At the height of its success, WCW seemed unstoppable. At one point in 1997, fans honestly thought they would put WWE out of business with the constant ratings wins and huge stars. Of course, the wheels came off, and the company would collapse, but in many ways, the seeds were laid by some talent releases. They let go of established stars, as well as some wrestlers who'd go on to become megastars in WWE.

Some cases are even bigger than mere stardom. They were guys who completely changed the game for the entire business, became the backbone of WWE, and, more importantly, their loss proved critical for WCW's eventual downfall. These easily rank as the most important WCW releases, and how each piece lost contributed to that company's inevitable collapse.

10 Syxx Had One Wild WWE Return

His Big Debut Got The Attitude Era Going

• Wrestling Observer Best Gimmick of 1996 with NWO
• PWI Comeback of the Year 1998
• PWI Tag Team of the Year 1999 with Kane

Sean Waltman's tenure in WWE may have been marred at the end as it was harder to take seriously a heel called the 1-2-3 Kid. So jumping to WCW to hang with some old buddies made sense and he had success with a few titles. It's thus natural Waltman was pretty ticked when he was fired by messenger service while injured and it's no surprise he'd want to prove WCW wrong.

He surely succeeded as his return to WWE as X-Pac was marked by a now legendary promo slamming WCW and Bischoff and establishing a new DX. He was given a hot new streak with a few titles and sure, he coined the "X-Pac Heat" bit but it can't be denied his release and subsequent WWE success was a turning point in the Monday Night War.

9 Chris Jericho's Exit Was A Sign To Everyone

His WWE Debut Shifted The Game

• Wrestling Observer Most Underrated Wrestler 1999/2000
• Wrestling Observer Best On Interviews of the Decade 2000s
• Wrestling Observer Reader's Favorite Wrestler 1999

WCW was starting its downward turn in mid-1999, but nothing spoke to how rough it was getting other than the departure of Chris Jericho. He had been clicking wonderfully with the crowds as the arrogant heel and seemed set for a bigger run. It never happened with Jericho constantly getting his knees cut off and saw there was no rising up further to depart.

His WWE entrance was epic as in one night, he was more over than he'd been in WCW. It was a clear sign to others in the company that WWE was on a roll and WCW was no longer the hot place to be. Y2J's departure and subsequent WWE stardom were signs that, for the guys in WCW, jumping ship could be a better move.

8 Mick Foley Became An Unlikely WWE Hero

WCW Ended Up Putting Butts In Seats For WWE

• Wrestling Observer Best Brawler 1991-2000
• PWI Inspiration Wrestler of the Year 1993
• Wrestling Observer Most Disgusting Promotional Tactic of 1993 for "Amnesia angle"

Mick Foley's first book is filled with tales of his WCW run which he seemed to like when it started. It got worse when his top feud with Vader was ruined by the idiotic "Lost in Cleveland" skits. When Foley heard the announcers completely no-selling Vader power-bombing him on concrete, he knew it was time to get out. A short ECW run reestablished Foley's toughness before heading to WWE.

Mankind had a push out of the gate, feuding with the Undertaker and later becoming a legend with the Hell in the Cell match. Foley was also the centerpiece of a turning point in the Monday Night War with his WWE title win and becoming one of the most beloved guys in the business. WCW highlighting how Foley was becoming a champion was another massive blow to the company.

7 Scott Hall And Kevin Nash Changed Everything For WCW

Who Knew Oz And The Diamond Studd Would Become Stars?

• Hall (as Razor Ramon) PWI Most Improved Wrestler 1992
• Nash (as Diesel) PWI Most Improved 1994 and Wrestler of the Year 1995
• 1996 Wrestling Observer Best Gimmick with the NWO

It's not surprising why WCW would have cut Scott Hall and Kevin Nash in 1992. The former was the Diamond Studd and not doing too much while the latter had lame gimmicks like Oz and Vinnie Vegas. WCW didn't see serious stardom in either with both going to WWE. Before anyone knew it, Razor Ramon and Diesel were champions and two of the biggest stars in the company.

That set up their return to WCW with their real names but their past glories at the forefront of fans' minds. The Outsiders formed the New World Order, long runs as tag team champions and Nash later World champ and booker for WCW. Who'd have guessed the earlier cutting would lead WCW to their biggest success?

6 Lex Luger Fired The Opening Shot Of The Monday Night War

His WCW Release Allowed For A Huge Return

• Wrestling Observer Most Improved 1989
• Had been signed to the World Bodybuilding Federation before an injury
• PWI Wrestler of the Year 1997

This is an odd one as the release actually paved the way for one of WCW's biggest triumphs in the Monday Night War. Lex Luger had been a dominant WCW World champion in 1991, but he made no bones that he was ready to leave in early 1992. However, Luger's WWE tenure turned out to be a huge letdown, never rising to WWE champion and stuck in a tag team with Davey Boy Smith.

