10 Times WWE Genuinely Shocked The Fans

With just a handful of exceptions (some of which - CM Punk for instance - could yet change), Vince McMahon has tended to put aside any personal differences he may have if it's best for business. Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart, even Ultimate Warrior - they all eventually came back.

When it comes to someone like Eric Bischoff, however, it's a little different. They never actually had a working relationship to begin with, for one thing, their bitter rivalry having played out not in shouting matches backstage but live on Raw and Nitro during the Monday Night Wars.

Plus, the extent to which a non-wrestling on-screen authority figure really improves the product is up for debate. Certainly, you'd prefer to watch a show with Bischoff than without it, but it's probably not a deal-breaker for many. They could have done without him, basically.

For Vince to offer the WCW mastermind an olive branch in 2002, apparently forgiving all of those vignettes, all those dirty tricks, was pretty big news. And to put him at the (kayfabe) helm of the flagship was even bigger.