WWE Dream Matches That Will Most Likely Never Happen

Steve Austin vs Goldberg

This dream match stemmed from a challenge that Goldberg actually made to Austin when he made a guest appearance on The Tonight Show while he was in WCW. The challenge was never accepted, because it was clearly a publicity stunt from an increasingly desperate WCW, who were searching for any way to claw their way back into the Monday Night Wars once WWE took the lead. However, at that point, it was clearly one of those matches that fans probably would have paid a lot of money to see, if only it were possible. Goldberg was undeniably WCW's largest remaining star at that point, and Austin was the biggest name in the entire industry. Both had similar appearance (although vastly different abilities), and were just the latest in a long line of WCW vs WWE "dream matches" that everyone knew would never happen. That is, until WWE purchased WCW, opening up an entire world of possibilities. Unfortunately, Goldberg was still under a lucrative deal that paid him even though WCW no longer existed, and unsurprisingly, he decided to sit at home and get paid. Goldberg would eventually enter WWE for a single year, debuting the day after WrestleMania XIX, which also happened to be the show where Steve Austin would wrestle his very last match.

Daniel Bryan vs Shinsuke Nakamura

The heartbreaking retirement of Daniel Bryan due to serious concussion-related injuries denied us many anticipated matches, especially with the multitude of international talent that WWE had brought in to fill out their developmental system, many of whom had faced Bryan during his independent career and had looked forward to new opportunities to renew rivalries on the larger stage of WWE. But possibly even worse was the one match that had never happened in Bryan's career, and one he clearly dreamed of having one day, against Shinsuke Nakamura. The King of Strong Style had been one of Japan's biggest stars for over a decade, and in early 2016, made the shocking announcement that he would be signing with WWE. A few weeks later, it was revealed that Daniel Bryan's wrestling career was over, much to the dismay of Nakamura, who said publicly that one of the reasons he'd wanted to come to WWE was for an opportunity to wrestle Bryan. While Nakamura will undoubtedly have some great matches for however long his WWE career lasts, it's truly disappointing that he'll never get to wrestle a man that he clearly had a lot of respect for in Daniel Bryan.

Batista vs Brock Lesnar

Originally, these two behemoths barely missed each other in WWE, with Lesnar leaving after WrestleMania XX and Batista rising to the main event just a year later, but when Batista returned to WWE in 2014 after a brief absence, Lesnar was already back in the fold, and the possibility of this match became a reality. Many remembered the disappointment of Lesnar-Goldberg in a similar situation, but that was plagued by extenuating circumstances and never had a chance to succeed. Lesnar and Batista are two of the best big men of the modern era, and a match between the two would have likely been an incredible display of power wrestling. Although there were alternative plans for both men leading up to WrestleMania XXX, both Batista and Lesnar were reportedly under multi-year deals, and it was considered very likely that WWE would have them face each other at some point (in fact, they actually had a tense stand-off on an episode of Raw that implied future activities). However, WWE quickly shot themselves in the foot, as Batista's return was so badly mishandled that he abandoned the company only months later. That summer, his role in the surprise hit Guardians of the Galaxy made him a legitimate commodity in Hollywood, and if his recent public statements are anything to go by, he doesn't see himself returning to WWE anytime in the future, at least not in a wrestling role.

Sting vs The Undertaker

This match was a popular rumor for WrestleManias for several years. Two respected company mainstays, with dark, gothic personas, it seemed like a match made in wrestling heaven, but as the years went by, the worries began to grow that both men were getting too old to actually ever have that match, if Sting could even be convinced to sign with WWE, a company he had never worked with in his career. Still, every year, when The Undertaker's opponent at WrestleMania was teased without being immediately announced, Sting's name would always be among those rumored. When Sting finally signed a deal with WWE in 2014, it looked like we might finally get the match that had been rumored for so long. However, when WrestleMania 31 rolled around, WWE was unsure if The Undertaker would be physically ready to compete in time, and decided to put Sting into a feud with Triple H instead, ensuring that Sting would have a relatively high-profile match at the event. While The Undertaker did end up competing at WrestleMania, it was too late to change plans, and they would never get another opportunity. During a match against Seth Rollins at the Night of Champions Pay Per View in 2015, Sting, putting on one of his best matches in recent memory, fell awkwardly into the turnbuckles and lost the feeling in his legs. Afterwards, he was diagnosed with cervical spinal stenosis, and it was eventually determined that Sting could never safely wrestle again, denying wrestling fans the match they'd dreamed of for a very long time.

The Rock vs Shawn Michaels

The Rock is a huge Hollywood superstar nowadays and Shawn Michaels is retired so the odds of this one happening are pretty slim. These superstars were two of the biggest faces of The Attitude Era and it's painful to think that really, they just missed each other. Shawn Michaels was on his way out as The Rock was on his way up and if Shawn hadn't taken a break from wrestling due to his back injury this definitely would have happened.

