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Rivalries are the most important aspect of the WWE. The creative team sweat blood in order to plan and execute rivalries among superstars. These rivalries spice up the entertainment and involve a huge audience resulting in TRP.
WWE is widely known for its long-lasting rivalries. Since the inception of the WWE industry, these feuds among the superstars have played a pivotal role in the company's elevation. While for some wrestlers, these rivalries proved to be a Skyfall.
Let's have a look at five such rivalries that ended a wrestler's career:
#5 Lance Storm vs Steve Austin
Lance Storm was a shining face of World Championship Wrestling. He held the WCW United States, Hardcore, and Cruiserweight titles simultaneously. When WWE (WWF back then) bought WCW in 2001, his career didn't see much light as in WCW. Although he won the Intercontinental Championship, Storm fell victim to the system. He got caught in a feud with Steve Austin, who would often mock at Lance by calling the Canadian boring.
After his feud with Steve Austin, who was the authority figure, Lance Storm could not really get the best out of his tenure. During his last appearance on Raw, Storm expressed his frustration by saying that he was tired of pleasing fans with his goofy gimmick and felt like it's just a waste of time.
In April 2004, Storm announced his retirement from in-ring action.
#4 Muhammad Hassan vs The Undertaker
Muhammad Hassan is best known for his time in WWE from 2004 to 2005. Hassan portrayed a role of an Arab-American and his gimmick was majorly fed by the racism under the storyline of WWE. He went on to become a huge star in the early months of 2005.
Hassan got into a rivalry with The Undertaker. The rivalry ended up in a controversial storyline when Hassan's manager, Daivari was martyred in Hassan’s name, only three days after the 2005 London bombings. Muhammad Hassan act led to severe consequences and saw the end of Hassan's character following the pressure on WWE. Soon after the incident, Hassan announced his retirement from the professional wrestling.
#3 Scott Steiner vs Triple H
Scott Steiner's feud with Triple H is considered to be the bizarre rivalry of all time. Steiner achieved a high status of being a vicious beast during the initial phase of his career. However, his career in WWE witnessed an abrupt downfall after his feud with Triple H for World Heavyweight Championship. The two faced each other twice in No Way Out and Royal Rumble. Steiner defeated Triple H in Royal Rumble by DQ, however, he was badly thrashed by The Game and lost by pinfall in No Way Out. However, the rivalry between the two was not well received by fans.
Steiner tried to revive his dead career in WWE by teaming up with Test and Stacy Keibler but could not strive much time in WWE, eventually leading to end of his WWE career.
#2 CM Punk vs The Rock
This rivalry is arguably very controversial. CM Punk was at peak of his career as WWE Champion in back in early 2013. His record-setting reign of holding WWE Championship for 434 days came to an end with The Rock defeating Punk at the Royal Rumble.
After the loss of title, Punk's career started to fell. He got a title rematch but was defeated by The Rock again. In an episode of Raw, Punk faced Royal Rumble winner John Cena for his number one contender match to the WWE Championship but he lost, yet again.
Punk tried to get his hands back on the championship but failed miserably. On 26 January 2014, Punk left WWE and retired from Pro Wrestling.
#1 Shawn Michaels vs Undertaker
Tagged as the greatest rivalry of all time, The Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels feud ended with Shawn Michaels retirement. The rivalry witnessed five emotional and energetic matches between the two superstars throughout their career. However, the last two matches are considered to be the greatest of all the times.
Shawn Micheals faced Undertaker at Wrestlemania XXV in a highly acclaimed match where The Undertaker retained the streak 17-0 by defeating Michaels. Following a year, the duo faced each other again in Career vs Streak match at Wrestlemania XXVI, where Micheals again lost to The Deadman resulting in the end of his career.
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