When WCW came up with an offer, Luger accepted, even though WWE thought he was under contract. That led to his shocking debut on the first Nitro, which instantly made the show a must-see. So, by letting Luger go before, WCW set up their bigger success down the road.

5 The Radicalz Leaving Was A Nail In WCW's Coffin

Losing All Four Of These Guys In One Go Was Awful

• Had been The Revolution in WCW
• Shane Douglas supposedly wanted to go with them
• Terri joined as Saturn's valet

WCW still had a chance to correct the mistakes of 1999 and try to bring the company back to prominence. Then in January of 2000, they made one of the worst mistakes of all. After months of grousing and complaining over being misused, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn decided to give notice and go at once. WCW tried to bribe Benoit with the World title but he stuck to his guns.

The quartet showed up on WWE as the Radicalz for big pushes. It was a blow to WCW, costing them four of their best in-ring workers, a gaping hole in the roster and a lot of bad press to boot. It sadly set the tone for the year that would help crush WCW and another serious misfire for the company in keeping future stars.

4 Triple H Could Have Been A WCW Star

The Future WWE Boss Had A Good Start

• Originally known as Terra Ryzing
• Lost to Alex Wright at first PPV match at Starrcade 1994
• Original WWE name was going to be Reginald DuPont Helmsley

Letting go of a guy who eventually runs the opposing promotion? Yep, that has to count for this list. Triple H's WCW tenure was low-key as Terra Ryzing and then "Frenchman" Jean-Paul Levesque. He showed promise with the Blue Bloods and Ric Flair took a shine to him but WCW didn't see much use to let him go.

His timing was perfect as WWE needed someone for a Greenwich snob character, and so Hunter Hearst Helmsley was born. A key moment was when Triple H had to take the blame for the MSG "Curtain Call" so Steve Austin could win his King of the Ring. Then Hunter later took over DX, leading the fight to WCW and, by 2000, the main event WWE champion. It's a bit ironic he was on the shelf injured when WCW went under when Hunter's departure was a big reason for WCW's downfall.

3 Jim Ross Became The Voice Of WWE

Good Ole JR Started In WCW

• Wrestling Observer Best Television Announcer 1988-1993, 1998-2001
• PWI Stanley Weston Award 2002
• WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2007

This may not be an obvious pick to some but it makes sense when you think about it. Jim Ross was a sharp play-by-play guy for WCW as well as helping the talent behind the scenes. He figured he'd be in line for more only to have conflicts with Eric Bischoff and the rest of the Turner brass. It's still debated if he left on his own or was fired but either way, JR was out in early 1993.

While his early stuff was rough (not helped by health issues), Ross would eventually be seen as a key voice of WWE broadcasting, especially when the Monday Night War started. His iconic calls for Mankind's HITC fall or Austin winning the WWE title became legendary and his behind the scenes promotions of guys helped make a few stars too. WCW's lame "Oklahoma" act only served as a testament to how letting this fine broadcaster go was a poor move by the company.

2 Releasing Steve Austin Was Eric Bischoff's Worst Mistake

Stone Cold Made WCW Regret It

• PWI and Wrestling Observer Rookie of the Year 1990
• He and Brian Pillman Won Wrestling Observer Tag Team of the Year 1993
• WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2009

Of all the bad moves by Eric Bischoff in his WCW tenure, this is the one that came back to bite him the most. Steve Austin was obviously a star on the rise in 1994, US champion and set for a main event run. He was pushed aside for Hulk Hogan, dropping the US title to Jim Duggan and then infamously fired by Fedex while rehabbing a neck injury.

A naturally ticked-off Austin first headed to ECW, where he'd take shots at WCW and Bischoff. Then he went to WWE, where it took a bit to click as Stone Cold, but once he did, Austin led WWE to its greatest success. Every biography of Austin notes how letting him go was a move that helped doom WCW.

1 Paul Heyman's Release Changed The Business

Letting Him Go Was A Dangerous Move

• Led the Dangerous Alliance to glory
• PWI Manager of the Year 1992
• Wrestling Observer Best Booker 1994-97

Paul Heyman's exit from WCW in 1993 was so crazy that he is still legally forbidden from discussing it in detail. He had done great as a manger but a falling out with Bill Watts and other higher-ups, leading to his departure amid some ugly lawsuits. That fueled Heyman up as he headed to Philadelphia to take on the booking for what was then Eastern Championship Wrestling.

The rest is known to any wrestling fan as Heyman would transform ECW into a renegade promotion, breaking all the rules, riling up fans, and inspiring both WWE and WCW to emulate its attitude. In other words, letting Heyman go had WCW inadvertently changed the entire industry forever, so it's no wonder he should top this list.