10 Best Surprise WWE Returns

Today marks 20 years (yes 20) since Ric Flair returned to WWE on the post-Survivor Series 2001 episode of Raw.

Colour commentator Jerry "The King" Lawler had already shockingly returned to the announce desk following the storyline firing of Paul Heyman earlier in the show, but The Nature Boy showing up and announcing that he was the kayfabe co-owner of WWE was a twist that nobody saw coming.

Slick Ric was appearing on Raw for the first time since losing a Loser Leaves Town match to Mr. Perfect on the January 25, 1993 episode of the show.

It obviously helped that Raw was taking place in Charlotte, North Carolina that night, but a surprise return done well is always guaranteed to get a reaction.

Don't believe me? Well, I don't know why you wouldn't believe me, but there are plenty of examples of excellent surprise returns.

And by 'surprise' returns we mean those that came with no prior advertising or announcement.

Anyway, on with the countdown! Would you like to know what number one is?

Tough. It's a surprise.

Duh.

10. Chris Jericho - Royal Rumble 2013

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From 2010 onwards, Chris Jericho would become a part-time WWE performer.

He would leave for months at a time to pursue outside endeavours (usually touring with his band Fozzy) and took the whole of 2011 off. He returned in early 2012, but left once again that August.

Whenever he was due to come back, it was usually advertised and/or hyped up in advance.

That was not the case at the 2013 Royal Rumble, however, where Jericho entered at number two. He immediately got into it with the number one entrant, Dolph Ziggler, the man who had been responsible for his exit five months prior.

The pop that Y2J received for his return was huge and WWE did well to get a little bit of suspense of it by having Ziggler cut a promo beforehand, while also waiting several seconds before playing Jericho's music.

This was no mere cameo from the first-ever Undisputed Champion, either, as he lasted a whopping 47:53 (before being eliminated by the Show-Off).

9. Shane McMahon - Raw (February 22, 2016)

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He may have worn out his welcome at times over the past five or so years, but Shane McMahon's shocking return was one of WWE's best surprises of the last decade.

Vince's son had resigned from his position as WWE's Vice President of Global Media in October 2009. It was a move that caused quite a stir, as it raised questions about Shane's relationship with his father and the future ownership of WWE.

In the almost seven years that followed, Shane kept busy in the business world and didn't so much as make a cameo appearance on WWE TV. It was assumed that he may never come back, especially as it looked increasingly likely that his sister Stephanie and brother-in-law Triple H were going to be given the keys to the castle one day.

Him showing up and interrupting the Genetic Jackhammer and Billion Dollar Princess during the opening segment of Raw was not something that anyone called, as his return was kept strictly hush-hush.

That little dance was a bit ropey for a man in his mid-40's to be doing, but we'll let him off. After all, Shane is officially the Best Wrestler in the World. I think he knows what he's doing.

8. The Ultimate Warrior - WrestleMania VIII

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If anyone embodies the mantra that Vince McMahon will do business with someone, regardless of bad blood and as long as there is money to be made, it is the Ultimate Warrior.

Few performers had such a tumultuous relationship with the WWE Chairman over the years, but Warrior was always brought back and given another chance because he was a bankable star.

Jim Hellwig was first fired/quit following SummerSlam 1991, after McMahon baulked at a letter he had sent outlining demands relating to monetary compensation, schedule and travel arrangements.

With Hulk Hogan set to go on hiatus following WrestleMania VIII, Vince called Warrior up and negotiated his return on the show.

As the Hulkster was being beaten down by Papa Shango and Sid Justice following his disqualification victory over the latter, those familiar pulsating guitar riffs rang out and the man in the face paint sprinted down (the extra-long) aisle to clean house and save his fellow babyface.

It was a very exciting end to the show and almost made up for the terrible main event.

Almost.

7. The Undertaker - Judgment Day 2000

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The Undertaker went down with a very painful groin injury in September 1999, the latest in a long list of physical ailments the Deadman had to endure during the decade.

Ideally, he would have been back in time for WrestleMania 2000, but he tore his pectoral muscle while training for his comeback and would have to spend a lot longer on the shelf.

Nobody really knew when he would be back, because WWE didn't tell us and, to be honest, the roster was so strong at that time that 'Taker's absence wasn't as strongly felt as it had been whenever he had to take time off to convalesce in earlier years.

Though some creepy promos aired in the build to Judgment Day 2000, it was never explicitly said that they were for The Undertaker. The inclusion of the Kid Rock song 'American Badass' was hardly a giveaway, you know?

All became clear on the night, though, when 'Taker returned in the final minute of The Rock and Triple H's WWE Title Iron Man match, riding to ringside not in his Ministry of Darkness getup, but biker clothes.

It was breathless stuff, as the Phenom took out each member of D-Generation X, as well as the McMahons in a frantic finale.

6. Edge - Royal Rumble 2010

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The Royal Rumble match has long been a great place to host a surprise return, whether it's a one-off cameo by a legend or a modern star coming back from a layoff.

When Edge tore his Achilles tendon in a match with Jeff Hardy on a July 3, 2009 house show, he looked at the calendar and immediately targeted the 2010 Royal Rumble as the place to return.

That gave the Rated-R Superstar six months to get ready following surgery, not the longest period of time to recover from a major injury but certainly doable.

Neither Edge nor WWE informed viewers of this plan, and so when he entered the match as entrant number 29 it was a genuine and very pleasant surprise.

