12 Richest WWE Matches Of All Time

5. Bobby Lashley W/ Donald Trump Vs. Umaga W/ Vince McMahon (WrestleMania 23)

Donald Trump Stone Cold Steve Austin Vince McMahon Bobby Lashley
WWE.com

This match sh*ts cash.

Bobby Lashley was set to be the company's next breakout star having received a trademark WWE mega-push long before he was ready to receive it. Umaga was an unlikely success story, building his part so well as a dated Samoan savage that he'd suddenly become one of the most credible heels on the entire roster. The contest itself was labelled 'The Battle Of The Billionaires' to reflect the exponential wealth of the two utterly absurd tycoons placing their pompadours on the line. Even the referee was one of richest and highest drawing performers in the history of the sport. And it drew, up to that point, the highest pay-per-view buyrate in company history.

But what did we learn? Bobby Lashley (as of press time) was a wasted investment for WWE if not the industry at large. Umaga's intoxicating style sadly matched the personal peccadillos that would cruelly punctuate his career and life. Stone Cold Steve Austin, unfairly so, hasn't had a WWE role as high profile as this since. Donald Trump and Vince McMahon remained the biggest winners of all despite the latter's humiliating trim.

Money really isn't everything.

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