7. Bret Hart's WCW Career Ends Just As It Was Getting Interesting
WCW may have paid a metric ton of cash for the services of Bret Hart, but they never really found much to do with him once he got there. Seemingly held a tier or two below Hulk Hogan and company at all times, Bret Hart was not given a program he could sink his teeth into until a feud with Bill Goldberg in late 1999. Hart was the new WCW Champion having defeated Chris Benoit in a tournament final at Mayhem, which led to a showdown with WCW's golden boy Goldberg at Starrcade '99. Unfortunately, Goldberg mistimed a kick to the head and connected with a straight leg to Hart's temple rather than a bent leg. With no give, the kick knocked Hart silly and gave him a severe concussion. While Hart wrestled with the injury for a few more matches, his career essentially ended on that night. What's particularly tragic about the timing is that Hart had finally been given the WCW spotlight. After having a series of his ideas shot down that would have given the 'Excellence of Execution' something to contribute to WCW, he had managed to work his way into a competently-handled program that was very much in the classic pro wrestling style he excelled at. Though it is doubtful that Hart could have helped WCW stop the tailspin they were in, for his career to end at a time when the company could have used someone like him the most was... well pretty standard fare for WCW at the time, actually.