5 Chris Benoit WWE dream matches we'll obviously never get to see
Well... this won't be controversial.
With the season premiere of Vice's excellent docuseries, Dark Side of the Ring, focusing on the Chris Benoit murder/suicide tragedy, interest in the former World Heavyweight Champion (for better or worse) has been at it's highest since... well... since all that stuff happened.
Now, the intention of this piece isn't to rehash the horrible events of 2007, nor are we, in any way, trying to justify or gloss over what Benoit allegedly did. The fact of the matter is that Chris Benoit was an amazing in-ring performer and, while that certainly doesn't need to be celebrated, it can at least be acknowledged.
Benoit would have been 53 this upcoming May, which means that in an alternate timeline, he could still be performing to this day. So, what I want to do is take a look at some of the WWE talent from 2007 until today that Benoit never had a match with that we (obviously) missed out on.
Also, before we begin: yes, I know the irony of a guy named Kevin Sullivan writing a feature on Chris Benoit.
#5. Brock Lesnar (post-UFC)
Benoit and Brock Lesnar had plenty of bouts during The Beast's first run in WWE. However, the Brock Lesnar competing in WWE then is hardly the same one that's destroying everybody he comes across today. In a lot of ways, he's a completely different performer - which means he makes my list.
One of the things that made Benoit so fascinating as a performer was the impact he put into everything he did. Every clothesline looked like it was meant to decapitate someone. Every German Suplex felt like the purpose was to send his opponent literally through the mat. Every flying headbutt looked stupid because, let's face it, that's a stupid move. Benoit still made it look like it was designed to hurt you, though.
That's the same intensity that post-UFC Championship Brock Lesnar brings to his matches, and in an alternate universe where Benoit is alive and well, this would be an incredible sight to see.