10 Cancelled WWE WrestleMania Matches

3. Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels - WrestleMania 13

In the main event of WrestleMania 12, Shawn Michaels realised his boyhood dream by beating Bret Hart to capture the WWE Title for the first time, scoring the decisive (and only) fall in sudden death of their one-hour Iron Man match. 

A year later, The Heartbreak Kid was due to defend his title against The Hitman in the main event of WrestleMania 13. 

Looking to avenge his previous loss, Hart would come back with a chip on his shoulder and make things more personal with Michaels by blasting him for not being a proper role model. According to Bret, he would regain the title, teeing up a third and final pay-per-view match between the pair at a later date. 

That was the plan, anyway, before the Showstopper put a stop to the show. Citing lingering knee issues and a ‘lost smile’, HBK vacated the belt about a month before ‘Mania, throwing the card into a state of flux. 

Making the best of the situation, WWE instead booked Bret against Stone Cold Steve Austin and they had possibly the best match of all-time. Shawn eventually found his smile by May 1997, when he returned to WWE TV.