role in finding his voice. WCW fired Steve Austin after a solid mid-card run that primarily featured great matches and lackluster character work. Paul Heyman loved Austin from their WCW time together and asked him to join ECW even before he was cleared to wrestle.
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Austin had controversial skits impersonating Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan with some personal insults that got the diehard fans talking. This chapter of Austin’s career inspired WWE to sign him and gave Austin the confidence that ultimately played out with the “Stone Cold” character.
4 Raven
ECW made Raven one of their first success stories of someone thriving as a main eventer there after weak stints in WWE and WCW. Former gimmicks of Johnny Polo and Scotty Flamingo failed him badly, so he rejuvenated his career in ECW with the new gimmick of Raven.
An argument can be made that Raven was more controversial on-screen than off-screen, but the moments of controversy were his own ideas. Raven came up with the infamous segment putting The Sandman on a cross and was forced to apologize to the live crowd by Paul Heyman.
3 Bubba Ray Dudley
The reputation of Bubba Ray Dudley sees many wrestlers viewing him as a bully backstage and in the ring. ECW was the place where Bubba started to find that side when he was given free rein to say anything he wanted on the microphone for crowd heat.
Bubba made it his personal mission to reach the point of near riots from the crowd with some extremely vulgar and personal insults. Many wrestlers in the ECW locker room also hated Bubba for his bullying side that saw this reputation following him decades later today.
2 Jerry Lawler
ECW used real animosity to develop a strong worked program when having WWE color commentator Jerry Lawler join the promotion as part of the working relationship. Lawler cutting promos running down ECW when Vince McMahon allowed wrestlers from the hardcore brand on Raw led to something more.
Fans were stunned when Lawler appeared in the ECW Arena aligning with Rob Van Dam and Sabu to start a WWE invasion angle. Lawler genuinely disliking what ECW represented and using the personal side for business made it effective chemistry.
1 New Jack
The ECW career of New Jack saw him in many controversial moments both in and outside of the ring. New Jack was not afraid to make people afraid with his threats of stabbing others and coming off like a genuinely unpredictable person to the locker room.
The infamous Mass Transit incident almost put ECW’s future in jeopardy with such a story following them. New Jack had issues with other talents and missed time from the company when arrested. Paul Heyman just doubled down on using the controversy and it helped New Jack become a beloved all-time ECW icon.
