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Who Truly Is To Blame For Karrion Kross' Failures On WWE's Main Roster?

Posted: May 29th 2023 By: Andrew Kelly - TheSportster.com

Karrion Kross was a champion in NXT, but both of his runs in WWE, under Vince McMahon and Triple H, have not worked.

Karrion Kross was slated for big things when he signed with WWE, going on a rampage in NXT as a two-time champion, soundly defeating top names like Tommaso Ciampa, Samoa Joe, and Keith Lee. He had an impactful moveset and a striking entrance, with the look of a star. Fast-forward to today and he may very well be one of the most heat-less wrestlers in the entirety of WWE with absolutely no-one caring about him. It is safe to say that his time on the main roster has failed. When assessing his time on Raw and SmackDown, it is up for debate as to who exactly is at fault.

Vince McMahon Ruined Karrion Kross On Raw

Karrion Kross’ first foray onto the main roster came in 2021 when he debuted whilst still reigning as the NXT Champion. Unfortunately for Kross, he no longer had Scarlett by his side nor did he have the special entrance he had in NXT. He was faced up against Jeff Hardy which would have been an impactful win in his first night on the main roster. However, in about 90 seconds, Hardy rolled Kross up to win the match. Not only did this make Kross look like a joke, but it also made a mockery of the NXT Championship.

An angered and more dangerous Kross could have bounced back from this embarrassment, but Vince McMahon decided to change up his look. His promos were overly goofy, he wore a ridiculous bright red helmet, and he wore gladiator gear to and inside the ring for his matches. He looked like a cheap cosplay to an 80s wrestler. Kross was eventually released in November of that year, putting an end to an atrocious main roster run. In this first stint on Raw, there is little denying that it was 100% the fault of Vince McMahon for his absolute failure, as there was nothing that Kross could have done differently aside from downright refusing to work. It gets a little bit murky upon his second run in WWE though.

Karrion Kross’ WWE Return Started Well But Went Downhill Quick

Kross returned in 2022, attacking Drew McIntyre and setting his sights on the main event scene. Under the new creative management of Triple H, Kross instantly looked ten times better than he did under Vince McMahon. He had Scarlett by his side, he was more intense, and he was booked to win. Unfortunately though, he has been unable to connect with the audience. Again, his promo work has come into question. The content of his promos, which are full of metaphor and dramatic dark language, is hard to take seriously in this day and age of professional wrestling.

Of course, it is all about delivery too, and Kross’ delivery isn’t perfect. He has been unable to convey true conviction in his words to make the fans believe what he is saying, and he has to be blamed partly for that. Additionally, Kross’ in-ring work has failed to set the world on fire, with him not having one show-stealing match since returning. His bouts against Drew McIntyre were fine, but the pair did struggle to maintain heat from the audience to ensure that the match worked well.

Again though, Kross can only work with what he is given, and he is clearly performing in the style that WWE want him to. He works at a slower and more methodical pace, but instead of it being impactful and dominant, it is simply boring fans. Kross could be replaced by any other man of his stature and size and that sort of style would just fail to work, especially without a good character to back things up. In this sense, both WWE’s creative and Kross can share some of the blame for things not working.

There Are Multiple Parties To Blame For Karrion Kross’ Failure
Under two creative minds, Kross has been a failure on the main roster. It is true that his booking has been poor on both occasions and the content written for him has been average at best, but it is hard to argue that Kross has been anything other than unimpressive.

It is clear that there is something there to unlock, and he does have a good presence as proven in the likes of NXT, but at this point he has very little chance of making it on the main roster as anything other than cannon fodder to babyfaces who need some momentum and a win over a heel. All parties are to blame for this act not working out, with Kross arguably not being quite up to scratch and WWE giving him pretty much no chance to impress.