'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The world of WWE is all about creating stars that will catapult to the main event and stay there for years to come. WWE invests heavily in those that they feel will be the next Hulk Hogan or The Rock.
Trending
Stars who may eventually become somewhat bigger than WWE itself, whilst generating the company a lot of money along the way.
Sometimes, these things happen organically. On other occasions, it can be a constant TV barrage of a particular Superstar who is booked in a certain way to make us care about them more.
We often recognize when a certain Superstar is given the 'rocket strap.' There are defining moments in their career in which a passing of the torch moment occurs.
With that being said, let's take a look at 5 times the torch was passed in WWE matches.
#5. Triple H vs. Batista at WWE WrestleMania 21 for the World Heavyweight Championship
Before becoming an action film star, Batista was working his way through the ranks at WWE. Batista's career initially started with WWE's developmental brand, Ohio Valley Wrestling.
From there, there was an unsuccessful pairing with D-Von Dudley, before being hand picked by Triple H to form a brand new faction on Monday Night RAW called Evolution.
Evolution consisted of The Game, 'The Nature Boy' Ric Flair and another future main event superstar Randy Orton. The stable would go on to dominate RAW throughout 2003 and into 2004 before cracks began to show.
At the Royal Rumble in 2005, Batista won the Royal Rumble match, guaranteeing him a world title main event at WrestleMania. The problem was, Triple H was World Heavyweight Champion at the time, so surely Batista wouldn't choose to face him, right?
Well, he did. This became the start of Batista's rise to the top of the WWE. He beat Triple H at WrestleMania 21 to become World Heavyweight Champion, and continued the rivalry for the next few months.
After this, Batista was a star, and became one of the main faces leading the SmackDown roster for the years to come.
This was a true passing of the torch moment that was built up over a couple of years. It turned Batista into a global name and worldwide superstar.
#4. The Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33
This WWE match was a sub-par performance by The Undertaker's standards. Regardless, it became a significant moment that truly showed Roman Reigns was being handed the torch.
Reigns had main-evented WrestleMania 31 against Brock Lesnar, and defeated Triple H at WrestleMania 32 to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. But this felt like the moment where everyone stood up and had to take notice of The Big Dog.
There's no other Superstar out there that can say they have beaten The Undertaker in the closing match of WrestleMania. The power really shifted to Roman Reigns after this. He declared the following night on RAW that the WWE is his yard now.
It's fair to say that it has been his yard ever since, and his stock grows every time he steps into the ring.
#3. Triple H vs. John Cena at WrestleMania 22 for the WWE Championship
John Cena, as we know, is quite rightly the modern day Hulk Hogan in WWE, and has become a household name around the world.
The rise of Cena's career started the first day he stepped through the door, and it never slowed down. Cena went from his days rapping on Smackdown, to being the face of the company working on every show he possibly could.
Although the audience perception was a little different, with Cena receiving mixed reactions wherever he went, Cena cemented himself as the face of the company.
He became WWE Champion for the first time when he defeated JBL at WrestleMania 21. However, it was WrestleMania 22 that really had the passing of the torch moment against Triple H, with a partisan Chicago crowd roaring at every move.
Facing one of the best in the business, John Cena made Triple H tap out to the STF submission finisher, setting him up for the many successful years that followed.
#2. The Rock vs. Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam 2002 for the WWE Championship
What a year it was for The Beast Incarnate in 2002. Making his WWE television debut in March and then main-eventing against The Rock in August.
WWE had huge plans for Brock Lesnar, and you can see why. There hadn't been anyone quite like Brock Lesnar to walk through the door, and WWE immediately saw the dollar signs.
In one of the greatest few months in WWE history for a debuting superstar, Brock Lesnar defeated The Rock at SummerSlam to win the WWE Championship. Brock Lesnar had truly arrived and The Rock passed him the torch to run with.
That wouldn't stop there, as Brock Lesnar entered a feud with The Undertaker following his win against The Rock. Today, Lesnar is still regarded as one of the best in the business, and one of the most feared superstars of all-time.
#1. Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania 13
King of the Ring 1996 - the night Stone Cold Steve Austin was born - will forever be remembered by WWE fans.
He became the most popular superstar in WWE history in such a short space of time. His stock was rising at every single event that WWE put on featuring 'The Texas Rattlesnake'.
In a blockbuster match at WrestleMania 13, with Ken Shamrock as special guest referee, Stone Cold Steve Austin faced Bret 'The Hitman' Hart in a No Disqualification Submission Match. It would be a career-changing bout that altered the landscape of the WWE for years to come.
The match itself saw Austin lose the match, passing out to Hart's Sharpshooter finisher after a hellacious battle. The fans were not pleased and began to boo Bret and cheer for Austin.
Austin slowly regained consciousness and gave his famous Stone Cold Stunner to a referee to an enormous ovation. The fans watching inside the Rosemont Horizon in Illinois proceeded to chant his name as he left the ring.
Stone Cold Steve Austin's tenure, especially during this period, will be remembered for taking WWE to heights it had never seen before. Give me a hell yeah!
Meet Randy Orton's lovely wife HERE
