Wrestling fans love speculating about dream matches, pitting wrestlers against each other who normally wouldn't face off. AEW seems to be in the business of making those dreams come true these days thanks to partnerships with Impact, NWA, and possibly even NJPW. Even Triple H is now claiming that WWE is open to similar partnerships.
Over the years, a few dream matches between WWE and ROH talents have actually gone down. Some of them were everything fans hoped for and more. Others just left a bad taste in everyone's mouths. It's a fine line between a dream and a nightmare.
10 Flopped: CM Punk Vs Billy Gunn on Raw
While fans didn't really know it at the time, CM Punk's WWE career was about to come to a very abrupt end in January 2014. As odd as this sounds, a few of his last matches involved The New Age Outlaws, often as tag team partners.
His last singles match was against Billy Gunn. There was a time that Gunn was one of the WWE's top stars and could have had a solid bout with Punk. But this match was an absolute dud. It happened exactly one month after Punk faced Seth Rollins, which was a far superior match.
9 Great: AJ Styles Vs Finn Bálor at TLC 2017
There are times when fans get dream matches when they aren't expecting them. This was certainly one of those times. At TLC in 2017, Finn Bálor was scheduled to face Bray Wyatt but Wyatt fell ill.
Instead, AJ Styles rushed back from a South American tour to take Bálor on in an impromptu match. The former ROH star and the former NJPW star put on an incredible match, one that blew everyone's minds. Unfortunately, WWE has never followed up on this match but hopefully, it will happen.
8 Flopped: Seth Rollins Vs "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt at Hell in a Cell 2019
Prior to showing up in WWE, Seth Rollins made a huge impact in ROH as Tyler Black. Some fans know him from that era but most are familiar with him as Seth Rollins, former WWE Champion and member of The Shield.
As the Universal Champion, Seth faced "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt in a Hell in a Cell match. It has been universally derided as one of the worst bouts in either man's career. This should have been a dream match. Instead, the ridiculous finish had the fans in attendance screaming for their money back.
7 Great: Samoa Joe Vs Finn Bálor at NXT TakeOver: London
Samoa Joe and Finn Bálor were both big stars in other companies before coming to WWE. Joe put in some incredible years in companies like TNA and ROH while Bálor made a name for himself in NJPW. That being said, most fans know Bálor best from WWE. Or, to be more precise, from NXT.
When they faced off in NXT, it was incredible. Their match at NXT TakeOver: London remains one of the best in the history of the black and gold brand. It's been a long time since they last wrestled each other but it needs to happen again.
6 Flopped: CM Punk Vs JBL at SummerSlam 2008
There was a time not long before this match that JBL was one of WWE's top stars. He was a champion and the biggest heel in the company. But by the point that the former ROH champion faced him, those days were gone.
By the time SummerSlam 2008 rolled around, the best days of JBL's in-ring career were long behind him. Beyond that, fans simply weren't interested in seeing a top current star like Punk face him. But if this match had happened during JBL's prime, it would have been legendary.
5 Great: Seth Rollins Vs John Cena at SummerSlam 2015
John Cena is a WWE product, plain and simple. The vast majority of his career happened with the company. On top of that, he was their standard-bearer for years, much to the chagrin of many fans.
Seth Rollins came in from ROH, eventually found his groove, and became the next face of the company. While Cena has his detractors, one of Rollins' best matches happened against him at SummerSlam. It had that big fight feel, which was exactly what Rollins needed to cement himself as a main event player.
4 Flopped: Samoa Joe vs Roman Reigns at Backlash 2018
While the ROH and TNA legend had an epic NXT run for the ages, his time on the main roster has left a lot to be desired. A mix of bad booking decisions and ongoing injuries have continued to trip up his run. These days, Joe is primarily on commentary, which he is incredible at, but fans still hope for an in-ring return.
One of his worst main roster matches was against Roman Reigns. The two Samoan superstars should have had an epic bout but it just didn't work out that way. For whatever reason, the match was just a dud.
3 Great: CM Punk Vs John Cena at Money in the Bank 2011
The history between CM Punk and John Cena is tumultuous at best. Ignoring that, there was a time that these men were considered two of the best in the business, though Punk's legacy goes much further than the halls of WWE.
CM Punk and John Cena feuding was a prime example of what makes pro wrestling great. Their match at Money in the Bank in 2011 was a definitive dream match for anyone who ever wanted to see ROH take a chunk out of WWE.
2 Flopped: AJ Styles Vs Dean Ambrose at TLC 2016
Jon Moxley's career outside of the WWE has been his own and a success. But his WWE run as Dean Ambrose wasn't everything it could have been. He certainly won a few championships but he never quite fit into the WWE system.
A match between Dean Ambrose and AJ Styles should have been an epic bout but in the end, it missed the mark. A big part of that problem was WWE's inability to figure out how to book Ambrose as a proper singles star. That disconnect really showed in this bout.
1 Great: Daniel Bryan Vs Triple H at WrestleMania 30
By the time WrestleMania 30 rolled around, Triple H wasn't exactly at his best in the ring. That night, he proved he still had some gas left in the tank when he faced Daniel Bryan, formerly known as Bryan Danielson in ROH.
It was an amazing match for two reasons. First, the action was great as both wrestlers brought their A-game. But it was also the part of the grand finale of Bryan's war against The Authority. This was the endgame of what turned into one of the best storylines in the history of WWE.