4 famous wrestling factions that almost had different members
Some wrestling factions click right away and seem destined to be together forever. The New Day, for example, cannot possibly team with anybody else now – it just wouldn't feel right – and D-Generation X surely wouldn't have worked if they were led by anyone other than Triple H or Shawn Michaels.
However, other factions can take a little longer to gel and, on rare occasions, even require a change of team member. This has happened multiple times in pro wrestling history, with some of the very best stables in WWE, WCW and even NXT making last-minute alterations to their groups before, or sometimes after, their television debut.
In this article, we look at four examples of famous stables who could have looked very different if original booking ideas had gone ahead.
#1 Evolution
In January 2003, the WWE Universe clapped eyes on the super-faction known as Evolution for the very first time. Consisting of Triple H, Ric Flair, Randy Orton and Batista, the four-man group held every title possible during their short time together and quickly became the most dominant stable of their generation.
However, the original plan was for Mark Jindrak, a former WCW performer who had impressed officials during his time in OVW, to be the fourth member of the faction instead of Batista.
The reason why WWE decided to replace Jindrak was revealed by the man himself on Twitter in 2013: “I wasn't ready for Evolution at that time in my career. I was immature and Batista fit better. It was mine to lose and I dropped the ball.”
Jindrak, now going by the name Marco Corleone, has since built a successful career for himself in Mexico, with the highlight coming when he won the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship in June 2017.