He immediately went after and eliminated Chris Jericho - the man he was a WWE Tag Team Champion with at the time of his injury and who publicly disparaged him once he got hurt - before finally eliminating John Cena to win the Rumble and book his place at WrestleMania.

5. Brock Lesnar - Raw (April 2, 2012)

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The day before WrestleMania XXVIII, news began circulating online that Brock Lesnar had signed a one-year contract with WWE.

Brock had recently retired from Mixed Martial Arts following his loss to Alistair Overeem at UFC 141 and speculation had been rife that the former UFC Heavyweight Champion could be on his way back to the world of sports entertainment.

Lesnar had left WWE under a cloud after WrestleMania XX eight years prior and hadn't exactly been kind about his stint there.

But with MMA (mostly) behind him, Brock followed the money and signed with Vince McMahon's organisation once again. When he would actually show up on our screens, however, was unknown.

Some believed he may get involved at 'Mania itself, possibly interfering in the John Cena vs. The Rock main event and costing The Great One the match in order to build to the rumoured Brock vs. Rock bout for next year's Showcase of the Immortals.

He didn't, but rather showed up the night after on the post-WrestleMania Raw and attacked not The Rock, but Cena.

We may have suspected that The Next Big Thing would show up when he did, but we didn't know for certain and the huge pop the sound of his music received let him know that the so-called WWE Universe were happy to have him back.

4. The Hardy Boyz - WrestleMania 33

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After Jeff (in September 2009) and Matt (one year later) left WWE, they went off the rails a little bit.

Though they were working for TNA/IMPACT and on the indies, their spiralling personal lives often made headlines ahead of their in-ring efforts and there was genuine worry that they could both end up as yet another wrestling tragedy.

Thankfully, they were able to get their acts together and have a career renaissance, thanks in large part to the wonderfully wacky Broken Universe.

They had cleaned up and proven themselves valuable enough that, when they became free agents, WWE came calling.

There was a belief that the Hardys could be on their way back into the company, possibly on the post-WrestleMania 33 Raw, but WWE went one better and had them re-emerge on the grandest stage itself.

Announced by 'Mania hosts The New Day as the surprise fourth team in the WWE Tag Team Title Ladder Match, Matt and Jeff's arrival was greeted with one of the loudest pops you are ever likely to hear.

Fans have a real affinity for the Hardys and it was great to see them back after so long away. Them winning the belts in their comeback match was the icing on the cake.

3. The Rock - Raw (February 14, 2011)

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It's incredible to think now, but The Rock's full-time in-ring WWE career only lasted a shade under five years (between Survivor Series 1996 and WrestleMania X-Seven in 2001).

With one foot firmly planted in Hollywood, The Great One's schedule diminished in the years that followed as he transitioned into proper movie star.

The Rock's last match for seven-and-a-half years took place at WrestleMania XX, though he would intermittently show up here and there to lay the Smackdown on someone's candy ass.

Those appearances grew fewer and fewer (and typically became pre-tapes) until the The Rock made his surprise, unannounced return on the February 14, 2011 episode of Raw.

Revealed as the host of the forthcoming WrestleMania XXVII, the arrival of the Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment blew the roof off Anaheim's Honda Centre.

His return was good timing for WWE, too, as Rock's acting career was not long from taking off into the stratosphere after joining the Fast and Furious franchise.

It was great to have The People's Champion finally - FINALLY - back in WWE, and WWE played the return brilliantly by not giving away any clues and building suspense for the reveal by dimming the arena lights one by one and building the suspense.

2. John Cena - Royal Rumble 2008

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John Cena was enjoying the longest WWE Title reign in nineteen years when, while wrestling Mr. Kennedy on the October 1, 2007 episode of Raw, he suffered a nasty pectoral injury while giving a routine hip toss.

He finished the match and got through the post-match beatdown by Randy Orton, but tests the following day showed that the muscle was torn completely from the bone and would require major surgery.

Having to vacate the title was a blow, but not as much as the estimated six-to-twelve months he would be forced to sit out. The optimists hoped he'd be back in time for WrestleMania XXIV, while the realists figured he'd be back closer to SummerSlam.

Nobody snuck a cheeky fiver on Cena being ready to come back at the Royal Rumble, just four months after going under the knife, and winning the thing.

Entering at number thirty, Cena's entrance was greeted with euphoric cheers from the Madison Square Garden throng, in contradiction to the reception he had been accustomed to getting over the past couple of years.

An involuntary pop (oo-er) perhaps, one that couldn't be helped due to the surprise factor.

1. Edge - Royal Rumble 2020

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If Edge's career was to end in April 2011 due to injury then, really, there were far, far worse ways to go out.

The Rated-R Superstar announced his retirement while still reigning as World Heavyweight Champion, having defended the title against Alberto Del Rio at WrestleMania XXVII in what we all presumed would be his last match.

He'd had a Hall of Famer career, winning and doing everything there was to win and do. Plus, he had openly admitted that he was contemplating retirement when the decision was made for him.

While he transitioned into acting and pursued other endeavours, Edge was still upset that he wasn't allowed to bow out on his terms. Unbeknownst to all but a select few, the Canadian's neck started to feel better and, after consultation and passing many stringent tests, it was determined that he would, amazingly, be allowed to wrestle again.

Everything was kept confidential so that the Ultimate Opportunist could return as the number 21 entrant in the 2020 Royal Rumble, marking his first match in almost a decade.

You simply cannot fake the emotion of either the performer or the fans in the arena that night, something that was only possible because they decided to keep it a surprise.