WWE releases Damien Sandow

Sandow, who was trained in part by Killer Kowalski, was signed to a WWE developmental contract in 2003 and assigned to OVW, where he wrestled as Aaron “The Idol” Stevens. In 2006, he made his main roster WWE debut on SmackDown as Idol Stevens. He was sent back down to OVW and eventually released in 2007.

Stevens returned to OVW (which was no longer affiliated with WWE at the time) in 2008, then wrestled in Puerto Rico for World Wrestling Council. He was re-signed by WWE in 2010 and sent to Florida Championship Wrestling, where he adopted the Damien Sandow name and gimmick.

Sandow made his WWE main roster debut as the bathrobe-wearing “intellectual savior of the masses” in 2012. In 2013 he formed Team Rhodes Scholars with Cody Rhodes before the two had a falling out over the Money in the Bank briefcase, which Sandow screwed Rhodes out of winning. Sandow went on a prolonged losing streak before losing his Money in the Bank cash-in opportunity against John Cena in October. (Becoming just the second person -- besides Cena -- to lose while cashing in.)

In 2014, Sandow ditched his gimmick and started doing condescending week-by-week impersonations before finally becoming The Miz’s “stunt double,” Damien Mizdow. He and Miz won the WWE Tag Team Championship, which is the only title that Sandow has won as a member of the main roster. Mizdow began experiencing a groundswell of rabid fan support and was the runner-up in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 31, losing to the Big Show.

Mizdow finally split from the Miz and returned to being Damien Sandow, but soon began his impersonation gimmick again, becoming “Macho Mandow” and teaming with Curtis Axel’s “Axelmania” persona. The two men teamed together before the angle was taken off television following the leak of Hulk Hogan’s racist tirade associated with his sex tape.

Sandow has popped up here and there on television and pay-per-view over the past year, always in a minor role but always getting loud fan support.