10 Best Ways Wrestlers Said Goodbye

8. Edge Walks Away Before It's Too Late (SmackDown - 15 April 2011)

Edge Retirement
WWE.com

There's a reason an image of Edge smiling as he relinquished the World Heavyweight Championship on the 15 April 2011 edition of SmackDown was chosen to accompany this entry. Sadness was in the air as the Canadian spoke of being forced from the ring due to neck injuries on Raw, but he was much more chipper the next night.

In a cool moment, Edge put a positive spin on things and said he was walking away when he still had the power. Reflecting on his career, the 'Rated-R Superstar' spoke of amazing moments, matches, and memories, then admitted that he had come to a fork in the road; Edge was told by doctors to stop wrestling, otherwise he could end up in a wheelchair.

Weeks later at Extreme Rules, Edge watched childhood friend (and former kayfabe brother) Christian realise his own dreams of becoming World Champion. As Edge looked up at his buddy with tears in his eyes, the silver lining to his own retirement was hammered home.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.