The Rock could obviously return any time he wants and although he may not be as well conditioned for in ring competition as he was in his prime he can still get the job done. The same can be said about Shawn Michaels. He may be older and he may be retired but if he were to return there's no doubt that he would steal the show on any card he appears on. We do however believe that unlike most wrestlers who walk away, Shawn is retired for good. This is the wrestling business though so you can never say never.

Steve Austin vs CM Punk

This one has been teased before on WWE programming and we've all been holding our breaths hoping it might happen at some point. Steve Austin and CM Punk are truly meant for each other. The alcoholic VS the straight edge superstar is a match that pretty much books itself.

These two are polar opposites when it comes to their lifestyle but they're remarkably similar when it comes to their philosophies. Many have pegged CM Punk as the Steve Austin of this generation and although it could be argued as to how accurate that comparison is, no wrestling fan can ignore the similarities between the two.

There's no doubt that this feud would be great in the ring but we're sure we aren't alone when we say that we're dying to see what the promos would be like in an extended program for these two. This one may never happen, but it COULD happen which is enough for us to continue holding our breaths until we physically just can't do it anymore.

Hulk Hogan vs John Cena

John Cena and Hulk Hogan are absolutely perfect for each other. John Cena is the PG era answer to Hulkamania and seeing these two face off against each other would be entertaining as hell.

Go ahead and talk all the shit you want but the fact of the matter is that John Cena can put on a good match with just about anyone. This one wouldn't have to be technical by any means because the attraction of this match is the fact that that these two are huge names.

If John Cena was a big name like he is now 10 years ago then there's no doubt this match would have happened but Hulk Hogan is way over the hill (like WAY over) and the odds that this match could actually happen are slim to none.

Kurt Angle vs Bret Hart

Unlike many of the matches on this list, this one never had a real chance of ever becoming reality. Angle's wrestling career was only starting to take off in WWE as Hart's career was coming to a sudden end in WCW due to an errant superkick, but that hasn't stopped fans from dreaming about what a match between two of the greatest technical wrestlers in the history of the business would have looked like. Angle, a former US Olympic gold medallist who became a pro wrestling prodigy, would have made an excellent foil for Canadian legend Hart, and it's unfortunate that Angle, who got to wrestle in his share of dream matches against other great wrestlers like Brock Lesnar, Shawn Michaels, and Samoa Joe, never got his chance to face off against Hart. Of course, Hart's departure for WCW and subsequent career-ending injury actually robbed us of a great many dream matches, because Hart was arguably still well into his prime as a wrestler when he was forced to retire.

Brock Lesnar vs Steve Austin

This is another match that very well could happen but most likely won't. As we stated before Steve Austin teases that he may return to the ring often but he never pulls the trigger. WWE obviously wanted this match to happen years ago but it's been well documented that when presented with the idea Steve Austin took his ball and went home.

Steve Austin has said on many occasions that he regrets his decision when it comes to taking his ball and going home. WWE however wanted to give this match away with no hype on an episode of RAW and you can't really blame Steve for arguing that it was a huge money match which deserved to be on PPV. This match would have done huge buys for a PPV event and booking it on free TV would have been a terrible decision by WWE.

The closest we will most likely ever come to this is Steve Austin giving the stunner to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 20. However it can't be ignored that Brock Lesnar is still in great shape and Steve Austin has said many times that he could return to the ring for the right match.

Hulk Hogan vs Steve Austin

This will forever be the biggest money match that ever had an opportunity to take place, but ultimately never did. Hogan, of course, was the face of WWE in the 80s and early 90s, who then jumped to WCW and re-invented himself as "Hollywood" Hogan, starting the New World Order and turning WCW into front-runners in the Monday Night Wars. Ironically, one of the side effects of Hogan joining WCW, and bringing many of his close friends into the company at the same time, was that several mid-level wrestlers got squeezed out of WCW in the process. One of those was Steve Austin, who would take that resentment at being fired and turn it into the character that would revolutionize wrestling itself, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. They are the two biggest icons in sports entertainment, and when WCW folded and rumblings began that Hogan would be making his way back to WWE, a match between them seemed like an obvious WrestleMania main event in the making. However, things didn't work out, Hogan ended up facing The Rock at WrestleMania X8, and Austin actually left WWE for a year shortly after that event. When Austin returned, it was quickly revealed that the neck injuries he'd suffered earlier in his career had finally made it impossible for him to be medically cleared to wrestle, and he was forced into retirement. In fact, the only time Hogan and Austin have ever faced each other in a WWE ring was in a 3-on-2 handicap match on Raw that took place in the weeks before WrestleMania X8.