The Best Betrayal In WWE History?

[Wildcat66]

So a little while back I made a poll comparing two recent breakups, Chris and Kevin's and Enzo and Cass's. Needless to say, it was a blowout in favor of the Festival of Friendship.

One person suggested that a better comparison would be this and Chris turning on Shawn Michaels back in 2008, and I can see the idea. But it got me thinking, we've seen a lot of betrayals and turncoats over the years on WWE, but out of them five have stuck out as well written and executed.

1. Festival of Friendship- We all know what happened by now.

2. Seth Rollins's Betrayal- The moment that ended a stable and kickstarted three careers into a whole new level.

3. Chris Jericho's Deception- Which lead to Chris Jericho becoming an 'honest, decent person' against his former idol Shawn Michaels.

4. The Explosion of the Mega Powers- When Randy Savage turned his back on Hulk Hogan for jealous reasons.

And 5. The Rockers Split- Everyone and their mother knows what happens, Shawn and Marty weren't getting along; so they went to the Barber Shop and looked to be making up...then Shawn drove him through a glass window.

All of these betrayals have something to them, they lead to some of the best told stories ever told by the WWE. But throughout all the rubble, dust and tears, one has never asked...which one was the best?

 

[L@RISANO]

Being a huge Shield mark, the way that one happened with the group seemingly on top of the world, only for Traitorface to show how much of a slimeball he was. It is one of very few moments in the past few years of watching that brought out genuine emotion.

For the record, nothing has happened since to make me get behind babyface Seth Rollins. I actually cringe everytime I see photos or videos of him teaming up with Reigns or Ambrose as the Shield mark in me has never gotten adequate storyline closure of either guy forgiving Rollins nor has he gave a promo admitting clearly that what he did was regrettable.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

Being a huge Shield mark, the way that one happened with the group seemingly on top of the world, only for Traitorface to show how much of a slimeball he was. It is one of very few moments in the past few years of watching that brought out genuine emotion.

For the record, nothing has happened since to make me get behind babyface Seth Rollins. I actually cringe everytime I see photos or videos of him teaming up with Reigns or Ambrose as the Shield mark in me has never gotten adequate storyline closure of either guy forgiving Rollins nor has he gave a promo admitting clearly that what he did was regrettable.

Not only that but they're having Roman call him his "little bro". Like GTFO of here. They never did that with Orton and in fact Orton's feud with Triple H lasted for 4 freaking years and it was again brought up during the Authority thing. And now Roman and Rollins are teaming up because they're brothers. You can have them team up, but what the heck. This guy stabbed you in the back and sold himself out of money.

On topic, I really don't know. Truth is I lived only two of those listed, so I'm going with Seth Rollins as well. It was out of nowhere and led to a great feud with Ambrose.

Also, how can Triple H betraying Orton in 2005 not be on the list?

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

Also, how can Triple H betraying Orton in 2005 not be on the list?

True, one of the best ever. Orton celebrates on Batista shoulders, HHH gives him thumbs down and Batista bombs him. That is got to be one of the best ever.


Also, Michaels/HHH deserves to be there too. Enzo/Cass seems like rerun of that.

 

[Spencesc11]

The Orton one was by far the best. Because the true violence and unexpectedness made that a moment to remember forever. Should've replaced him in the group though and kept Evolution at 4 guys in my opinion.

 

[ISkye]

The Shield one was probably the best all bias / nostalgia aside. From WM 30 all the way until the last quarter or so of Seth's title being relinquished was good to absolutely classic on an insanely consistent basis. It was so good that people cant even see Ambrose, Rollins, and Reigns equal in today's light even if they're having 4 / 4.5 star matches bi monthly. They got dealt a lot of hard cards to play with as well and made do. I definitely have seen more people discuss wrestling when The Shield peaked. It's fueled weekly conversation and endless fantasy and actual booking for years at this point and was a thing for a long, long time that kept the boat afloat. In pure WWE terms it was definitely the *best* in the long run.

 

[The Perfect Max]

I voted for "Something else" and it's a two-parter really. But for me, while there have been some fantastic betrayals in the past, I will always love the dissolution of Evolution. I'm not so fussed about the final feud between Ric Flair and Triple H, but particularly with Randy Orton in 2004 and then Batista in 2005.

