WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley is the "Hardcore Legend" for a reason he has a high threshold for pain. He's been involved in some of the most violent matches in the history of professional wrestling. Nevertheless, Foley's WWE career has been successful. He is a three-time WWE Champion, the inaugural Hardcore Champion, and he's won multiple WWE World Tag Team Championships.
Foley is famous for his "Three Faces of Foley" which are Mankind, Cactus Jack, and Dude Love. He's won championships in all three personas, and even as Mick Foley he's had success. Nevertheless, Foley has been featured in some magnificent feuds which showcased him at his very best.
9 Big Show
Mankind was unfortunate not to be involved in the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 15 as a competitor. However, he battled with the Corporation's Big Show at the event, and the winner would become the special guest referee in the WWE Championship showdown between The Rock and Steve Austin.
Mankind prevailed by disqualification, but he wasn't in a fit state to referee the match as he was Chokeslammed through a couple of chairs. Their feud culminated in a Boiler Room Brawl at Backlash. This was better than their WrestleMania matchup, and Mankind scored another win over Show. However, they put their differences aside and were members of the short-lived Union faction.
8 Shawn Michaels
Had Mankind and Shawn Michaels' rivalry lasted longer there's no doubt that this feud would have been ranked higher. Nevertheless, Mrs. Foley's Baby Boy challenged HBK for the WWE Championship just months into his WWE career at In Your House: Mind Games.
This match was stellar. Mankind proved that he could hang with the big boys, and he looked comfortable in the main event scene. Mankind pushed Michaels to his limit and he could have won the WWE Championship, but Vader interfered and caused Mankind to lose by disqualification.
7 Ric Flair
Mick Foley and Ric Flair had real-life animosity with each other with the Nature Boy calling Foley a "glorified stuntman." Nonetheless, the two have patched things up in real life, but their feud was filled with violence.
They clashed in a two out of three falls match at Vengeance 2006 with Naitch getting the win over Foley. They collided in an "I Quit" match at SummerSlam 2006 which was violent. Both men wore the proverbial crimson mask, and Flair was going to attack Foley's friend Melina. That forced Foley to utter the words "I Quit" with Flair going over in this rivalry.
6 Edge
The rivalry between Mick Foley and Edge set up the Rated-R Superstar to cement his spot as a certified main eventer. Edge blamed Foley for costing him the WWE Championship, which led to the pair becoming rivals, and their hardcore match at WrestleMania 22 was fantastic.
Foley had a high threshold of pain, and he once again showed no fear when the Ultimate Opportunist Speared him through a flaming table. Edge prevailed, and the former WWE Champions had a newfound respect for each other as Foley turned heel and the two formed a short-lived alliance.
5 Steve Austin
Mick Foley reverted to his Dude Love character in 1998, and it was for the better as he became Steve Austin's first challenger for the WWE Championship. The deck was stacked against the Texas Rattlesnake as Mr. McMahon desperately wanted Austin to lose the WWE Championship.
Their encounter at Unforgiven: In Your House was exceptional, and Dude Love prevailed by disqualification but he did not take home the title. Moreover, Undertaker was at ringside in their rematch at Over the Edge: In Your House to ensure that McMahon and his stooges could not screw over Austin. Dude Love proved that he was capable of mixing it up with the big boys as he looked strong in his loss.
4 Randy Orton
Randy Orton lived up to his "Legend Killer" nickname when he kicked Mick Foley down a flight of stairs inside Madison Square Garden. Foley reunited The Rock 'n' Sock Connection alongside The Rock, and they collided with Evolution's Orton, Batista, and Ric Flair in a losing effort at WrestleMania 20.
A month later, Foley and Orton stole the show in a brutal No Holds Barred, Falls Count Anywhere match for Orton's Intercontinental Championship at Backlash 2004. Orton had no help from Evolution, and he beat Foley to retain his Intercontinental Title. Foley was selfless, and he got a young talent like Orton over, who went on to win the World Heavyweight Championship just four months later.
3 The Rock
It was clear that The Rock and Steve Austin would slug it out for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 15. However, Mankind and Rock's filler feud that lasted four months was outstanding, and it did wonders for both performers. A perfectly-executed double turn was done at Survivor Series 1998 as Rock defeated Mankind in the final of the Deadly Game tournament to become WWE Champion for the first time.
Mankind was a babyface once again, and he beat Rock for his maiden WWE Championship on the January 4, 1999 edition of Raw. Their WWE Championship match at the 1999 Royal Rumble was an "I Quit" match and Rock relentlessly hit Mankind with unprotected chair shots to the head. Furthermore, they traded the WWE Title a couple of times after the Rumble with Rock overcoming Mankind in a Ladder match to become a three-time WWE Champion.
2 Triple H
The feud between Mick Foley and Triple H solidified Triple H's spot as the top heel in the business in 2000. At the Royal Rumble, Foley in his Cactus Jack gimmick challenged Triple H for the WWE Championship in a violent Street Fight. This was held inside the hallowed halls of Madison Square Garden with Triple H remaining as WWE Champion.
Their Hell in a Cell match at No Way Out was fantastic, and the Game prevailed once more with Foley forced into retirement. However, he came out of retirement, and he was involved in a four corners elimination match for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 2000 with Triple H triumphant. The pair feuded in 1997 with Foley as Mankind, and whilst Triple H won the King of the Ring tournament, Mankind beat Triple H in a Steel Cage match at SummerSlam.
1 The Undertaker
Mankind debuted on the Raw after WrestleMania 12, and he set his eyes on The Undertaker. Mankind troubled The Undertaker, and he beat him in two successive pay-per-view meetings at King of the Ring 1996, and in the first Boiler Room Brawl at SummerSlam.
That's as good as it got for Mankind as Undertaker dominated their rivalry. Undertaker flipped the script in the first-ever Buried Alive match, and he followed it up with another win at Survivor Series. Moreover, the Deadman beat Mankind in a WWE Championship match a year later. The match that everyone remembers in their feud though is their Hell in a Cell match at King of the Ring 1998. Mankind was launched off the top of the cell through the broadcast table, and he was Chokeslammed through the roof of the cell. Foley became a legend that night, and that was the catalyst for him going on to win a trio of WWE Championships.