5 next generation stars who failed to follow in their parent's footsteps

In professional wrestling, there is a strong sense of family. Plenty of superstars, both male and female are part of historic wrestling families, including the legendary Funks, Flairs, and Harts.

Plenty of superstars, however, have been able to eclipse their famous parents, for example, the Rock, who's success both in and out of the ring, has shone brighter than either his father Rocky Johnson or his grandfather High Chief, Peter Maivia.

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Most recently, you can look at former WWE Champion Randy Orton, who with his success both individually and in groups such as Evolution and the Authority, has far surpassed the success of his father Cowboy Bob Orton, and his grandfather Bob Orton Sr.

However, not every star is fortunate enough to break past their family. Here are 5 generational stars, who did not come close to surpassing their parents.

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#5 Manu

Debuting in late 2008 on WWE RAW, Manu is the son of Wild Samoan, Afa, and appeared to be a member of Legacy: a team of multi-generational stars, led by Randy Orton.

However, Manu failed to impress in the team, despite his Samoan family heritage including stars such as Afa, Sika, The Rock and Umaga.

Fearing the team had lost their luster, Orton had all of his soldiers compete in singles action, with the rule being they must win to remain as a part of the group.

After failing to beat then-ECW Champion Matt Hardy, Manu was kicked from the group, being attacked by Cody Rhodes and Sim Snuka.

Since then, Manu has stayed away from WWE, opting to compete on the independent scene instead.

And speaking of Sim...

#4 Sim Snuka

Appearing originally as 50s Greaser Duece on SmackDown, Sim Snuka later joined Legacy on RAW.

Teaming with Manu, Rhodes and Ted DiBiase, Sim Snuka had everything going for him, but was quickly eliminated from the Legacy team.

Whilst the reason for Sim's banishment was never properly specified, the son of Superfly Jimmy Snuka was almost never seen on TV again, in a wrestling match.

Instead, the younger Snuka is perhaps best known for appearing at WrestleMania 25, portraying a camera-man that the Undertaker would crash into during his first classic WrestleMania match against Shawn Michaels.

However, the spot was botched slightly, with Snuka standing a foot too far from the flying Deadman, leaving the Demon of Death Valley to land mostly on his face and neck.

#3 DJ Pringle

Many people won't know the name DJ Pringle, but you'll almost definitely know his father Percy, who worked in WWE as Paul Bearer.

Pringle has stuck to the independent scene, making only a handful of WWE appearances, notably at the 2014 Hall of Fame induction ceremony for his recently-deceased father.

At the ceremony, Pringle continued chewing his gum throughout his father's induction, something that was seen as tasteless by several fans, given the seriousness and spectacle of the evening.

Whilst DJ and Paul Bearer are two vastly different characters, there is something just truly bad about proposing to your girlfriend with your dead father's Hall of Fame ring.

#2 Brooke Hogan

The daughter of the most iconic star in wrestling, Brooke Hogan has made a nice niche for herself as the Hulkster's daughter, including her own spinoff reality show, Brooke Knows Best.

Appearing in TNA as the head of the Knockouts division (despite not being a wrestler), Brooke formed a romantic interest in Bully Ray.

The storyline was something out of a soap opera, with Bully being seen as the 'bad boy', who Hogan (the General Manager of Impact at the time), could not stand seeing with his sweet, innocent daughter.

However, Ray's affection (and marriage to Brooke) was all revealed as a ploy to curry favor with the Hulkster, as Hogan would make him the number one contender the Jeff Hardy's World Championship.

Bully would win the title, revealing himself as the leader of the Aces and Eights faction, and after a few months feuding with his estranged wife, Brooke would quietly leave the professional wrestling scene.

#1 David Flair

The career of the Nature Boy Ric Flair is the stuff of legend. From surviving a Plane crash, to winning 16 World Championships, the Nature Boy has risen past superstardom and is the only 2-time inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame.

So when his son David debuted in WCW in 1999, fans had high expectations. However, a confusing and pointless heel turn against his father left fans wanting to see less of the son of the Nature Boy. Trying to emulate his father, the younger-Flair wore robes and was awarded the US Title.

In WWE, Flair is best known for being a punching bag for the Undertaker in 2002, with his sister Charlotte being the much more successful of the two, with eight championships to her name, since making her in-ring debut in 2013.