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WWE WrestleMania 37 is less than a week away. With the card almost finalized, it's a given that several stellar showdowns will be featured on both nights of the event. From championship bouts to grudge matches and technical masterpieces, the Show of Shows has it all every year.
It's logical for WWE fans to fantasy book the road to WrestleMania. However, whether the matches they want make it to the actual card or not isn't guaranteed.
Similarly, many WWE Superstars do not get to pick their WrestleMania opponents. The officials do this job for them based on the storylines they are involved in.
Meanwhile, some iconic WWE names have had the privilege to choose who they'd like to face on the Grandest Stage of Them All.
So, with the road to the 37th edition of WrestleMania getting closer with every passing day, it only makes sense to list three WWE Superstars who got to choose their opponents at the event and two who didn't.
#5 Batista (chose to Face Triple H in his retirement match at WrestleMania 35)
Batista's stint in Evolution, the 2005 feud with Triple H, and his run at the top that followed made him one of the most successful WWE Superstars in recent history.
The Animal was well aware of the role played by the Cerebral Assassin in his rise to the top, which is why Batista wanted his last match to be against the 14-time world champion. Speaking to Lilian Garcia, the 2005 and 2014 Royal Rumble winner revealed:
"He [Triple H] invested a lot in me and put himself on the line physically for me. Not only did he put me over three times clean, he also took the time to have me ride with him and pick his brain. He groomed me to be a star. I wanted to finish my career for him by saying thank you and laying on my back for the guy."
After pushing for the match for years, Batista finally got to face Triple H at WrestleMania 35. The bout in question was quite lengthy and ended exactly how The Animal wanted it to - with Triple H pinning him clean in the middle of the ring.
Following the match, Batista uploaded a lengthy Instagram post in which he confirmed his retirement from in-ring action.
#4 Sting (didn't choose his WrestleMania 31 opponent)
Sting's only WrestleMania match happened in 2015. While his bout against Triple H was quite impressive, fans would have liked it much better if it was The Undertaker standing across the ring from him that night.
It turns out that not only the WWE Universe, but even The Icon himself was interested in a match against The Phenom at WrestleMania 31. However, that didn't materialise and fans got two very different matches instead.
After departing from IMPACT Wrestling in early 2014, Sting expressed his desire for "one last big match." He wanted it to occur at the following edition of WrestleMania (2015) with The Undertaker being his opponent.
However, the dream bout didn't take place at the event in question despite both legends competing there. While Sting incurred a loss against Triple H, The Undertaker ended up beating Bray Wyatt.
Even though The Icon didn't get to choose his WrestleMania opponent, his debut match still turned out to be quite memorable. The nWo and D-Generation X run-ins during the bout took fans on a trip down the nostalgia line.
One of WWE fans' biggest regrets is that they never got to witness Sting take on "The Phenom" The Undertaker. WrestleMania 31 posed as the best chance to do it, but WWE unfortunately didn't pull the trigger - or the Stinger, more like.
#3 Edge (chose to face Randy Orton at WrestleMania 36)
Edge and Randy Orton competed in a grudge match at WrestleMania 36. It was the Rated-R Superstar's first singles match in nearly nine years; furthermore, it was his decision to have The Viper be a part of it.
When asked why he chose to face Randy Orton at WWE WrestleMania 36, Edge had this to say:
"And I wanted to wrestle Randy Orton (after) coming back. I needed to see where I was at - and Randy, to me, is the measuring stick to where you're at. And we have chemistry, and we have history, and there's just this intangible thing that we have, and I knew I needed to start there. And I also knew that there's an ocean of new opponents and new stories and all of those things - and that's super exciting." (h/t: WWE India)
Everything about this feud, from the in-ring promos to the actual match, was top-notch. Moreover, the bout convinced the fans that Edge hadn't missed a beat during his time away from the ring.
#2 AJ Styles (didn't choose his WrestleMania 37 opponent)
AJ Styles and Omos are currently gearing up for a Tag Team Championship bout at WrestleMania 37 against The New Day. However, if it was up to The Phenomenal One, the fans would be seeing a completely different match at The Show of Shows.
While speaking to WWE Now India earlier this year, AJ Styles stated that he would like to face Triple H at WrestleMania 37. However, the 14-time world champion will likely sit out his second WrestleMania in a row; and he has a good reason for it as well.
During a recent media call ahead of NXT TakeOver: Stand And Deliver, Triple H cited his backstage responsibilities as the reason behind his heavily-reduced role as an in-ring performer.
"When he first came to me, I said, ‘AJ, I’m not going to tell you no. Personally, I’d love to work with you and at this point, you can carry me to something.’ So, I’d love it. The personal side of it, the performer side of it, I would love nothing more, but the reality is—I’m not going to have the bandwidth or availability schedule-wise to be able to pull that off." (H/T WrestleZone)
While the aforementioned match would have been huge, Styles still has a chance to have his WrestleMania moment this year by completing the Grand Slam.
#1 The Undertaker (chose AJ Styles as his WrestleMania 36 opponent)
The Boneyard match at WrestleMania 36 was memorable for more than one reason. For starters, it would turn out to be The Undertaker's final wrestling bout. Moreover, it paved the way for the normalization of cinematic matches in WWE.
Prior to the confirmation of the match, it was reported that The Phenom himself had chosen to square off against the two-time WWE Champion as he considered him to be a modern-day Shawn Michaels.
Over the last 20 years, AJ Styles has put on clinics with superstars in and past their primes across different wrestling promotions. So it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that The Undertaker handpicked The Phenomenal One for his first WrestleMania bout in nearly two years.
Despite it not being a traditional singles contest, the Boneyard match turned out to be quite entertaining. A few months later, The Undertaker revealed that he had no desire to get back in the ring again, making his outing against AJ Styles his last hurrah.
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