Evolution are likely the best faction of the 21st century. The success they had at the time and the success garnered by the members afterwards is remarkable (or before, with Flair). I always considered 2004 to be their storyline peak, since Triple H was at the top of his game (no pun intended), Randy Orton was a very strong Intercontinental Champion, and Batista was truly gaining momentum and coming into his own. That's why I think their betrayal on Randy Orton after he won the World Heavyweight Championship was so brilliant. Orton had risen so far so fast, and perhaps a little too fast, but the visuals are almost iconic in the recent era, with Orton on Batista's shoulders, only to have the thumbs down from H. It forced Orton to go solo and, personally, go on to have my favourite run of Orton's career in 2005, which was dominated by his feud with Taker. This was pretty unexpected at the time, though it seemed inevitable at some point. It was like Orton had become the enemy as soon as he beat Chris Benoit for the title, which of course Triple H was unable to do. Brilliant stuff.

Batista's eventual betrayal of Triple H and Ric Flair was far more expected and the writing was on the wall when he won the 2005 Royal Rumble. But fans just couldn't wait for it, and that is what was interesting about this betrayal, because most examples usually involve a heel turn, but here, it was the beginning of Batista's definitive face turn. Again, as with Orton above, I feel like what took place following Batista's turn was his greatest run in the company, until his injury in early 2006. I can see it now: the thumbs down (great continuity with Orton too), the Batista Bomb, signing the contract and raising the belt. It led to one of my favourite world championship matches at WrestleMania too which is a plus.

Ultimately I feel I can justify using both betrayals because they both involved Evolution and were only about six months apart. While Orton was the victim of his and Batista the conqueror, their individual careers were only to get better, even though their run in Evolution was so good. And that is what makes these betrayals really. Evolution had worked so effectively in getting people to absolutely hate, predominantly, Triple H, that when they turned on Orton, he immediately received sympathy from the crowd even though he had been a great heel the whole year before. Similarly, with Batista, his turn launched his career sky-high before he even won the belt. Great stuff. Oh how I miss those times.

 

[NxtBigThing]

I'm going to go with one not listed and go with when Paul Bearer turned his back on the Undertaker at Summer Slam 96. This pair were together for 5 years and fitted each other perfectly. However when Undertaker was about to beat Mankind in the first and I believe only Boiler Room Brawl Paul Bearer refused to hand over the urn and later smacked Undertaker with it and aligning with Mankind and turning his back on the Dead Man.

 

[HeenanGorilla]

A fine list here, but some really good write-in options as well!

From the Golden Era, I remember being shocked when Orndorff clotheslined Hogan and aligned himself with the Heenan Family. But the ultimate turn was Andre turning heel. I am not saying that is the best done turn I have seen or read about. I am going by pure feeling and as an 8-year old who knew Hogan and Andre as great friends and two of the top babyfaces, this rocked me! Andre went from the lovable giant to this stone-faced, emotionless, seemingly-brainwashed force of evil. I just couldn't believe it. I actually remember the pit in my stomach. Haha. My family had just gotten in the car to go out to dinner and I said "But how could he have done this? They're friends!" Hahaha! Granted, I was 8 years old and somehow still see that pain in the faces of grown men in the crowd these days, but that's another post.

I was a big fan of the Festival of Friendship and I am curious about the Evolution turn, so I'll check that out on the Network tonight. I remember Trips' thumbs down, but not what happened before or after. The Rockers one is historic, but I never give it the credit others do because that was coming a mile away, even as a 13-year-old fan who didn't know how the business worked. I remember pointing out to my friend on either Superstars or Wrestling Challenge or maybe a PPV a week or so before "Look at Michaels, (Post-match, he was up on the turnbuckle as the Rockers always were, when trying to get the crowd pumped or to acknowledge their cheers) he's kind of looking around like this is the last time the crowd will be cheering for him." The writing was on the wall and, although the barber shop window was a nice touch, that one did not shock me in the least. I don't say that to be one of these "I knew that was coming, it was stupid." people. I don't think it was stupid. It was done well. I just don't rank it as high as others because I was expecting it.

So, personally, I would say Andre beats Orndorff as far as how hard it hit me. As for the more recent ones, I'll go with Festival of Friendship because it was done superbly.

 

[stingray11214]

I am probably the only person on this board who can actually stand here and say that they remember the Territories because they used to watch when they had Territories. I chose "something else" because NOTHING can top the betrayal that came out of left field. And, made one wrestler unwelcome in certain parts of New York to this very day.

The day Larry Zbyzsko turned on Bruno was bad. It was akin to Judas turning on Christ. We were all in tears when we saw this. Parents demanded retribution. And, Zbyszko had to get out of the Northeast for sake of health. He had his car overturned, his tires slashed, someone mentioned Elmer's glue in the gas tank. He went through several equipment changes because his stuff was getting thrown off bridges. He got spat on, punched out. Several times needed security to leave a House show. People wanted to avenge Bruno in the worst way possible. It was that bad back in the day.

