Career Defining Feuds

[Jersey Wannabe]

There are certain fueds that define a wrestlers career. Whether it be match quality or other factors that make these fueds so memorable.

These are the fueds that will always be identified with certain wrestlers. The fueds that made them superstars or legends.

For example personally when i think of Shawn Michaels, i automatically think of Bret Hart.
I dont think there is another person more respoinsible for helping make HBK a superstar than The Hitman.
From there classic Ironman Match at WM 12 to the Montreal screwjob HBK became a much bigger star than he had ever been before. Add in their real life dislike of each other and you have a Career Defining Feud.

I just want to know other peoples feelings on these types of feuds and what current storylines could become career makers. Also what are your favorite Defining fueds?

 

[WATSONationWWE]

stone cold and the rock. thats quite possibly the biggest fued ever in pro wrestling

 

[RRated3114]

Stone Cold and Brett Hart. This feud made Stone Cold, especially the WM 13 match. Also, the Undertaker and Mick Foley.

 

[MikeKillam]

-John Cena: I think his feud with JBL leading up to Wrestlemania and his first WWE Championship win, made Cena's career. Without that, there might have been no huge push, and Cena very well have been cast down to the mid-card once again. It's either that or his epic battles with Edge that don't seem to ever end.
-Rey Mysterio: Sticking purely to his WWE days, I think his excellent battles with Eddie Guerrero really put Rey on the map.
-Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Edge, Christian, DVon, Bubba Ray: Yeah, all these guys came out of that TLC match much better, and from that point on, people stood up and took notice when they walked into the arena. That match put all these guys on the map.

 

[onelonesapper70]

rvd and jerry lynn, those matches made me excited every time i saw one. even people i knew who werent fans became fans after seeing those two in the old ECW

 

[PlayTheGame]

I would have to say Stone Cold vs. Vince McMahon. I know SCSA was initially defined by the his great feud with Bret Hart around WM13 (as mentioned above), but this feud (possibly the biggest and best in ALL of wrestling) MADE him and its probably what he's most remembered for feud-wise (same with McMahon). This feud launched Austin into even more success in the WWF in the late 90's, as it made him "the man" of the company. It also cemented his status as a badass who didn't take crap from anyone, including his boss. It made so many more people Stone Cold fans, and feud (which won PWI feud of the year) itself was simply monumental.

 

[baldjedi]

Batista vs HHH put Batista on the map.

The Animal was unleashed

 

[ZEUS]

The biggest one ever, in my opinion, has to be Hogan VS Andre. I think Savage VS Flair is another one of the best ever. More recently, how about Benoit/Angle, Undertaker/Kane, and Orton/HHH (including previous feuds).

 

[pepentorresHHH]

HHH vs Cactus Jack made Triple H s career.... after he was consolidaded as THE MAN...... after this incredible feud after incredible feud folloed... vs the rock, vs kurt angle, vs stone cold steve austin......

 

[ghettodan]

"The biggest one ever, in my opinion, has to be Hogan VS Andre."

Yep, this brought on the biggest moment that will ever happen in Pro Wrestling. Say all you want about Austin, The Rock or anyone. Nothing will ever top when Hogan slammed and pinned Andre.

 

[Slyfox696]

Owen Hart vs. Bret Hart.

All the praise people level upon Owen Hart is the sole responsibility of this feud. Bret made Owen look like gold, and this feud is the ONLY thing that people can point to and say that Owen was good.

 

[suleman09]

Randy Orton
Defining his carrer was, being kicked out of Evolution

World Heavyweight Championship - Randy Orton (c) vs Triple H

from there on Randy has had an amazing carrer so far, and he's only getting started in my opinion

Rey Mysterio's WWE Carrer

Rey Mysterio vs Eddie Guerrero - this feud made rey a huge superstar today!

