10 Legendary WWE Feuds That Never Had A Payoff

What amazing rivalries were just dropped out of the blue?

Hulk Hogan Ric Flair 1992
WWE.com

Imagine a movie without an ending. Not a bad ending or an anti-climactic ending, but no ending at all. After the climax of the story, the screen just goes black and never comes back on.

Imagine a book without a conclusion. Again, not a disappointing or lacklustre ending but a nonexistent one. After reading thousands of lines, chapter after chapter, you turn the page and there's nothing. No more words, just blank sheets of paper for the rest of the book.

Imagine a video game where you beat a few levels, including some mid-tier bosses, and just as it's about to get good, you're greeted with the game's introduction.

You get the picture. It sucks.

Unfortunately, WWE has disappointed fans in such deep ways with some of these egregious mistakes over the years that many still find it hard to forgive them. On a number of occasions WWE has teased, and in other cases advertised, the conclusion of a highly-anticipated feud or story only to fall short of delivering it.

To be fair, in many instances, the circumstances that precipitated the sudden storyline drop were out of the company's control. From talents quitting and failing drug tests to unexpected injuries, there's a number of reasons why WWE was unable to present the final conclusion to these long-awaited, captivating stories but that doesn't make the reality of the letdown any easier to swallow.

Let's take a look at 10 of these legendary feuds that never received a true, worthy televised payoff.

10. Jake Roberts Vs. Earthquake (1991)

Hulk Hogan Ric Flair 1992
WWE.com

When longtime WWE fans think of 1991, it's often in a positive light since some of WWE's most memorable storylines and matches took place during those 12 months.

There's so much greatness contained in 1991 that fans often forget some programs that don't get as much attention as they should. Earthquake and Jake Roberts is one of those forgotten feuds and it got off to a hot start.

The feud began when Earthquake "squashed" Jake's pet python, Damien, in the Spring and later fed Damien to Lord Alfred Hayes (in the form of "Quakeburgers") on an episode of Prime Time Wrestling. Surely, Jake vs. Earthquake could've be penciled in for SummerSlam, but by the time August rolled around, both men were on to bigger and better things.

Quake would shift his attention to Andre The Giant before moving on to the tag team division, forming the Natural Disasters with Tugboat now known as Typhoon.

Perhaps spawned by the loss of Damien, Jake would actually turn heel by SummerSlam after betraying The Ultimate Warrior (but more on that later).

The Snake and Quake never managed to settle their differences and were actually scheduled to partner up just a few months later at the Survivor Series, but a payoff between these two should have taken place yet never did.

Contributor
Contributor

A former stuntman for Paramount Pictures, Matt enjoys sports, water skiing, driving fast, the beach, professional wrestling, technology, and scotch. At the same time, whenever possible. Having attended many famous (and infamous) shows including WrestleMania XV, In Your House: Mind Games, and the 1995 King of the Ring, Matt has been a lifelong professional sports and wrestling fan. Matt's been mentioned in numerous wrestling podcasts including the Steve Austin Show: Unleashed, Talk Is Jericho, and Something To Wrestle With Bruce Prichard. As a former countywide performer, Matt has been referred to as Mr. 300 for his amazing accomplishments in the world of amateur bowling. He is also the only man on record to have pitched back-to-back no hitters in the Veterans Stadium Wiffle Ball League of 2003.