5 WWE Superstars who could retire in 2022

There have been many WWE superstars over the years who seemingly weren't sure when to call it quits. Perhaps the most recent example is The Undertaker. He's a revered legend and an all-time great in the professional wrestling industry - not just WWE.

However, fans had long been calling for him to retire, especially after his match against Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania XXX in 2014. He eventually called it quits in 2020 and had his farewell ceremony. He's just one of many examples of wrestlers who arguably compete far past their prime.

However, that may not be the case for everyone, including members of the current WWE roster. Here are five current superstars who could potentially retire in 2022:

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#5. AJ Styles - Signed his last contract with WWE?

In 2019, AJ Styles revealed that he signed a new contract with WWE. While he didn't reveal details about the length of the contract, he said that it would be the last contract he signed with WWE. In 2019, there was a big offer from AEW for AJ Styles, and it was before the pandemic - during a time when WWE was handing out contracts to superstars solely to keep them away from another promotion.

AJ Styles took advantage of the offer given to him by AEW and used it to leverage a better contract with WWE. It's rumored that his contract expires in 2022, although some sources say that he will be with WWE until 2023-24. Assuming he signed a 3-year contract with WWE, he is almost certain to retire. It could be speculated that when AJ Styles signed a new contract, he had the end of his career in mind.

For the last year, it seemed as though AJ Styles took a step away from the world title picture - one that he was actively a part of from 2016 to early 2019. He's been on RAW, where he has teamed up with Omos and won the RAW Tag Team titles as well - making him a WWE Grand Slam Champion in just over five years.

For AJ Styles, WWE is the perfect place. He has fit in well, achieved a lot, and it's a PG product, which he's a fan of. While he may have possibly retired even earlier, the light schedule in the Thunderdome during the COVID-19 pandemic made him have a change of mind.

It won't be surprising to see AJ Styles continue on until 2024, but after a career spanning over two decades, he seems to be in a position to call it quits.

#4. Samoa Joe - A cursed run in WWE?

Samoa Joe's run in WWE has been unfortunate in a few aspects. He has been virtually inactive from WWE TV since 2020, with his brief NXT Championship run already forgotten about by many.

Samoa Joe had already been out of action for over a year when WWE released him. Triple H pulled the strings and got him re-hired, bringing him back to NXT after nearly five years.

He became the first and only three-time NXT Champion, but within a few weeks, he had to vacate the title following an undisclosed injury. Samoa Joe's lengthy layoff in WWE from 2020-2021 was reportedly due to concussion issues, and sometimes, the writing could be on the wall.

Samoa Joe is 42 years old, which isn't too bad by modern pro wrestling standards. With evolving diets, exercise regimens, and an entirely different approach to fitness, a lot of wrestlers can compete well into their 40s.

However, WWE could put Samoa Joe in a Daniel Bryan-like position where they simply refuse to clear him. If they're right in doing so, then Samoa Joe could retire from wrestling in 2021.

#3. Shelton Benjamin - The end of a disappointing WWE spell?

Shelton Benjamin was expected to return to WWE in 2016 following the re-introduction of the brand split. However, he never officially signed, and nagging injuries delayed his return by over a year. In the summer of 2017, Shelton Benjamin was revealed to be a part of a tag team with Chad Gable.

Their tag team didn't last for too long, and post-WrestleMania 34, WWE split up the team in the Superstar Shake-Up. After that, Shelton Benjamin would flutter around aimlessly for a while.

Except for his 2020-2021 run with The Hurt Business, Shelton Benjamin's entire second tenure with WWE has been directionless. The Hurt Business proved to be one of the best factions that WWE had created in a long time, but they were broken up - a decision that even then-WWE Champion Bobby Lashley reportedly protested.

While Benjamin and Cedric Alexander would reunite as The Hurt Business in the summer of 2021, it seems too little too late, and both men have primarily been used as enhancement talent.

Shelton Benjamin's contract was originally reported to be through 2021, but he had stated that he signed a multi-year contract. If so, 2022 could be his last year with WWE, and subsequently, the last year of the 46-year-old's wrestling career.

#2. Edge - Could 2022 be the end of his fairytale WWE return?

Given how Edge has wrestled in 2021, it seems obvious that he can go on in WWE well past 2022. He shocked the wrestling world in 2020 when he returned at the Royal Rumble match and had his first singles bout in 9 years at WrestleMania 36.

However, the circumstances of the pandemic meant that his first singles bout had to be done without a crowd. He headlined Backlash 2020, and an injury kept him out for the rest of the year.

He joined an elite list of 2-time Royal Rumble winners in 2021 when he began at #1 and went until the end, winning the Royal Rumble match again after 11 years. 2021 has not only seen him achieve that, but he has headlined WrestleMania once again and has had arguably the WWE feud of the year against Seth Rollins.

His bouts against Rollins at SummerSlam and Crown Jewel were instant classics, with the latter Hell in a Cell contest being deemed by many as a match of the year candidate.

Edge's WWE contract is reportedly through 2022, and we anticipate that he will re-sign given the rate at which he's going. But the unfortunate reality is that all it takes is one more major injury for Edge's fairytale run to end again.

We hope that doesn't happen, and he can replicate his incredible year in 2022 and keep carrying on.

#1. Bobby Lashley - Will The All Mighty end his career in WWE?

The All Mighty Bobby Lashley had a resurgence in 2020-2021. After two years of being wrongly utilized by WWE, he became a beneficiary of the pandemic era. Post-WrestleMania 36, he benefited from the lack of superstars available and began to get a push.

The first stage of it started with his alliance with MVP, followed by the formation of The Hurt Business. At first, he won the United States Championship, having a good reign until Riddle dethroned him.

Immediately after that, it was the pursuit of the WWE Championship, which he won from The Miz only eight days after The A-Lister cashed in his Money in the Bank contract.

The All Mighty finally won the world title and carried RAW for a good part of 2021. He re-signed with the company in 2018, and the exact details of his contract are unknown. However, if it is the 4-year-deal that was reported, he may want to call it quits on his pro wrestling career after experiencing his possible peak in 2021.