'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Professional wrestling gives fans multiple opportunities throughout the year to see some incredible stories of triumph, heartbreak, betrayal, and redemption. However, sometimes we never see the ending that wrestlers were building up to. Sometimes an injury puts the brakes on a blood feud between two former tag team partners. Sometimes the creative team just fails to deliver on what was promised.
Whatever the case may be, we've seen dozens of feuds over the years that were completely derailed, robbing the WWE Universe of payoffs and getting them emotionally involved into something that was never set to deliver the way it was promised to.
What would've happened if, weeks before WrestleMania X7, Stone Cold Steve Austin suffered a serious injury, putting the championship match between himself and The Rock in jeopardy? What if Shawn Michaels never won the World Heavyweight Championship at the first ever Elimination Chamber because the creative team decided he wasn't the right guy for that spot? What if Edge failed his Money in the Bank cash in, essentially putting an early end to the greatest feud of the Ruthless Aggression era between the Rated-R Superstar and John Cena?
Trending
Feuds and storylines end abruptly all the time in the world of professional wrestling. Today, we're starting off out list with a recent rivalry that completely halted the momentum of a former WWE Champion.
#5 – Bray Wyatt vs Randy Orton
Back in 2017, the Wyatt Family was dominating SmackDown Live. With Randy Orton and Luke Harper by his side, the Eater of Worlds managed to put away some of the best talent in the WWE, and was mere inches away from the WWE Championship. However, cracks in the new Wyatt Family quickly formed, as Luke Harper broke away from the faction, unable to trust the Viper.
At the Royal Rumble in 2017, Randy Orton managed to outlast twenty nine other men and earn an opportunity at the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 33. However, he would end up facing off against his master on the Grandest Stage of Them All.
At Elimination Chamber 2017, Bray Wyatt did the impossible, pinning both AJ Styles and John Cena in the later half of the chamber match to capture his first WWE Championship.
Wyatt would again cement his placement at the top of the ladder by defeating both Styles and Cena in a triple threat match later on. It didn't take long after that before the completely expected happened. Randy Orton betrayed Bray Wyatt. Orton took the champion's trust, learned the location of his compound, and found the burial site of Sister Abigail. He then burned her along with the shed which was built upon her grave while Wyatt wept at ringside.
It was a feud full of emotional investment. Fans were eager to see Wyatt finally capture the WWE Championship, and didn't want to see his run end too soon. However, that's exactly what would happen, as Randy Orton would take the belt away from him in an odd and overall underwhelming match, featuring LED projected roaches and worms.
The three week reign was heartbreaking for Wyatt, but fans hoped to see him regain the title, overcoming the Viper at Payback, which he would do in a House of Horrors match. However, it wasn't for the WWE Championship, as Wyatt had been drafted to Raw beforehand, making his win utterly pointless.
We never got the rubber match between the two, either, completely robbing us of the rest of this feud in order for the WWE to slap the championship on Jinder Mahal. Bray Wyatt's credibility took a massive hit here. To top it all off, Randy Orton connected with an RKO after the match, taking away whatever momentum Wyatt had moving forward before the WWE Champion was attacked by Jinder Mahal, making the leader of the Wyatt Family a complete afterthought.
Looking back, it's hard not to say that this was where the fall of Bray Wyatt began.
#4 – Brock Lesnar vs Samoa Joe
During Brock Lesnar's Universal Championship reign last year, the Beast Incarnate faced off against the titans of Monday Night Raw. In 2017 alone he battled Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, Bray Wyatt, Roman Reigns, and more. And while these were mostly one-off bouts for the majority of his challengers, the Samoan Submission Machine managed to make a short one-month feud feel like a personal half-year long war.
It wouldn't be too over the top to consider Samoa Joe as one of, if not, the best promo in the entire WWE at the moment. The United States Champion is able to make any feud feel real. Look what we saw when he challenged AJ Styles for the WWE Championship in the summer of 2018. Stalking Styles' family, claiming that he wasn't a real father because all he cared about was the championship? Whenever Joe sets his sights on someone, he goes for the throat both physically and mentally.
That's exactly what he did when he was next in line for Brock Lesnar's Universal Championship. Joe made it clear, repeatedly, that he didn't fear the Beast Incarnate. He was jealous of everything that Lesnar had and he was going to do everything in his power to take the success, the money, and the championship away from him.
Heyman, in a terrible decision, decided to meet Joe in the ring and tell him that Lesnar didn't fear him. Heyman, though, was bothered by that and considered Samoa Joe the most dangerous competitor that Lesnar could face. Strowman, Rollins, Wyatt, Reigns, he considered them a tier below the Destroyer.
