Top 10 real-life friendships in WWE

2. Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit and Dean Malenko

Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero

The Three amigos would start their mainstream career at ECW, then move to WCW before ending up in WWE and keep their friendship shine bright before the tragic deaths of Eddie and Benoit.

Many wrestling insiders believe that Benoit wouldn’t have done what he did if Eddie was alive. No one would’ve forgotten how Benoit broke down and cried on live television after Eddie passed away. His tears spoke volumes about how much Eddie meant to him and Malenko. Eddie was like a shoulder to cry on as mentioned earlier. And the loss of that shoulder took a toll on Benoit, making him weaker.

Apart from the tragedies, the three had a great career to look back on. They introduced technical-style wrestling to the hardcore ECW and were the first to be raided by WCW to kick off the Monday Night Wars. But the pinnacle of their emotions came at WrestleMania 20 when both Benoit and Eddie would hold the top titles and embrace the roars of the crowd. The moment still remains as one of the most memorable in the history of WrestleMania and the decorated careers of both men.

1. Taz and Paul Heyman

Taz and Paul Heyman

The original ECW was more like a family than a wrestling promotion. Heyman being the booker had stitched up a roster with not much money or utilities at his disposal. One of the decisions he made was to bring in Taz on a verbal contract. There were no written deals between the two and Taz would go on to wrestle for Heyman for almost a decade.

But the highest point of this friendship came when Taz broke his neck while performing in the ring. The injury would rule him out for almost a year. But despite being unable to perform, Heyman would keep Taz on the payroll solely on the basis of the word he gave in the verbal contract.

This was one of the greatest stories in the business. Usually, a fallen wrestler would only receive sympathy from his boss and fellow wrestlers if he was in a similar situation. Not so with Taz and Heyman.

Taz would make his return and reach the top of the mountain again while thanking Heyman for “giving bread for his family” during the hard times.

The inspiring story of loyalty and friendship still tells what ECW stood for and how the promotion was different from the top dogs during that time. Instead of being the ruler of the masses, Heyman was a friend to his employees, with Taz being the standout of those.