10 Classic Wrestling Rivalries That Would Have Flourished In The Attitude Era

8. Braun Strowman Vs Roman Reigns

Bobby Heenan Jerry Lawler Jim Ross Gorilla Monsoon
WWE.com

The Roman Reigns/Braun Strowman rivalry of 2017 did more to humanise a 'Monster' and a 'Big Dog' than several prior attempts as members of Shield/Wyatt triumvirates respectively. Winning the bulk of the battles, Braun Strowman used the feud to establish himself as a true main event player, whilst Reigns solidified his big match pedigree by handing the new killer his first pinfall defeat and selection of choice brawls to dine out on across the calendar year.

There have been few feuds this decade to lean on the Attitude Era as much as the insane showdowns between the two, but with each exciting dust-up, the company were forced into cartoonish conclusions. Smashing Roman all over the Monday Night Raw backstage area shortly after WrestleMania, Strowman had to close out the beating by tipping over a gimmicked ambulance with Reigns ostensibly inside. 1998 Mick Foley would have asked - nay, insisted - that the vehicle be tipped on him, on camera no less.

Of course, a feud between the pair in 1998 could have seen one of them legitimately die, so willing was Braun to throw and Roman to catch. But how just how insane could the behemoths have made things?!

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett