5 WWE Attitude Era dream matches fans never got to see

The onset of the Attitude Era was a pivotal point not only in WWE but all of professional wrestling.

In 1997, when the Attitude Era commenced, WWE began potraying superstars in a more contemporary manner as wrestlers who wore their hearts on their sleeves. This certainly put them over with the WWE Universe as Vince McMahon's promotion started giving WCW a run for their money in the Monday Night Wars.

WWE legends like Stone Cold Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, The Rock, Mick Foley, Kane, The Undertaker and of course Vince McMahon were crucial to the Attitude Era becoming a success right from 1997 to 2002. The rivalries between these superstars at the time were one for the ages.

With that being said, there were certain dream matches which fans hoped to see during this time but unfortunately never happened. In this article, we look at five dream matches that fans never got to see in the Attitude Era:

#5 WWE Attitude Era Dream Match - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Edge

When Edge debuted in WWE in 1998, Stone Cold Steve Austin was already a top superstar.

The two Hall of Famers could never lock horns as The Rated-R Superstar at the time was establishing his name as a tag team competitor, first with The Brood and then with partner Christian as a separate tag team.

In an appearance on the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast with Jimmy Traina earlier this year, Edge named The Rattlesnake and Bret Hart as the two most desired opponents he never got to face in the ring. He had this to say about Austin:

"I would have loved to have had a "Rated R Superstar"’ Edge vs Stone Cold Steve Austin. That would have been a blast! It just didn’t, you know, I was in the company at the same time as Steve, but Steve was exploding. And Christian and I were trying to make our name as a tag team."

The WWE Universe would have been in for a treat had these two stalwarts gone head to head during that time.

#4 WWE Attitude Era Dream Match - The Brothers of Destruction vs The Hardy Boyz

The Brothers of Destruction were one of the most formidable tag teams in WWE during the Attitude Era and even after.

The Undertaker and Kane were on a roll during this time and had some memorable bouts against teams like The Dudley Boyz and Edge & Christian. A team that they never went toe-to-toe with were the immensily talented Hardy Boyz.

Despite the Phenom locking horns with Jeff Hardy in a Ladder Match in 2002 for the Undisputed WWE Championship, fans never witnessed a tag team bout between all four of these men which certainly would have been a five-star classic.

#3 WWE Attitude Era Dream Match - Kurt Angle vs Ken Shamrock

The 'World's Most Dangerous Man' and the 'Olympic Hero' were two of the finest wrestlers during the Attitude Era.

Ken Shamrock and Kurt Angle had a lot in common with both being former King of the Ring Winners and Intercontinental Champions, and most importantly were the masters of the Ankle Lock submission move.

It was a submission maneuver of Ken Shamrock, which Angle made famous in WWE. Shamrock, in a recent interview on an episode of The Kurt Angle Show, had this to say about the Olympic Gold Medalist using his Ankle Lock move:

"I give people a hard time whenever they ask me that question, and they say, 'Oh, did you see Kurt put that Ankle lock on? Does it piss you off?' I was like, 'Man; it's an honor.' I've got to poke you a little bit. Saying, 'Tell him to do it right at least.' It's like, 'Honestly; he is doing it right, I'm just poking at him, man,'" Shamrock laughed.

Unfortunately the WWE Universe never got to see these two greats compete in a match which certainly would have been an epic bout.

#2 WWE Attitude Era Dream Match - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Jeff Hardy

WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin, who was a member of the Two-Man Power Trip along with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon in 2001 had some memorable bouts against Team Xtreme comprising of Jeff Hardy, his brother Matt and Lita.

Having said this, the two WWE legends never locked horns in singles competition during this time. The Texas Rattlesnake was arguably the biggest heel and the Charismatic Enigma was an up-coming babyface.

A singles contest between the two would undoubtedly have been one for the ages, with young Jeff showcasing his flying in-ring ability against Austin's experience.

#1 WWE Attitude Era Dream Match - The Rock vs Shawn Michaels

The Rock and Shawn Michaels were two of the greatest superstars during the Attitude Era.

The two legends surprisingly never squared off in the ring despite having a heated rivalry outside. During the mid to late 90s, HBK and his famous backstage faction The Kliq had a reputation for bullying young talent with The Great One being at the receiving end.

WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart, in his podcast, had mentioned The Rock was a 'marked guy' backstage with a lot of wrestlers trying to get him to quit WWE:

"A lot of the wrestlers would give him a hard time in those days, a really hard time, enough to try to break him and get him to quit and they almost succeeded. And I can remember going to bat for Dwayne quite a few times and kind of looking out for him, Owen too. I think Owen and I had a lot to do with sort of looking out for him when he first came down. [The Rock] was kind of a marked guy.” said Bret Hart.

It was also rumored that The Rock had problems with Michaels when the latter made a derogatory remark about his grandmother Lia Maivia back in the day resulting in a heated physical exchange between the two.

Thankfully they ironed out their off-screen differences over time, albeit it was unfortunate the WWE Universe could never witness this once in a lifetime match.