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WWE as a business has gone through a number of changes over the past few decades, from WWF to WWE, from the Monday Night Wars to the Wednesday Night Wars, from The Rock and Stone Cold to John Cena and Randy Orton, and now there's Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins.
Generations have come through the doors of the business, but whilst the WWE Universe remembers faces and names, there are other factors that have changed the face of the business. The stars that defined eras and the moments that have pushed forward revolutions are some of the things that brought forward change.
Here are some of the biggest moments of the past few decades that have changed the face of WWE forever.
#5. #GiveDivasAChance
Back in 2015, the women of WWE were being limited to matches that lasted mere minutes. AJ Lee retired from the business and on the main roster, fans were forced to endure Paige wrestling The Bella Twins over and over until she was finally given some backup from NXT.
The WWE Universe got behind the #GiveDivasAChance and forced the company to make a change. The women have since created their own evolution and have made history in countless ways. The word 'Diva' has been erased from WWE terminology and the women have finally earned the right to be treated the same as the men in the company.
It was a long road that began with a 30 second match on RAW, this later moved down to NXT where the women were already looking to make a statement. Every woman in the company has added something to this movement and finally their voices have been heard.
The women now have Tag Team Championships for the first time and have just as much chance of main eventing WrestleMania as their male counterparts.
#4. The Montreal Screwjob
There isn't a wrestling fan alive that doesn't know about The Montreal Screwjob. The cliff notes of the story are that Bret Hart was ready to leave WWE for WCW and was defending his Championship against Shawn Michaels at Survivor Series back in 1997.
Hart contractually didn't have to drop his Championship, but the company didn't want him to take the title to WCW since they were in the middle of a war.
Michaels and Vince McMahon then went on to conspire a way to win the match and when Michaels locked on the Sharpshooter on Hart, the referee called for the bell and awarded Michaels the Championship.
This match and moment gave birth to the Mr. McMahon character in WWE, the chairman of the company became the villain in the story and was able to create an entire character off the back of it.
Mr. McMahon was the chairman that got Steve Austin over before going on to become one of the company's most hated stars throughout the early 2000s. There were even theories that the whole thing was staged just to create the character because it seemed to work so well for McMahon.
That night was a turning point in WWE for so many reasons, but the main one was that it created the man who went on to control the company for more than two decades.
#3. The End of The Streak
WrestleMania 30 will be remembered in the record books as the place where The Undertaker's undefeated streak came to an end. It was one of the biggest shocks in wrestling and has since led to Brock Lesnar's WWE dominance over the past few years.
Lesnar was unstoppable before he ended The Deadman's WrestleMania streak, but following WrestleMania 30 he became the most dominant force in the company.
Undertaker's streak began at WrestleMania 7 and continued through until WrestleMania 30. In that time, The Deadman missed two WrestleMania's so his streak was at 20-0 heading into WrestleMania 30.
Taker himself has since confessed that he suffered a concussion in the match and doesn't remember it. Paul Heyman has started conspiracy theories that state that Lesnar went into business for himself and defeated The Deadman when he wasn't supposed to.
It's an intriguing story, but the end of the streak changed the face of WrestleMania. For years The Deadman dominated at WWE's biggest show of the year, but fans are now unsure if he will be part of WrestleManias moving forward.
Lesnar was finally defeated in a WWE ring by Roman Reigns and then Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre, so it appears that The Beast has been slain. That being said, The Streak is still gone. The longest undefeated streak in the history of wrestling and perhaps the longest that will ever be added to record books has finally come to an end.
#2. Chris Benoit's murder-suicide
Chris Benoit's name was banned from being mentioned in wrestling circles for more than a decade after his death. The events of that fateful night in June 2007 have haunted wrestling fans for the past 13 years, but it's worth noting that there was a small positive to come out of the horrific situation that unfolded.
According to medical examinations, experts diagnosed Benoit with 'severe brain damage', stating that his brain resembled the nature of an '85-year old Alzheimer's patient'. Benoit's heart was also three times the size it should have been and his body contained ten times the normal amount of steroid testosterone despite passing a Wellness Policy test three months earlier.
WWE was forced to change many of its policies following Benoit's death and many of these are for the better. The health of their athletes is now paramount and WWE's concussion protocol has now been changed completely.
Benoit's brain allowed the study of CTE and now WWE forces every star who suffers a concussion to go through Impact testing before they can make their return.
"If a WWE Talent shows symptoms of a concussion or has suffered a concussion, then that WWE Talent will not be cleared for a return to wrestling until he/she passes an ImPACT test and is cleared clinically by a certified physician."
#1. Eddie Guerrero passes away
The wrestling world was struck by tragedy back in November 2005 when one of the most loved stars in the company sadly passed away. Eddie Guerrero died in a hotel room in Minneapolis in Chavo Guerrero's arms. An autopsy revealed that Guerrero died as a result of acute heart failure due to underlying atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Eddie's tragic passing forced WWE to change their protocols and went on to introduce The Wellness Policy. This allows WWE to monitor talents and hand out suspensions following violations.
"The WWE instituted their Wellness Program on February 27, 2006. Many felt that the WWE instituted a Wellness Program in response to the negativity that the company received after the death of Eddie Guerrero."
Over the years, a number of wrestlers have been suspended for their violation of the policy, but in introducing the policy the company also started to give Superstars full health checks to pick up underlying health problems. This makes WWE safer for its performers and ensures that wrestlers with underlying conditions are monitored.