Now, the FoF was one of the best segments WWE did in eons. The List of KO was brilliant. However, nothing will ever top the night Zbyszko turned on Bruno.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Shawn's turn on Marty is still the best executed... even if it wasn't a total shock. Everything worked and most importantly, it raised the stakes for WWE... it was a horrendously violent segment for the day, that adds to the aura.

I always rated how Christian turned on Jericho back in the day as well over Trish... Trish sold that kiss really well, with the "licking her paw" gesture being dirty as fuck and laden with innuendo...

Owen turning on Bret was well telegraphed, but Martel turning on Tito came first and was slightly better... both did the flustered promo to show their anger well, but Owen botched his with the famous "That's why I kicked your leg out of your leg..." Martel sold that turn brilliantly, going from beloved face to the snarky heel he remained his whole career just by accusing Tito of riding his coat tails...

My favourite isn't so much a betrayal, but one side would see it that way... When Andre finally turned on Heenan... that was fantastic, even down to the mic picking up Heenan clearly saying "I'm the Fucking Boss!" bleeped now of course, but at the time it stayed in the home video etc... The only part that let it down was Haku botching his attack, it looked a little fake. But it did great things for Heenan and helped transition him into that "Broadcast Journalist" role he excelled at.

 

[Stone Cold Tea]

I went with something else. Whilst it's not a betrayal of friends it's still technically a betrayal.

Austin vs HHH was scheduled for No Way Out 2001 and because of the animosity between the 2 there was no way they'd make it. This lead to a contract signing where Austin would lose his title shot at 'Mania 17 or HHH would be suspended for 6 months if either betrayed the other.

Austin signs his contract and then HHH 'signs' his. Austin turns his back and HHH proceeds to beat the tar out of him. Cue Vince to say he's suspended for 6 months only for HHH to say he never signed the the contract and then he signs it!

Pure fucking genius. Cerebral genius.

 

[Makaveli31]

Kind of thinking outside the box here but it is one that I personally enjoyed, one that got me emotionally invested, and led to one of the most emotional and iconic moments in WWF and WrestleMania history.....of course I am talking about Sherri's betrayal of Randy Savage at WrestleMania 7.

For the better part of two years Sherri had aided Savage in his quest for the WWF title. She was a regular on the Brother Love show lobbying Warrior for a title shot, she got herself physically involved in his matches (taking some hellacious bumps in the process) and even tried to seduce the Ultimate Warrior. She was mean, she was driven, and she was ambitious and when Savage lost the career vs career match to Warrior all her work for the last two years went down the drain.

She proceeded to unleash a vicious attack on a beaten "Macho Man". To me it was the ultimate betrayal, as men I think we've all been there before. We think we have a good woman in our corner only to have her turn on us when things go south. I've seen it a million times. Of course we all know what happens next when Liz comes to saves the day. To me, that was played perfectly.

 

[OYDK]

I gotta agree with Andre "turning" on Hogan to set up their match at Wrestlemania 3. While I wasn't around when the angle actually went down, everything that I've heard and seen regarding this segment has led me to believe that it was legitimately one of the most shocking moments in wrestling history. Very, very few people predicted Andre the Giant turning heel, and of course, it led to arguably the most enduring image in WWE history when Hogan slammed Andre.

Another honorable mention is Stephanie betraying Vince and aligning herself with HHH. My 9 year old self certainly never saw this coming, and again, it led to an alliance that still exists to this day.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

Does Lita betraying Matt Hardy for Edge count? Because if it does, it sure lead to one of the best feuds of all time.

 

[HeenanGorilla]

Wow, considering how many betrayals have been done--and there are so many not yet mentioned here--it shows how not flip-flopping these guys over and over creates memorable moments. If Sheamus or Big Show turned next week, I don't know if anyone would remember a year from now let alone an era or two from now. Hogan betraying his fans is one that has not yet been mentioned, but I'll let someone else write about that.

Another one that certainly wasn't as historic as these, but still lingers in my memory is the Islanders turning on the Can-Am Connection. It was a face-face tag team match with handshakes and all. But then Heenan came down the aisle mid-match and revealed that the Islanders were his new tag team. Again, not as big a deal as these others. But I remember being stunned while watching Superstars or Wrestling Challenge. (In fact, I remember it so clearly, I know I was eating the (at the time brand new) Chips Ahoy with M&M's in them. Hahaha! For years afterwards, whenever I would see a cookie like that, I would think "Damn Islanders.." Haha!

