10 Wrestlers Who Had One Match In WWE

It's been almost seven years since WWE presented NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, an event that (as much as any other) signalled to the world that the black-and-gold brand was one to watch.

A tremendous show that took place in front of a raucous New York crowd, highlights included Sasha Banks and Bayley's incredible NXT Women's Title match, the in-ring debut of Apollo Crews and the bruising NXT Championship ladder match main event between Finn Balor and Samoa Joe.

For some fans, however, the show perhaps peaked in the very first match, when a Japanese legend wrestled his first - and only - WWE match.

It doesn't happen often, but sometimes performers are (for various reasons) 'one and done' when it comes to appearing in a WWE ring.

Now, for the purposes of this countdown, we're taking into account both wrestlers who had either one televised match or, rarer still, one match total, whether they were on TV, pay-per-view or when the cameras weren't rolling at all.

10. Jushin Liger

WWE.com

It took Jushin 'Thunder' Liger being over thirty years into his historic career before he got the call from WWE.

The deal was made when Finn Balor and then William Regal got in touch with the New Japan Pro Wrestling office, with the two sides then working out a one-shot deal for the masked innovator to appear for NXT.

Liger had worked absolutely everywhere in the three decades prior, including all over Japan, Mexico and Europe and for American promotions like WCW, TNA and Ring of Honor.

The perfect way to kick off TakeOver: Brooklyn, Liger's entrance brought the house down before he had a very entertaining match with Tyler Breeze, someone who was certainly on the rise in NXT at that time.

Liger got the win with his patented Liger Bomb, before heading back to the Land of the Rising Sun.

After retiring from active in-ring competition in January 2020, Jushin Liger was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame the following year.

9. Mikey Whipwreck

WWE Network

The February 24, 1997 episode of Monday Night Raw saw ECW invade WWE, which both helped to promote the hardcore promotion's upcoming Barely Legal pay-per-view, while also breathing life into a somewhat stale WWE product.

As part of the mini invasion, ECW got the chance to showcase their talent in a series of short matches and segments.

Many of those featured, such as Tommy Dreamer, D-Von Dudley, Sabu, Little Guido, Stevie Richards and Perry Saturn, would go on to sign with WWE in the future.

One wrestler who wrestled on the broadcast, however, would not.

Mikey Whipwreck, beloved underdog and unlikely one-time ECW Champion, was on the show to put over Taz strongly. Their brief bout was a basic squash, with Whipwreck not even getting a proper entrance before being picked apart by the Human Suplex Machine.

It was Mikey's only WWE match, though he did appear for WWE again in order to accompany old tag partner Tajiri at ECW One Night Stand 2005 (and was on hand for Rob Van Dam's title celebrations at the 2006 event).

Rumour has it that Whipwreck was invited back as a wrestler for the ECW relaunch, but that he turned it down due to numerous debilitating injuries.

8. Cain Velasquez

WWE.com

The road from MMA to pro wrestling is becoming an increasingly popular one for athletes to take, and WWE seems more willing than ever to give those with shoot fighting experience a chance in sports entertainment.

And it's easy to see why WWE gave UFC legend Cain Velasquez a shot, especially after he impressed during his appearances for Mexico's AAA promotion.

Signed in late 2019, Cain was put into a feud with WWE Champion Brock Lesnar, a man he had beaten for real in the Octagon nine years prior.

Kicking off the Crown Jewel pay-per-view/WWE Network special, their short WWE Title bout was the very definition of an 'attraction', booked on the same show that boxing sensation Tyson Fury met Braun Strowman.

The match was over before it really got a chance to begin, with The Beast Incarnate retaining despite interference from Rey Mysterio.

Velasquez would have one more match, tagging with Humberto Carillo to beat The OC at a non-televised live event in Mexico a month later. He was released in April 2020, due to budget cuts owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

7. Bruce & Keith Hart

WWE.com

While Bret and Owen Hart found worldwide success as WWE superstars, it shouldn't be forgotten that the rest of the Hart brothers were also either wrestlers or otherwise involved in the family business.

A few of the lesser-known Harts also worked for Vince McMahon, with Ross Hart wrestling a handful of matches for WWE as 'Ross Lindsey' in 1990.

Four years later, two of the oldest brothers - Keith and Bruce - would wrestle their one and only WWE match.

Keith and Bruce, who both had distinguished careers in Canada for father Stu's Stampede Wrestling, teamed up with their younger siblings Bret and Owen at the 1993 Survivor Series, taking on Shawn Michaels and his 'knights'.

The bout was supposed to be a continuation of the feud between the Hitman and Jerry Lawler, but The King was in a spot of legal bother at the time and was replaced by The Heartbreak Kid.