 

[Angleslammer]

I think a lot of people are not considering that it's career defining feuds, not neccessarily a wrestler's best feud, but what's the best feud that put someone on the map and elevated them to elite status (hogan and andre was monumental bc both were established, same with stone cold and vince)

I would agree with the initial post about HBK but think he has done a better job of re-establishing himself the last 7 years or so since he's been back. That being said there are a few feuds which i think definitely belong up here (in terms of the feud defining and pushing at least 1, if not both wrestlers into an elite level)

Stone Cold vs. The Rock, especially their first encounter over the championship belt at WM 15 really pushed the rock into that level

Stone Cold vs. Bret really pushed Stone Cold into a new level

Mankind vs. Undertaker really established Mick Foley as a big time performer (unlike he had ever been before)

HHH vs. Batista, I'd have to agree with the above thread in that it made Batista

last but not least Eddie Guerro vs. Brock Lesner, yes Eddie was a great wrestler before but this match and winning it pushed him to a level he had never reached before and really ended up defining his career

I do disagree with the Cena vs. JBL post as I think they'd would have given the push to Cena with or without JBL, he's a company man.

and with Hogan vs. Andre, I agree it's an epic match and maybe the most important in terms of wrestling history, however, the match did not define either man both were huge and over going into it which is what made the match what it was

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

I'll throw another one out there that hasn't been said and that's The Giant/Big Show and Hogan in WCW. The Giant came in billed as Andre's son and was in the Dungeon of Doom during their feud with Hogan. Him feuding with Hogan escalated him to main event status and cemented him as one of WCWs top stars. He may have become a big star anyway because of his size but if he didn't feud with the biggest name in wrestling it may have been alot of tougher for him. He got a great rub by feuding with Hogan and actually got the better of him on many occasions. After he turned face during the NWO times he took a back seat to Sting, Luger and DDP in the pecking order for faces but he was still a big name which led to him signing with WWE and the rest is history.

 

[powerade]

I got a unique twist on your topic.....
I'm not picking a fued that is one-on-one.....

My favorite fued of all time is my personal favorite time in wrestling.....
The Outsiders vs. WCW
Before Hogan came and turned on to the NWO. I loved the Outsiders week after week bullying people around WCW and perfecting the invasion angle like no other. Yeah Scott and Kevin were already stars but when I think of them this is the time that I think of first.....

 

[seven3too]

definatley the rock and triple h feud. this put HHH so over as a legit champ its not even funny. the rock was already established with his feud with scsa but HHH used to whoop his ass. lest we forget these guys headlined probably 4-6 ppv's in a row at one point.

 

[Freakinflax]

Owen Hart vs. Bret Hart.

All the praise people level upon Owen Hart is the sole responsibility of this feud. Bret made Owen look like gold, and this feud is the ONLY thing that people can point to and say that Owen was good.

That' pretty harsh man. Owen was good at everything he did.

 

[hurricane_wolfy]

Owen was amazing.
I enjoyed Helmsley vs The Rock, when they were both leading their own factions and dominating the midcard by feuding for the intercontinental belt. You couldn't watch their matches in this intense feud (especially the ladder match at ss) and NOT know that they were the future of the company.

 

[Kyphael]

Let's see, this is pretty much a thread of the coolest wrestling rivals in history.

Andre vs. Hogan made Hulk Hogan the legend he eventually became. The Iron Sheik was just a prior stepping stone, as were Piper and Bundy.

Sting vs. Flair from WCW in the early 90's defined Sting's career and made him a national icon.

On the flip side over at WWF, you had Savage and Hogan who had an year-long program leading into an explosive main event match at Wrestlemania V 20 years ago for the title. If not for Hogan, Savage might not have been as big a name.

Hart and Michaels was obviously there with the Iron Man Match at Wrestlemania XII being their first major encounter for the strap (I'm aware of their Rumble match years prior but I did say major) and the Montreal screw job being a bitter ending. Hart really helped define Shawn's chareer.

Many people would choose to make The Rock Mick Foley's career defining feud but I think it all started with the Undertaker. Foley and Undertaker had what I believe was Foley's career defining feud because it's what made him a big enough name to become a babyface and go on to feud with The Rock.

Austin and McMahon carried the WWF out of WCW's stranglehold through 1998 and early 1999. Feuding with the boss solidified Austin as the baddest son of a bitch in America at the time.

