Rob Van Dam didn’t enjoy much of his second stint in WWE.
The star originally signed with the company after ECW closed its doors in 2001. Over the following six years, RVD became a firm fan favourite for his unique style and laid-back attitude.
During that run, he held the Intercontinental and Harcore Championships multiple times before reaching the top of the company when he defeated John Cena for the WWE Championship at the second ECW One Night Stand event in 2006.
In 2007, Van Dam left WWE and joined TNA – now IMPACT wrestling where he also saw much success including reigns with the TNA World Heavyweight and X-Division Championships.
At the 2013 edition of Money In The Bank, RVD made his return to WWE to take part in the eponymous multi-man Ladder match, which was ultimately won by Randy Orton. In the following weeks, he worked his way up to a shot at the United States Championship at SummerSlam. At the time, the title was held by Dean Ambrose – now AEW’s Jon Moxley – and Van Dam was once again unsuccessful.
After being unable to capture the US Title, RVD began a rivalry with Alberto Del Rio over the World Heavyweight Championship that lasted several months. Although he had two opportunities at the title, he couldn’t overcome Del Rio. After their second bout, he took some time off from TV.
While RVD thought that period of his return was “fantastic”, it went downhill from there.
Rob Van Dam was unhappy with his 2014 run in WWE
When a fan posted about RVD’s 2013 return on social media saying it lasted a little over a year, he corrected them to say it was actually split in two, with the first 90 days being positive, while his five months in 2014 “sucked monkey balls.”
“Actually, I did a fantastic 90 day run in 2013, and then another five month run in 2014, which sucked monkey balls.”
Actually, I did a fantastic 90 day run in 2013, and then another five month run in 2014, which sucked monkey balls. https://t.co/HJwhMSRfbD
— Rob Van Dam (@TherealRVD) July 16, 2023
His 2014 started that April and saw him feud with Jack Swagger and Cesaro – now AEW’s Jake Hager and Claudio Castagnoli respectively. He also had rivalries with Bad News Barrett and Seth Rollins, but was on the losing side more often than not.
His last match came on the August 26th edition of SmackDown, where he lost to Rollins in just under 10 minutes. Following his departure, he returned to the independent circuit.
In 2021, RVD was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and has made several appearances for the company since then in a non-wrestling capacity.