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Just like every other wrestling company in the world, WWE also depends on presenting the audience with something it would never see coming. However, that is more difficult than ever now that fans have already seen all sorts of things happen inside a squared circle.
Fans are often left shocked when they witness a title change hands or a Superstar make an unexpected comeback. It's more of a surprise when Superstars who were once enemies become friends or vice-versa. Of course, fans see something like this regularly on television, but these kinds of things don't just happen on-screen. They can also take place in real life.
In this feature, let's uncover four instances where WWE Stars who were once enemies became friends and two friends who are now enemies.
#5 The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels are now friends
When they stepped foot inside a WWE ring together, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels showcased exceptional chemistry and delivered great matches. However, that didn't encourage Michaels and Undertaker to become friends behind the scenes. They instead tried to maintain their distance from each other as much as possible.
Their different personalities were one of the reasons. From the start, Undertaker was a guy who didn't talk too much but still led the WWE locker room by an example.
"Where Shawn Michaels and I are today and where we were at back then on a personal level, it’s taken a complete 360. If Shawn Michaels back then was on fire, I probably wouldn’t p*** on him to put him out."
Whereas, HBK, famous for his obnoxious behavior, talked too much and didn't take the principles Undertaker held the closest seriously. On top of that, he also didn't like "The Phenom's" intimidating personality, which frightened many WWE Superstars.
“I was very outgoing, which is to say I was overly obnoxious, and Mark’s always been a very quiet, laid-back kind of guy. A very Cool Hand Luke, very Clint Eastwood-ish type, and I was not.”
Still, things got better between the two of them around the time Michaels made his WWE comeback in 2002. "The Heartbreak Kid" extended a hand of friendship to Undertaker, which he accepted. Currently, the two men are on great terms and are close friends.
"That match in Saudi Arabia, I get it, we can all agree it was a stinkfest. But that was me being selfish, me wanting to be out there with my buddy, be out there again with Taker, and enjoy the moment."
#4 Vince McMahon and Bret Hart are now friends
During his 13-year-long run with WWE, Bret Hart was one of Vince McMahon's most loyal employee. With his off-the-charts charisma and a huge fan following, Hart helped McMahon rebuild the company during the New Generation Era.
However, the two men fell out on the infamous night of Survivor Series 1997, where Vince McMahon took he WWF Championship off Hart in a controversial fashion and rewarded it to Shawn Michaels. As one could imagine, Hart was left both shocked and infuriated with McMahon would do so after he had done so much for WWE.
Hart couldn't reclaim the title from HBK as he was heading to WCW. In the aftermath of the incident, he gave his boss a black eye and fracturing his hand in the process. This led to their nine-year beef, a period during which they both refused to see or talk to each other.
Things between Hart and McMahon eventually cooled down in 2006 when both men decided to bury the hatchet and start with a clean slate.
"We have a good relationship, although I’ll never probably ever get over what happened to me. There’s a part of me that forgives Vince, because I love what I did for the company."
#3 Now Friends: Nikki Bella and Maria Kanellis
Nikki Bella and Maria Kanellis were involved in a brief program in 2008. However, their rivalry wasn't just limited to on-screen. It wasn't because of their positions in WWE though. The two had some personal issues.
During an interview Raj Giri of Wrestling Inc., Maria revealed that she and Nikki were never on good terms. They had heat between them for multiple reasons. Apparently, one of them stems from their relationship with WWE Superstar, Dolph Ziggler, who both women were once friends with but one refused to see the other woman get close to him.
I get a tap on the shoulder and it's Nikki Bella going, 'what are you doing?' And I said, 'uh, dancing with my friend?' And she's like, 'oh, he's with me.' I said 'okaaaay, sure.'
On top of that, Maria once accused Nikki and her real-life twin sister, Brie Bella, of using their influence to stop her from returning to WWE in 2013. While this was never proven to be true, it's good to see that Maria and Nikki have put this behind them and become good friends.
She took something from me and it wasn't a man, or it wasn't a piece of candy, it was a contract. It's my career and I think for me, that's probably the worst thing you can do.
#2 CM Punk and Colt Cabana are now enemies
CM Punk and Colt Cabana started their wrestling training together at Steel Domain Wrestling in St. Paul, Minnesota. The two men worked together both as friends and rivals on the independent circuit for some time before signing with Ring of Honor where they held the ROH Tag Team Championship twice.
Punk and I have been a team since basically the first month I was training. We travelled the roads together a very long time. He's my brother in wrestling and life. I talk to him everyday.
Punk and Cabana also worked for WWE. However, they didn't get a chance to work with each other because WWE released Cabana a few months after Punk signed with the company. While it was hard for CM Punk to see WWE let his friend go, there was nothing he could have done except keep in touch with him.
Sadly, that even stopped soon after he and Cabana won the lawsuit that WWE Senior Ringside Physician, Christopher Amann, filed against them for defamatory comments made about him on an episode of Cabana's podcast.
Due to a financial disagreement between the two regarding Amann's lawsuit, Cabana decided to sue his own friend. This move ended their friendship as he and Punk turned into enemies.
#1 John Cena and The Rock are now friends
John Cena and The Rock are the perfect examples of Superstars who were once enemies but buried the hatchet and became friends. While The Rock personally never had any animosity towards him, things changed after Cena called him out on his decision to leave WWE and pursue a career in Hollywood.
"He, at one point, loved wrestling and wanted to do this all of his life. Explain to me why he can’t come back for a 15th Anniversary show. Just don’t f*** me around and tell me that you love this when you are just doing this to do something else. That’s the only thing that gets me really pissed off."
The Rock felt what Cena said wasn't right and wanted to bring this real-life beef between the two of them to on-screen rather than going after "The Face That Runs the Place." Therefore, he discussed it with Vince McMahon and he made his WWE comeback and confronted Cena on the night after WWE WrestleMania 27.
While it didn't come to The Rock and Cena blows, there were some heated arguments exchanged between the two men before they agreed to fight in a singles match at WrestleMania in the following year.
On "The Grandest Stage of Them All," The Rock defeated Cena in an outstanding match. However, the issues between them got more complicated. The two of them continued their high-profile rivalry and fought once again at WrestleMania 29.
In their second match, Cena defeated The Rock to win the WWE Championship and ended their rivalry both on-screen and off-screen. Currently, the two men have no bad blood between them and are on good terms.
