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For most pro wrestlers, working for WWE is the dream. It's the company they grew up watching (the one that's still around, anyway), and it's the biggest company around today. Sure, you'll find the odd duck who can say, "All I ever wanted was to wrestle for IMPACT," and mean it. But you'll have to look hard to find them.
Of course, once you make it to "The Big Leagues," not everything is guaranteed to be sunshine and rainbows there, even if you find success. There are plenty of folks who have been employed by WWE who simply decided they didn't want to be anymore.
Time heals all (or at least most) wounds, and even those who have stormed out vowing never to come back have, well, come back. Just look at the end of this year's Survivor Series. Even with everything that happened between CM Punk and the company, they still found common ground so that the Straight Edge Superstar could have at least one last run in his old stomping grounds.
This got us thinking - when else has this happened? So, here are five more times superstars have walked out of the company and then found their way back.
Just for clarification, this list is only of performers who either quit or let their contracts expire. Wrestlers who were fired or involuntarily released aren't included. That's a whole other can of worms.
#5. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin - Left WWE in 2002, returned in 2003
There's no question that both "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and WWE owe each other a debt of gratitude. The company gave him the opportunity to become the star he is today - but you could also argue that it might not even be around today if it wasn't for him. Austin's character and feud with Vince McMahon brought fans to the product in droves at a time when the promotion was fighting for its life against WCW.
Once the Monday Night Wars ended in 2001 with the company's outright purchase of its competition, Austin's position seemed to be in flux. Regaining the WWE Championship at WrestleMania X-Seven also came with an ill-advised heel turn - and making him the leader of the WCW/ECW Alliance during the Invasion storyline didn't really do him any favors either.
Come 2002, WWE was in the process of making new stars - one of which was "The Next Big Thing," Brock Lesnar. Already frustrated with the creative options offered by the company, The Rattlesnake eventually hit his breaking point when asked to lose a King of the Ring qualifying match against The Beast.
Essentially, Austin thought it was a dumb idea. He wasn't opposed to losing to the then-rookie, it was just how it was being handled. Ultimately, Austin decided he'd had enough and walked out. McMahon and the rest of WWE made a big production out of it, claiming Stone Cold had "taken his ball and gone home."
The two sides managed to work things out eventually, and the Bionic Redneck made his return the next year. Austin frequently cites this as the biggest regret of his career, often stating that he regrets how he handled the situation.
#4. Brock Lesnar - left WWE in 2003, returned in 2012
Speaking of Brock Lesnar, it's kind of hard to imagine the current WWE landscape without the Beast. He's headlined numerous WrestleMania events, held a world championship in the company multiple times, and even ended the Undertaker's 'Mania streak. And this was all just after he first left the promotion.
In 2003, Lesnar was burned out. Yes, he had been pushed to the moon and even became the then-youngest WWE Champion ever. However, the travel began to wear on him, as well as unhappiness with certain creative choices the company was providing him.
By the time WrestleMania XX came out, Lesnar had enough. He wrestled Goldberg in a universally panned match (which he lost), flipped the crowd two middle fingers (which he later admitted were directed towards Vince McMahon), and left to try his hand at professional football.
While an NFL career didn't pan out, he found massive success in the MMA arena, becoming the UFC Heavyweight Champion. Numerous health issues and the loss of his title caused him to retire from the sport in 2011 (for the first time, anyway), but by then, he had gained a reputation as a legitimate and terrifying fighter.
On the RAW following WrestleMania 28, Lesnar returned - attacking a John Cena already smarting after a loss to The Rock in the main event. It was just the beginning of one of the biggest comebacks in wrestling history.
#3. Goldberg - left WWE in 2003, returned in 2016
When former WCW Champion Goldberg first signed with the company, it was a big deal. "Da Man" had been hesitant to join the promotion following WCW's closure - even after his contract with AOL Time Warner (which continued to pay him despite WCW no longer existing) ran out.
However, come 2003, Goldberg signed a one-year agreement with WWE and made his much-anticipated debut following WrestleMania XIX. One year later, he was gone.
Despite winning the World Heavyweight Championship, Goldberg's time in the company was... frustrating, to say the least. Despite paying him a reportedly ludicrous amount of money, Vince McMahon really failed to capture what made him so successful in WCW. Unhappy with how things were, Goldberg - much like his WrestleMania XX opponent Lesnar - decided to leave.
In 2016, however, Goldberg signed on to become a pre-order bonus for the WWE 2K17 video game. The ad campaign for the title promoted "Fantasy Warfare," an imaginary bout between Goldberg and the Beast. This eventually led to an actual match at Survivor Series that year, which Goldberg shockingly won in a matter of minutes.
Since that match, Goldberg would go on to win the WWE Universal Championship on two occasions, headline a WrestleMania or two, and eventually be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. That's a pretty good turnaround.
Let's just not talk about that match against the Undertaker.
#2. Cody Rhodes - left WWE in 2016, returned in 2022
When the "American Nightmare" first started in the promotion back in 2006-2007, you would think he would be there for his entire career. The son of the legendary Dusty Rhodes, he quickly moved up the ranks, winning the Tag Team and Intercontinental Championships numerous times.
In 2014, however, Rhodes would be repackaged as Stardust, a face-painted character similar to that of his brother Dustin, also known as Goldust. Despite making the best of it, Cody was stuck playing the character for two years. Eventually, he had enough and requested his release in 2016.
His path after that is pretty well known. He had some brilliant runs in Ring of Honor, IMPACT, and NJPW, eventually cultivating the "American Nightmare" persona he uses to this day. In 2019, he helped co-found All Elite Wrestling, which is still the company's biggest competitor since WCW folded.
However, in 2022, he left the promotion he helped create and returned to the one that made him a star. On the first night of WrestleMania 38, he was Seth Rollins' mystery opponent. Despite a torn pectoral muscle that put him out of action for months, he won the Royal Rumble the next year, which led to a WrestleMania 39 main event against Roman Reigns.
#1. Ric Flair - left WWE in 1993, returned in 2001
For decades, "Nature Boy" Ric Flair was to the NWA/WCW what Hulk Hogan was to WWE. He was the face of the company, its multi-time world champion, and the one always picked on the WCW side for a hypothetical WCW vs. WWE dream match.
Nobody really thought that Flair would ever work for WCW's competition up north, but in 1991, it happened. After a nasty dispute with then-WCW head Jim Herd, Flair was fired. So, he took the WCW Championship title belt he still had in his possession (Flair had placed a $25,000 security deposit on the belt when he became champion that had yet to be paid back) and signed with Vince McMahon's company.
Throughout the two years he worked for WWE, Flair would go on to win the Royal Rumble, win the WWE Championship twice, headline WrestleMania 8, and have what Flair would often call the best time of his career.
When 1993 came around, things were changing in WWE. McMahon began to focus on his younger stars more, and there just wasn't much left for the "Dirtiest Player in the Game" to do there. Flair requested his release, which McMahon willingly obliged on the condition he put over the late "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig on the way out. Flair happily complied.
Flash forward to 2001. WWE had purchased WCW, which Flair was working for at the time. Rather than be a part of the Invasion story, the Nature Boy was nowhere to be soon. That is until the RAW after Survivor Series 2001. The Alliance had been defeated, and Vince had won. Nothing could go wrong for him.
And then this happened:
Flair would go on to be a major part of the Ruthless Aggression era, including teaming with Triple H, Randy Orton, and Batista as part of Evolution. He even managed to win the Tag Team and Intercontinental Championships during that time.
These are certainly not the only WWE stars to walk out and come back - which ones do you remember? Share them in the comments below.
