5 best career on the line matches ever in the WWE
It is always difficult to say goodbye to someone you love. When it comes to WWE, a number of men and women have come through their doors, faced a number of different challenges, and walked out on their own terms.
It is sad when a wrestler's career is cut short due to injury, but they realise that those risks are part of the business and do it because they love it. How about wrestlers whose careers were in the hands of their opponents?
In a number of different instances, careers have been cut short to help further a storyline, and also to provide a reason why they are saying goodbye.
However, while retirement matches are usually meant to highlight that someone is leaving the company, sometimes it's a way to say ‘Thank you for the opportunity, I'm now going to go home and enjoy the rest of my life with my family.'
In a number of cases, the people that lost these matches did so in a way that they can be proud of. These men and women's lives are held to a different standard because of their body of work, and fans recognise that. Here are the five best career on the line matches ever in WWE.
#5 Trish Stratus vs. Lita – Unforgiven 2006
It isn't that common for a retirement match to be all that memorable. Yes, those participating are of great significance, and their contributions to wrestling are important, but the match itself is ultimately mostly a send-off and a thank you.
On one particular occasion, a retirement match wasn't only significant because it involved two women, but because it involved two women who have called each other best friends outside the ring. During their time in the ring, Lita and Trish had one of the most exciting rivalries in wrestling.
Also read: 5 WWE Superstars other than Undertaker who could have had a Wrestlemania streak
Lita came into the promotion much more seasoned, but by the end of their careers, it could be said that they mirrored one another.
They were the first women to main event a Monday Night Raw. And on this particular evening, it was already known that Trish was going to be walking away from the ring after the match, regardless of the result.
We say regardless of the result because the WWE Women's championship was on the line, with Lita being the champion. Someone winning the match and retiring was unlikely, but on this night it happened. Trish defeated Lita, capturing her seventh Women's title and went on to retire from professional wrestling.