What happens when you give a group of mid-card wrestlers some boxing gloves and have them fight for real?

In 1998, a boisterous claim by a wrestler to WWE's head writer spawned an idea born out of vengeance. After the wrestler claimed he was the toughest guy in the room, the writer, who didn't like the wrestler very much, pitched an idea to WWE owner Vince McMahon to have the wrestlers fight for real.

The 'Brawl For All' was born.

You can watch Dark Side of the Ring "The Brawl For All" tonight on Crave at 10 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. PT.

in the newest episode of Viceland's Dark Side of the Ring, the latest controversy looks at the pitfalls of an idea gone terribly wrong.

A group of 16 wrestlers put on boxing gloves for a shoot-style fight. It looked like a boxing match, but rules were made up on the fly.

Top superstars quickly realized they had everything to lose and little to gain and refused to take part.

One established wrestler was groomed to be the face of the tournament. A win in the tournament would have set him up for a program with top company star Stone Cold Steve Austin, but a horrific injury in the second round accelerated the end of his career.

Despite winning his first-round match, a former UFC champion pulled out because of the unclear nature of the tournament.

To the victor go the spoils? Not even close.

It's a rare case of booking where there were no winners, just losers.