He shook Joe's hand, but was backed into a corner. At this point, the TV audience heard something that the live crowd didn't get to. He explained, very matter of factly, as politely as he possibly could, that he was going to choke Heyman out. He felt disrespected that Lesnar didn't show up to accept his challenge himself and decided to punish his manager instead.
It was surreal. It was terrifying. It was exactly what we needed in a hoss fight. Over the next few weeks, Joe and Lesnar would attempt to get in each other's head. However, two weeks before their championship bout at Great Balls of Fire, he choked out the champ.
Heyman introduced Lesnar to a live crowd, expecting to intimidate Joe. However, it had the opposite effect, and the #1 contender quickly locked Lesnar in the Coquina Clutch. Lesnar tried to fight out of it, sending Joe into the screens on the stage. However, Joe kept the hold locked in, and nearly put the Universal Champion to sleep. Luckily, several Raw superstars pulled him away.
There was never a point in Brock Lesnar's Universal Title reign where he looked so human. Joe was his kryptonite, and always seemed to walk away with the upper hand. At Great Balls of Fire, we got a pretty short match, lasting a little over 6 minutes. Joe attacked Lesnar before the bell and nearly put him to sleep at the beginning. However, he would eventually regain his composure, and would manage to put Joe away with an F-5.
Considering how hot this feud was from start to finish, and how easy it was for Joe to get under the skin of the Beast Incarnate and the Advocate, it's kind of incredible that we never got a rematch or a continuation of their feud in a one-on-one way.
This was the best we ever saw from Joe on the main roster, and it's, arguably, the best we ever saw from Lesnar in 2018. It's too bad we never got to finish this, because Lesnar vs Joe for the Universal Championship was truly a story that finished too soon.
#3 – The Wyatt Family vs The Shield
In the early 2010s, two groups debuted on the main roster, taking the WWE Universe by storm. The Shield made their first appearance at Survivor Series 2012, helping CM Punk retain the WWE Championship by attacking Ryback, allowing Punk to pin Cena and retain the belt. For the next two years, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Dean Ambrose laid waste to the entire main roster, running through top stars like John Cena, Randy Orton, Sheamus, and Daniel Bryan.
By the time 2013 came around, another terrifying trio debuted on the main roster, dubbed "The Wyatt Family." Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, and Erick Rowan would also make quick work of anyone that came in contact with them. Kane, Kofi Kingston, CM Punk and Daniel Bryan were only a few of a long list of names that felt the wrath of the trio. As they continued to build, and the Shield suddenly turned face, the WWE Universe began to ask one question.
WHEN ARE WE GOING TO SEE THE WYATT FAMILY FIGHT THE SHIELD?
It was a slow burn to that run. The Shield rallied around Daniel Bryan, who had been the target of the Authority for half a year by this point. At the same time, Bryan had been targeted by The Wyatt Family, who tried to indoctrinate him after he repeatedly lost opportunities at the WWE Championship. Bryan eventually broke away, and after the Royal Rumble PPV would look to make a move towards the title yet again, leaving the Wyatts with nothing to do.
Finally, with the Wyatts and the Shield looking to earn a shot at the Elimination Chamber, the two groups finally butted heads, leading to a match at Elimination Chamber, which saw the Wyatts emerge successful. At this point, cracks began to appear in the Shield, as all three members became visibly frustrated with each other.
Two weeks after Elimination Chamber, and the Wyatts put away the Shield once again.
With two back-to-back losses, it looked like the Shield wouldn't be able to overcome the ominous force that was the Wyatt Family. However, months after their feud began, the trio finally got back on the same page, and put away the Wyatts...on an episode of Main Event.
It ended with Dean Ambrose pinning Erick Rowan after the Dirty Deeds v.1, but by this point in the year, the Shield had already moved on to bigger and better things, looking to take on a reformed Evolution after WrestleMania.
Considering that these were two of the most dominant forces in the entire WWE for a few years, it's pretty shocking to see how quickly it was wrapped up. After all, most of the fanbase hasn't even seen the final match in the series, and that's not the right way to end an epic feud between these two factions.
#2 – Seth Rollins vs Dean Ambrose
So, this was one of the most controversial stories that WWE has given us in the past few years. We're not talking about the classic run when Seth Rollins betrayed the Shield, and Ambrose became loonier as time went on, constantly antagonizing Rollins as he rose higher and higher through the card.
