5 WWE Superstars who refused to win WrestleMania matches
WrestleMania is considered to be WWE's biggest event, and making an appearance at the pay-per-view is a dream for all superstars. Getting a win at the show is an added bonus as their names are etched in the company's history.
However, not all superstars took the chance of a win and rejected the idea put on the table. While some believed the victory would not be a good direction for their storyline, others did it out of respect for their opponent.
Here are a few Superstars who rejected the chance to win a match at WrestleMania:
#5 Edge at WWE WrestleMania XXIV
Edge was at the peak of his powers in 2008 when he was defending the WWE Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 24. The Rated-R Superstar was up against The Undertaker and was penciled in to win the match.
However, a victory for Edge would have ended The Undertaker's streak at WrestleMania. That was not something the WWE Heavyweight Champion wanted, and he rejected the chance to win the match.
Former WWE Superstar and The Undertaker's wife, Michelle McCool, confirmed the rumor while talking to New York Post. She said:
"Actually I remember at WrestleMania [24] versus Edge they talked about Edge breaking the streak. It was Edge that was actually like, 'That makes zero sense. I don't want to do that. Why would I do that? The fans already love him. What's it gonna do for Edge?'"
"It was Edge that went to bat for the streak. I know they had talked about it prior to the match with Brock, but you know it happened. It's fine, it's not like it's an end-all, be-all for Mark by any stretch of the imagination," said McCool.
The WWE management were reportedly keen on ending the streak at New Orleans. It is a good thing Edge refused to win as it would have seen The Phenom end the streak at 15 – 7 years before it was actually broken.
Edge broke his silence on WWE wanting him to end the streak in 2008 and revealed his reasoning on the Busted Open podcast last year. The Rated R Superstar said:
"I think once I said no, well, they're not gonna do it. My reasoning was I felt while looking at WrestleMania, the card, we need The Streak. You have all the title matches. You have Money in the Bank. I'm looking at the strength of the card. If I end The Streak, well next year, we don't have The Streak as one of the calling cards of WrestleMania, and to me, it became more important than the title matches almost. To me, it shouldn't have ended until his final match."
The 11-time World Champion was clearly not happy with Brock Lesnar ending the streak, and just like The Undertaker, he too wanted Roman Reigns to be the chosen one.