8 Wrestling Legends Who Were Kicked Out Of Their Factions

Factions have a long history in the wrestling business. From The Four Horsemen to The nWo to The Bloodline, factions have always been an excellent way to elevate multiple performers. Except for The nWo, whose numbers grew to ridiculous amounts, most factions typically have exclusivity when it comes to who gets to join.

On several occasions, some factions have even gone as far as to revoke membership from existing members. In recent years, we’ve seen stars like Sami Zayn choose other alliances over their faction, but that’s not the same thing. This list is specifically about faction members who did not ask to leave but were instead unceremoniously booted from their groups.

8

Booker T

When WWE purchased WCW in 2001, many fans were excited by the prospect of The nWo eventually debuting for WWE. It took nearly a year, but eventually, The nWo made their way onto WWE programming. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t be as impactful in WWE as they had been in WCW. Before long, Booker T would be recruited to join a watered-down nWo.

Booker’s time in the group was short and awkward. He never felt like a good fit, and in storyline, he was often at odds with his stablemates. Especially X-Pac. When Shawn Michaels joined the group, Booker’s days were numbered. Ultimately, HBK would Superkick Booker and kick him out of the group. Being kicked out of The nWo immediately made Booker a top babyface. Unfortunately for the group, it wouldn’t last in WWE too much longer.

7

Konnan

It’s no surprise that a group as villainous as The nWo would make multiple appearances on a countdown like this. The group actually kicked out a few members during its heyday. However, only Booker T and Konnan can be considered legitimate legends in the wrestling business. If you don’t think Konnan is a legend in the wrestling business, you might not know ball. There’s a reason why Konnan is considered Mexico’s Hulk Hogan.

During the 90s, Konnan was a mega draw across the border. He translated that massive success to a successful run in WCW as part of The nWo Wolfpac. Sadly, when The Wolfpac and nWo Hollywood merged, Konnan would find himself excommunicated from the group. Fortunately for K-Dogg, he’d land on his feet, quickly forming The Filthy Animals stable alongside Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio.

6

Farooq

The wrestling business is a lot of things, but fair isn’t one of them. Farooq’s run as the leader of The Nation of Domination is a prime example of that. When Farooq first debuted his militant Black Power gimmick, it was a fresh, cutting-edge concept that hadn’t been seen on WWE television before. All signs pointed to Farooq reaching great heights as the leader of The Nation of Domination. Technically, the leader of The Nation did turn into a huge star. It just wouldn’t be Farooq.

In 1997, Rocky Maivia was coming off a disappointing run as a babyface. The decision was made to put Rocky in The Nation. The move proved to be brilliant, as Maivia soon morphed into The Rock. The only problem was the group already had a leader, and The Rock was nobody’s second fiddle. The only solution was to oust Farooq from the group and leave The Rock as the leader. It sucked for Farooq, but in hindsight, the move was best for business, as The Rock accomplished more than Farooq ever could have as leader of The Nation.

5

Edge

Farooq got a tough break as the leader of The Nation, and two decades later, Edge would experience the same type of betrayal from his Judgment Day comrades. The group was originally formed to help get Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley over using Edge’s star power. One of the group’s first targets was Finn Balor. Eventually, it seemed as though the group had finally beaten some sense into Balor as he seemingly joined Edge and his pupils.

Edge’s world would soon come crashing down, though, as Priest, Ripley, and Balor turned on their leader and viciously beat him down, kicking him out of their group. It was a bit of a risk at the time since Edge was the only legitimate main eventer in the group, but the decision proved to be the right one. Edge would turn babyface and feud with The Judgment Day for a year, helping establish them as a top faction in WWE.

4

Sting

In December 1989, Sting shockingly joined The Four Horsemen. While Sting was a relatively new main event star at the time, his joining The Horsemen was equivalent to Superman joining The Legion of Doom. Regardless, Sting was a full-fledged member of the group heading into 1990. The first crack in the new alliance happened when Sting won the number one contendership for Ric Flair’s NWA World Heavyweight Championship at Starrcade 1989.

Eventually, Flair and The Horsemen would demand that Sting give up his World Championship opportunity. When Sting refused, he found himself on The Horsemen’s bad side. The group attacked Sting, kicking him out of the group. A legitimate knee injury would keep Sting out of action until The Great American Bash 1990 and prolong the payoff to his and The Horsemen’s storyline. When Sting did finally defeat Flair for the World Title, though, it was well worth the wait.

3

The Rock

Just like is real-life, in pro wrestling storylines, what goes around almost always comes around. In 1998, The Rock organized a coup and seized control of The Nation of Domination from Farooq. That move catapulted The Rock into a rising star role within WWE. By 1999, The Rock was a genuine megastar in the company. He was a multi-time WWE Champion and the crown jewel of The Corporation.

That is until he lost the WWE Championship to “Stone Cold” Steve Austin at WrestleMania 15 and failed to win it back at Backlash 1999. The loss at Backlash was partly Shane McMahon’s fault. When The Rock confronted and insulted Shane regarding the loss, Shane and the rest of The Corporation turned on their star member. The Corporation’s betrayal only served to make The Rock an even bigger star as a babyface.

2

AJ Styles

Typically, a great faction doesn’t have multiple shifts in readership and retain its momentum. The Bullet Club was far from a typical faction, though. The original leader of the group was Prince Devitt, aka Finn Balor. When Balor left Japan for greener pastures, AJ Styles eventually succeeded him as leader of The Bullet Club. AJ was an incredible successor and took the group to the promised land, capturing the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. In 2016, though, AJ also left NJPW for WWE.

This time, the transfer of power would not be a peaceful one. The night after Wrestle Kingdom 10, Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks would come out to the ring to seemingly send off AJ Styles. Instead of a celebration, Omega and The Bucks viciously attacked Styles. When the rest of Bullet Club came out to the ring, they joined in on the beating. Kenny Omega seized control of the group that night and never looked back.

1

Randy Orton

Is anyone surprised by this one? You really shouldn’t be. Randy Orton getting kicked out of Evolution is the best-executed and most beloved faction betrayal in modern-day wrestling. When Randy Orton won the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam 2004, many fans wondered how it would affect Evolution’s dynamic. Would Randy and Triple H be co-leaders? Would Triple H take a back seat to Randy?

The answer was neither. In typical Triple H fashion, he’d talk Ric Flair and Batista into betraying Orton and kicking him out of the group. The ousting was executed beautifully, with Orton celebrating a successful title defense on Batista’s shoulders, only for Triple H to give a thumbs-up and turn it into a thumbs-down. Just like that, Orton was out, and he and Triple H would be career-long rivals.