By June 2002, WWE was not the company it had once been. The Rocks and Stone Cold Steve Austins of the old guard were winding down, and the company was beginning to both wane in public interest and struggling to gain a new fanbase. Despite having their best years financially only a year or two prior, the future was looking very uncertain for the recently-re-christened World Wrestling Entertainment.

Deeming himself an ‘unqualified success’ in June 2002, McMahon informed the Raw roster surrounding the ring it was now their time to shake things up. Vince gave a pep talk to motivate the roster by stating that to succeed in life, they would need ‘ruthless aggression.’

During the era of the first brand extension, pitting Raw versus SmackDown, it was a time of great change in WWE. The old way was dead, and if the company was going to survive, superstars would have to up their game to cement themselves in the top spot.

Of course, not everyone managed, but there were plenty of success stories. These wrestlers took advantage of the period of flux and carved themselves into the legends we recognise them as today.