5 WrestleMania matches that were scrapped at the last minute - and the reason why 

WrestleMania 38 is merely weeks away now, and the card for the show is already taking shape. There are reports that the company could add another seven matches before the event takes place, which means that there could be around 15 matches over the weekend.

One bout that is currently up in the air is the proposed six-man match between Sheamus, Ridge Holland, Butch, and The New Day. The match was set up on SmackDown but Big E suffered a broken neck following a Belly-to-Belly suplex. The former champion could now be out of action for more than a year.

This isn't the first match that has been scrapped at the last minute ahead of WrestleMania, and in recent years several bouts have changed with good reason.

#5. Roman Reigns vs Goldberg - WrestleMania 36

Roman Reigns was scheduled to wrestle Goldberg for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania 36 back in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the biggest show of the year into The Performance Center.

The Tribal Chief was one of the "high-risk" individuals at the time of the pandemic given his recent battle with Leukemia. The Head of the Table was forced to pull out of the match and isolate himself to ensure he was protected.

Rather than scrapping the match completely, WWE replaced Roman Reigns with Braun Strowman. The Monster Among Men was able to win the match and the championship for the first time.

The bout finally took place in Saudi Arabia last month and saw Roman Reigns pick up a huge victory over the WWE Hall of Famer to retain his title.

#4. Earthquake Vs. Ludvig Borga - WrestleMania 10

Whilst many devoted WWE fans will remember that Earthquake did wrestle at WrestleMania X and was able to defeat Adam Bomb in less than 60 seconds, this wasn't his originally scheduled match.

Instead, WWE believed that Ludvig Borga would heal from a broken ankle in time to wrestle at the biggest event of the year, but at the eleventh hour it became clear that this wasn't the case and he was then replaced.

Adam Bomb stepped up to the challenge and became another victim on Earthquake's lengthy list. Borga on the other hand, didn't recover in time and failed to return to WWE again. The former star retired from the business in 1997 without ever walking through a WWE curtain again.

#3. Kamala vs Bam Bam Bigelow - WrestleMania VIII

Kamala was scheduled to be part of WrestleMania 9

WrestleMania VIIII included some of the biggest stars in the company at that time. But the two faces that were missing were Kamala and Bam Bam Bigelow, despite being advertised for the show ahead of time.

The match between the two big men was announced just two weeks before the event, but was completely left off the card when the show went live.

Bruce Pritchard later revealed on his Something to Wrestle With Podcast that none of the matches on the show went over, the plans just changed and the decision was made to allow Hulk Hogan to remain in the ring to pose with the title for as long as he needed.

It appears that Kamala and Bam Bam Bigelow's match was the one that was taken out in order for this to be added.

#2. Tons of Funk and The Funkadactyls vs The Bella Twins and Team Rhodes Scholars - WWE WrestleMania 29

It's been almost a decade since CM Punk stepped up to The Undertaker at WrestleMania 29 back in 2013 and their match overran so much that the women's match that was planned for the show was scrapped.

The Bella Twins and The Funkadactyls were backstage at the time and their reactions to the news was used as part of Total Divas, which had made its debut in the company earlier in the year.

The show went ahead without a women's match and the six-person match later took place on RAW instead. Sometimes things like this happen in WWE and it's one of the drawbacks of the show always being live.

The Women's Revolution in recent years has meant that women's storylines are much more important and haven't been scrapped on a WrestleMania event since.

#1. The Smoking Gunns, Bob Holly, Tatanka,, and The 1-2-3 Kid vs The Headshrinkers, IRS, Jeff Jarrett and 'The Model' Rick Martel - WrestleMania 10

Another match that was advertised for the show, set up and then failed to be added, was the 10-man tag team match between The Smoking Gunns, Bob Holly, Tatanka and The 1-2-3 Kid, The Headshrinkers, IRS, Jeff Jarrett, and Rick Martel.

Ahead of the show, the men were shown backstage in the locker room arguing to set up the match, but after Shawn Michaels' ladder match went way over the time slot that it was given, the company was forced to bump it from the card.

The kayfabe reason behind the match being scrapped was that they couldn't decide on a captain, but the match was able to take place on RAW instead much like the women's match mentioned above.