No, today we're talking about the Dirty Deeds heard round the world. On the October 22nd edition of Monday Night Raw, Roman Reigns revealed that he'd have to surrender the Universal Championship. Reigns announced that his leukemia had returned, and he'd have to leave for some time to take on the toughest battle of his life.
It was a touching moment that tugged at the heartstrings of even the most bitter WWE fans. Reigns' speech ended with an embrace of brothers at the top of the ramp where Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose were waiting on him.
Ambrose and Rollins would go on to capture the Raw Tag Team Titles on Raw. However, immediately after, Ambrose drove Rollins face first into the mat with a Dirty Deeds. A shocked and horrified crowd looked on as the two men who embraced their friend at the beginning of the show were now mortal enemies.
It was a disgusting act on the part of Ambrose, and it led to a huge outcry from the WWE Universe. Fans were heartbroken twice in one night, and were furious at Ambrose for ruining a heartwarming moment that we all needed following Reigns' announcement.
The feud immediately got the attention of fans. However, it didn't really play out the way we were all expecting. At the beginning, it seemed that Ambrose had done this to Rollins as a way to punish him for his "past sins." It was hinted at that, with Ambrose having a pretty serious scare earlier in 2018 and Roman Reigns having to walk away for a time, they'd answered for their past "sins" as the Shield. However, Rollins had yet to truly do that, so it was up to Ambrose to set that right.
In his own twisted and psychotic way, he felt he was doing the right thing. However, it quickly turned into something...worse. Ambrose began claiming to hate dirt and disease, as we saw a segment where he got various shots and vaccines while pulling his pants down, avoiding towns like Chicago for fear of getting some kind of sickness from the people there.
After the initial attack, actually, we didn't see any continuation of this story for about two weeks. Ambrose eventually turned up to burn his old Shield vest. That's about as personal as it got. After that, he picked up his own swat team and started calling himself the "Moral Compass" of the WWE. He won the Intercontinental Championship from Rollins at TLC, but would lose it very shortly thereafter to Bobby Lashley in a Triple Threat that also included Rollins.
In all reality, we only really got one PPV match between these two. As hot as this rivalry started, it just fell flat. It felt like everyone was trying to rush towards the end so they could move onto something else, taking away what could have been the best story of 2018/2019.
#1 – Tommaso Ciampa vs Johnny Gargano
Those who were able to watch this incredible saga from the moment it started bore witness to, arguably, the greatest story in all of professional wrestling in the past decade. Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa came into NXT without contracts, with the WWE feeling they weren't worthy of a spot on their roster. To give them a chance, they were thrown together as a tag team for the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Tournament.
The duo quickly impressed the WWE brass, and would quickly earn contracts, officially signing them on the NXT brand. They continued on as a tag team, picking up tag team gold along the way while they put on wars against the likes of The Revival and the Authors of Pain. However, in 2016, the cracks began to show. Gargano defeated Ciampa in the Cruiserweight Classic, and a tense moment between the two eventually led to a heartfelt embrace in the middle of the ring.
A few tag team losses over the next few months would give us a replay of that scene. A frustrated Ciampa would be calmed down by Gargano, allowing cooler heads to prevail while they worked on a new plan. However, an injury to Ciampa's leg would force his hand. At NXT TakeOver: Chicago, after failing to reclaim the NXT Tag Team Titles, Ciampa turned on his former best friend, sending him careening into the LED board at the top of the ramp and dropping him through some tables with an Air Raid Siren.
Though he was out injured, the Psycho Killer continued to haunt his former tag team partner throughout the rest of 2017. Cut to eight months later, and Tommaso Ciampa returns, cracking Johnny Gargano over the back with a crutch at NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia in January 2018.
Over the next year, the two would be involved in one of the most bitter and heartbreaking feuds in recent memory, forcing both men to grow as competitors. Ciampa would become more crafty as a result, while Gargano would become more aggressive in his attempt to win matches.
Nearly two years after Ciampa's heel turn, and DIY reformed, looking to capture the NXT Tag Team Championship again, this time while Blackheart Ciampa now held the NXT Championship. While we saw the champion attempt to turn on Gargano again after being eliminated from the tournament, Johnny Wrestling was prepared, feigning an injury to force Ciampa's hand.
Sadly, we never saw the real conclusion to this story, as a neck injury would force Ciampa to relinquish the NXT Championship before undergoing surgery. While Gargano went on to win the title at NXT TakeOver: New York, we never got the ending that the two-plus year story deserved.