 

[d_henderson1810]

Not only that but they're having Roman call him his "little bro". Like GTFO of here. They never did that with Orton and in fact Orton's feud with Triple H lasted for 4 freaking years and it was again brought up during the Authority thing. And now Roman and Rollins are teaming up because they're brothers. You can have them team up, but what the heck. This guy stabbed you in the back and sold himself out of money.

On topic, I really don't know. Truth is I lived only two of those listed, so I'm going with Seth Rollins as well. It was out of nowhere and led to a great feud with Ambrose.

Also, how can Triple H betraying Orton in 2005 not be on the list?

Firstly, Seth DID show contrition on turning on the Shield. In the lead-up to Wrestlemania this year, he said that Triple H promised him the world and betrayed him. He blamed himself for believing Triple H, and said that he wanted a match with him so that "he could like who he was before he met Triple H". So he took responsibility for his part, but then vowed revenge on Triple H for leading him astray as well.

You cite Triple H and Orton. But Triple H helped Orton win the belt against Daniel Bryan and then keep it on him. How come there was no apologies between Triple H and Orton on how they treated each other in the past, when Orton was the "Face Of The Authority"?

It makes me wonder if you people even watch the show.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

Firstly, Seth DID show contrition on turning on the Shield. In the lead-up to Wrestlemania this year, he said that Triple H promised him the world and betrayed him. He blamed himself for believing Triple H, and said that he wanted a match with him so that "he could like who he was before he met Triple H". So he took responsibility for his part, but then vowed revenge on Triple H for leading him astray as well.

You cite Triple H and Orton. But Triple H helped Orton win the belt against Daniel Bryan and then keep it on him. How come there was no apologies between Triple H and Orton on how they treated each other in the past, when Orton was the "Face Of The Authority"?

It makes me wonder if you people even watch the show.

So wait, you're saying that because Triple H promised Rollins the world, Rollins was right to betray his bros? Rollins is not a freaking child. He betrayed them because he sold out to somebody else and that somebody else then sold him out. Karma. Rollins sure learnt his lesson though. Still them being portrayed as BFFs is too much.

With Triple H and Orton, well, Trips said it himself. It was bussiness. Orton put behind him the fact that HHH betrayed him, HHH put behind him the fact that Orton took out his family and they went down to bussiness. They didn't become BFFs.

 

[d_henderson1810]

So wait, you're saying that because Triple H promised Rollins the world, Rollins was right to betray his bros? Rollins is not a freaking child. He betrayed them because he sold out to somebody else and that somebody else then sold him out. Karma. Rollins sure learnt his lesson though. Still them being portrayed as BFFs is too much.

With Triple H and Orton, well, Trips said it himself. It was bussiness. Orton put behind him the fact that HHH betrayed him, HHH put behind him the fact that Orton took out his family and they went down to bussiness. They didn't become BFFs.

Look, you don't like Seth Rollins. Your choice, but don't disguise your take on it as anything more than your own perception of a guy you don't care for.

Rollins did no more than what many wrestlers have done in the past (aligned with someone else, betrayed others, only to be betrayed by him). Wrestling is littered with them. People who hate each other two months ago will team up a couple of weeks later in a tag-team. Wrestlers change sides all the time and team with someone they hated, and you never hear an apology.

I remember Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit forming a team and winning the Tag-Team Titles after numerous and heated matches against one another. What about the Rock N' Sock Connection. Did the Rock ever apologize to Mankind for all the chair shots? Yet they teamed, and the Rock still acted like he despised Mankind. People hate each other one week, team the next. Hell, Undertaker and Kane have feuded and then teamed and then feuded again more than you have had hot dinners. The fact that you single out Rollins smacks of hatred more than anything, and I bet you won't buy WWE2K18 video game because it has Seth Rollins on the cover.

How is it that when Orton aligns with Triple H, it is "business", but when Seth does EXACTLY the same thing, and replaces Orton in the Authority, then Seth is a fool. Both Orton and Seth had Triple H turn on them and kick them out of the group, yet it is only karma when it happens to Rollins?

 

[Goldie]

In the modern era it isn't really a shock anymore when wrestlers turn heel anymore.
In some raw episodes the same person has turned heel then face again the same episode!

That's why my pick is the Mega powers. It was a slow burner with several hints at Savages gradual animosity to Hogan (remember Survivor Series 88 where Savage refused to pose and celebrate with Hogan?... at a point before any breakup was even teased?)... and this turned into full on jealous rage..... Savage attacked Hogan when he tended to Liz... and Randy suddenly went from being the babyface world champ to a mega heel.... his promos on Hogan were intense and cutting.
You just don't see it to that degree anymore.