When Austin went down with injury, HHH stepped up to the main event platter against The Rock in a feud that defined his career and persona as the cerebral assassin who would do anything to rule the WWF, including marrying the boss's daughter.

Next you had Angle and Lesnar; the amateur explosion of the young lion vs. the veteran he once looked up to. Due to their impressive backgrounds and friendship, these two just clicked together and it was this feud that made Lesnar THE big thing.

While his feud with HHH might have defined Batista's career, it was his feud with Undertaker that revived it when he was already becoming bland and losing steam. I never liked Batista but I did enjoy his program with Undertaker and it takes two to have a great rivalry.

Cena might have had classic matches with Shawn Michaels, Chris Jericho, Bobby Lashley, Umaga and Triple H but it was his program with Edge that truly solidified him. If not, it sure as hell wasn't JBL.

Michaels and Jericho had what I believe to be Jericho's career defining feud and also the program that revived his stalling career. Their feud back at Wrestlemania 19 was great but the new one was that much better simply because Jericho was no longer emulating Michaels. He had come into his own, matured and made for that more of an effective heel.

As we speak, Orton may be having his career defining feud with HHH. Then again, he probably still has a good ten years left in him if he keeps his nose clean so you never know.

 

[travistragic]

As far as Slyfox goes, first let me say, wow, what the fuck, dude? Me and my homeboy watched the Bret Hart dvd set a few months back and the only thing we had to say when we were done with it was, you know, every single one of these matches Bret out-performed the shit out of his opponent except one, the one you just mentioned. Bret is great, beyond great, but Owen Hart, in my opinion, outwrestled Bret in that match. But, fuck, it was by leaps and bounds the best match on the whole set, and probably one of the best matches I've ever seen, so I'll let it go whichever one you think did better, but don't act like Owen Hart was vastly inferior to Bret (not like that says alot about anyone anyway).

At any rate, I'm going to go more recent for my first and more obscure for my second.

Jericho vs. Michaels made Jericho. I am a huge Jericho mark, but I think this feud finally took Jericho from that level of "great wrestler that got to win a few belts" to "future legend" Jericho did a complete 180 on his entire career to be that kind of heel and the feud was brilliant.

For me, Eddie Guerrero wasn't made by Brock, he was made by...Tajiri. Okay, sounds cazy maybe, and not much of a feud, but the time Guerrero slammed Tajiri on the windshield to turn heel and it backfired and the fans went fucking nuts for Guerrero, I think that's when the world realized that Guerrero was unstoppable and going straight to the top.

 

[mattmcgee85]

I think Cena and Edge are currently involved in what could be a legendary career defining feud. I think these two freshen each other up when they both start to get stale. In my opinion, this feud, turned Edge from a good midcarder, mostly know for his tag team glory, into a legit singles superstar. As for Cena, I think it made him look better in the ring. These two are at the top of there games today, and I cant wait to see where this feud goes ( hopefully a face turn for Edge and a Heel turn for Cena at somepoint).

 

[maxymo1234]

I think the hhh vs rock feud or dx vs nation feud. this feud was great it made the ic title feel like the wwf title and it pushed the rock and a little some for hhh. this is were rock was a funny heel and loved the parody of the nation.
IF YOU SMELL WHAT THE CROCK IS COOKIN

 

[Jordan adams]

Tommy dreamer vs Raven was the memorable rivalry in ecw in my opinion

 

[Sparky]

Well, its not going to go down in the record books for obvious reasons, but I really think that Benoit vs MVP Really saved MVP's career. the guy was shocking when he first debuted. but after having an amazing fued with Benoit, He really learned from that. I don't think that if that fued never happend MVP, would be out of a job right now.

Also you can't look past HBK vs Bret hart. this feud made HBK extremely hated by a whole country. and more. He would never of been as succsesful as a heel if Bret wasnt such a sook.

 

[BigDaddyKewl]

I think Warrior and Hogan really define solidify Warrior as a legend in the buisiness. From the first confrontation in the Royal Rumble 1990. He cut some crazy stand up promos leading up to WM 6. It was the first Face vs Face main event in wrestling history. He was the first man to beat Hogan clean. He also became the only man to hold the IC and WWE title simultaneously.