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Sometimes the wide, wide world of WWE can be a little too much to handle for some people. There can be any number of reasons why Superstars decide to part ways with the company, from falling out with the boss to moving on to what they perceive to be greener pastures.
There are actually very few wrestlers who manage to hold down a spot in WWE for the entirety of their in-ring careers. Even the likes of The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin wrestled for other companies before WWE. If they had left though, how long would it have taken them to return?
That's the key point too. It would seem no matter how badly burned the bridge and regardless of how much time has passed, everyone eventually comes back. Relationships that seemed irreparable are patched up after years of bad blood. Here are five Superstars who spent awfully long times away from WWE only to eventually return.
#5 The Rock
As soon as The Rock started to rise to prominence in WWE, you knew that The People's Champion was destined for some great things. As he became a bigger star within the business, he began to attract the attention of those outside of it.
After getting a taste of the Hollywood lifestyle while still wrestling, Rocky would eventually leave WWE officially in 2004. So began his mission to become one of the biggest action stars in the movie business.
Well, mission accomplished. Despite Rock making sporadic appearances for WWE, it was actually a whole seven years before he would make his real, triumphant return. It was a hero's welcome in 2011 and it was shortly after that his legendary feud with John Cena began.
#4 Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar may be one of the greatest Superstars WWE has ever created. A product of the famous OVW class of 2000, WWE took the polished college athlete and turned him into one of professional wrestling's greatest prospects.
Only two years after his main roster debut, however, Brock wanted out. The intense WWE schedule had worn him down and following his infamously terrible match with Goldberg at WrestleMania XX, he quite happily left the company to pursue careers in football and MMA.
The MMA career worked out for The Beast of course, but eventually, Brock wanted to come home. There were rumours that Lesnar was in the building for the Raw after WrestleMania XXVIII, and those rumours turned out to be true. Brock emerged to a rapturous pop a whole eight years after he had turned his back on the WWE Universe.
#3 Bret Hart
If there is one man on this list that fans never thought they would see back in a WWE ring it was Bret Hart. The Montreal Screwjob that took place on the night The Hitman left WWE in 1997 is perhaps the most infamous moment in the company's entire history.
On his way out the door, Bret spat in the face of Vince McMahon as well as giving his former boss a black eye. That alone would be enough to keep you out of most former workplaces for life. As you well know by now, however, everybody comes back in the end.
Bret was inducted into the Hall of Fame, but even that didn't rebuild the bridge between him and Vince. It took another few years on top of that for Hart to return completely. In 2009, so a whole 12 years after the controversy of that night in Montreal.
#2 Goldberg
Goldberg didn't have the best of times when he finally decided to sign for WWE in 2003. Despite beating The Rock in his first ever match for the company, his initial run there only lasted 12 months.
As mentioned earlier in this list, Goldberg and Lesnar had an infamously bad match at WrestleMania XX. Not only was it Brock's last match for WWE but it was also Goldberg's. With all that in mind, it's no surprise that the bout was so bad.
Shockingly though even Goldberg came back for a second WWE run, almost 13 years after his first one came to an end. Last year, WWE 2K17 was all about the WCW icon, and that combined with wanting to show his son and wife what he did in his prime convinced Goldberg to return for one last run.
#1 Ultimate Warrior
This tale is by far the most heart warming and also heart breaking when it comes to a Superstar finally returning to WWE. Ultimate Warrior had an on-again, off-again relationship with WWE during the '90s, one that came to an end in 1996.
Things did not end on good terms. While Warrior was away WWE went about sullying the good name he had built for himself while working with the company. They released a DVD titled The Self Destruction Of The Ultimate Warrior, a documentary detailing everything that Warrior had done to destroy his own career.
Despite all of that and more Warrior was welcomed back by WWE in 2014, 18 years after he had seemingly left for good. He was rightfully inducted into the Hall of Fame and apparently mended a lot of fences with former peers that weekend. Warrior would make a poignant speech on Raw just two days after his Hall of Fame induction, only to pass away 24 hours later.
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