I think an omission here is Andre turning on Hogan to set up the infamous WM3 main event. Andre had been a beloved babyface for 15 years!
Turning heel after that amount of time was a big big deal

 

[Jonyboyuk2]

The Rockers split was the best. Shawn Michaels was brutal- what an angle. Me and my friends were still talking about that in 1997! It set HBK up for one hell of a solo career. It also brought some great matches between them both in 1993. It was the best.

A close second favourite of mine is The Rock Mankind turn at the end of Survivor Series 1998. The Rock was a fresh fan favourite, then he twisted Mankind up and Vince Yelled for the bell. Double turn by Rock and Mankind. The build up to it, with Mankind and "Dad" Vince - and Rock slowly turning from heel to face just in time, then the Rock dominating the tournament - genius. My favourite WWF PPV storyline ever.

 

[SSJPhenom]

A fine list to be sure, however, a lot of great choices were left off the list.

For me, it has to be Michaels/Trips in 2002. I can't remember the exact date, but I remember seeing it on tv and how upset I was when it happened. So they come out on Raw to the DX music. Music we hadn't heard, at that point, for about 2 years and there they were. The two founding members of DX. The originals, if you will. They had on the DX shirts and everything. They get ready to do the whole "Let's get ready to suck it" bit and out of nowhere Trips gives HBK the pedigree. OMG!!!! It's moments like that that make Trips, quite possibly, the greatest heel in WWE history. I couldn't believe it.

Not only was that the greatest betrayal, but from that moment we got one of the greatest feuds in WWE history as well. A feud that provided some of the greatest matches in WWE history. It was a perfect storm and it was a great time to be a fan.

 

[tdmoon]

My first instinct was to go with Zbyszco's turn on Bruno but I see that was already covered pretty well here, so I'm going to go with Paul Orndorff's betrayal of Hogan back in '86. The two friends were at the top of the card and opponents belittled Mr. #1derful, calling him "Hulk, Jr.". The dissension between Hogan and Orndorff simmered slowly with multiple hints at a break up and when it finally happened it was one of the biggest feuds of its time, culminating in one of the most memorable SNME matches ever and a massive show with over seventy-five thousand in attendance. I also loved Orndorff using "Real American" as his entrance music.

 

[Makaveli31]

I think everyone's answers have been on point so far. Here's one that I don't think has been mentioned.....

Sgt. Slaughter's betrayal of the United States of America during the Gulf War.

This goes back to the point that wrestlers' of the "Golden Era" spent years cultivating a character as either "good" or "bad" and for many of us growing up in the '80's Sgt. Slaughter WAS G.I. Joe. When we played "army guys' in the backyards it was often as Sgt. Slaughter.

He started out as a heel but achieved his greatest success when he picked up Old Glory and went up against the Iron Shiek and Iran in 1984. Slaughter was one of the top babyfaces of the 1980's (even though he was in the AWA) thanks to the G.I. Joe cartoons, action figures, and movies. So when he suddenly turned on his country and joined forces with the Iron Shiek (as Col Mustafa) and Gen Adnan it came as a huge shock.

It remains, to this day, one of the most controversial and emotionally charged angles of all time. I believe Slaughter when he says he received death threats, and his family had to be moved to an undisclosed location. Being considered a "traitor" to your country is the worst thing imaginable but it gave Slaughter a memorable run in 1991.

One of the funny stories Slaughter tells is that when he picks Old Glory back up with Hacksaw in the ring and the fans start cheering again, Vince tells Slaughter in the back "Let's screw em again!" Hahaha

 

[LBGetBack]

I always thought Tatanka "selling out" to Ted Dibiase and betraying Lex Luger was a good one. Tatanka kept accusing Lex of selling out for weeks, and Dibiase played along and tried to make it seem like Lex would soon be aligning with him.

Though I think the OP nailed all the top contenders. I personally think Michaels-Jericho was the most well executed in terms of the buildup and breakup, and fleshing out the reasons for it. I think Jericho-Owens was the best breakup segment in terms of the segment where it actually happened. I think the barbershop window that Jannetty went through was the best actual attack. And I think Rollins turn was the best legit surprise. I voted for Jericho-HBk.

Gotta say, I don't consider what Savage did a betrayal. That was more friends growing apart and getting pissed off at each other over a woman. Savage was crazy protective of Liz and didn't want any other men being near her. Hogan knew that, and didn't respect that. Straight up man law violation. Sure Randy was batshit, but that's on Hulk to work around that, if that's really his boy. Savage made his feelings known, he wasn't hiding anything. Hogan continued with his BS, and Randy smacked him. No betrayal on Savage's part IMO. Hulk was a bad friend.