10 Times You Thought Wrestlers Were Finished (& Were DEAD WRONG!)

10. Ricky Steamboat

Pre-2009, you'd have had to go all the way back to WCW in 1994 to find a Ricky Steamboat match. Literally. The 'Dragon' didn't work a lick after that, and his only cameos came via TNA and ROH. Nobody was predicting a sensational return to form for one of the greatest in-ring babyfaces of his generation.

Steamboat was the sole highlight amongst fellow legends during a fairly dire three-on-one vs. Chris Jericho at WrestleMania XXV. Both Roddy Piper and Jimmy Snuka looked like they had trouble walking, never mind taking bumps, but Ricky was different - he worked some shockingly slick exchanges with 'Y2J' that had fans on their feet.

The people craved more, and they'd get it.

Ricky returned to work Jericho in a singles at Backlash later the same month. Then, the former NWA fave went on a riotous house show tour and had his fill of big pops before stepping back into the shadows. It was over as quickly as it had started, but Steamboat's reprisal had shown anyone filing him under '100% retired' was dead wrong.