The Harts won a long match, with Owen being the only member of their team eliminated.

6. Lou Thesz

WWE.com

Regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of all-time, Lou Thesz was a three-time NWA World Champion, holding the title for a combined total of ten years, three months and nine days, more than anyone else in history.

He was basically retired by the 1970's, working select matches here and there, but came out of retirement in the late 80's for a one-off match in WWE.

The shooter was booked in a Legends Battle Royal on a November 11, 1987 house show in New Jersey. And the 71-year-old Thesz won the bout, outlasting the likes of Ray Stevens, Pedro Morales, Chief Jay Strongbow and Bobo Brazil.

Though it was a historic match in many ways, it was not a happy occasion or everyone.

Macho Man Randy Savage (who wrestled Harley Race that night) was furious that his father, promoter and wrestler Angelo Poffo, wasn't included in the Legends Battle Royal and held a grudge against Vince McMahon over it.

As well as Thesz, another famous shooter with one WWE match on their resume was Billy Robinson, who wrestled for the then-WWWF on an MSG card in November 1975, defeating Johnny Rodz.

5. Lena Yada

WWE.com

Coming to WWE via the 2007 edition of the Diva Search, Lena Yada worked as a backstage interviewer and valet, in-between competing in bikini contests, while training behind-the-scenes for an in-ring areer.

Her big moment finally came on the November 3, 2008 episode of Raw.

In her first ever match, Lena  teamed with Beth Phoenix, Jillian Hall, Katie Lea, Layla, Maryse, Natalya and Victoria to defeat Candice Michelle, Eve Torres, Brie Bella, Michelle McCool, Kelly Kelly, Mickie James, Tiffany and Mae Young.

The 16-diva tag lasted a total of 93 seconds and Yada didn't even get to tag in.

A week later, WWE wished her the best of the luck in her future endeavours and, outside of one match at an indie show in June of 2009, that was it for Lena Yada in the wrestling business.

4. Art Barr

WWE Network

Art Barr's North American wrestling career was basically over after he was convicted in 1990 of first-degree sexual abuse.

Hounded out of the Portland territory after having his wrestling licence there revoked, Barr would go on to work for WCW for a while before leaving there for Mexico.

He became a big name south of the border, but a relative unknown when he showed up in WWE as The Juicer to take on Latin Fury (Konnan) on January 8, 1992.

A dark (non-televised) match that was ostensibly a tryout for the lucha stars, Latin Fury won a short match that is available to watch as a 'hidden gem' on the WWE Network.

It is perhaps most notable for Barr wearing a 'SAVE PEE WEE HERMAN' t-shirt, a reference to the character played by actor Paul Reubens, who had been arrested for indecent exposure months earlier.

Yeesh.

3. Kharma

WWE.com

Before the women's revolution in WWE and the rise of the likes of Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair changing the standard of women's wrestling in the mainstream United States, Awesome Kong had done much to change the perception, particularly in TNA with her series of hard-hitting matches with Gail Kim.

Signed by WWE in 2010, she was re-christened Kharma and debuted in May 2011, making an impact by attacking members of the women's roster, including Michelle McCool and Maryse.

Then, just weeks into her run, Kharma announced that she was pregnant and immediately went on sabbatical (she sadly suffered a miscarriage in December 2011).

Her return at the 2012 Royal Rumble was a pleasant surprise, making her (at that point) only the third female to enter the match, after Chnya and Beth Phoenix.

Her appearance was a memorable one, as she scared Michael Cole into eliminating himself, eliminated Hunico and was then dumped out by Dolph Ziggler.

Regrettably, this would be Kharma's sole WWE outing, as she was released months later while training to resume her full-time in-ring career.

2. Buff Bagwell

WWE.com

Had things gone according to plan, Buff Bagwell would have been one of the faces of the relaunched WCW in the summer of 2001.

Things, needless to say, did not go according to plan.

In his one televised WWE match (he worked a house show the night before) on the July 2, 2001 episode of Raw, Bagwell and Booker T had a main event WCW Title match that was so poorly received, WWE officials decided to nix the relaunch plans and forge on ahead with the Invasion storyline instead.

That alone may not have been the end for Buff, but he also got into a fight with Shane 'Hurricane' Helms at a WWE-mandated training session for WCW workers, turned up late to his one house show booking and then had his mum basically call Talent Relations head Jim Ross to inform him that he was injured and wouldn't be able to make his other bookings.

That was the final nail in his coffin and WWE opted to release him, rather than add him to the Alliance ranks.

Buff's WWE stay was short, but boy did he managed to pack a lot into his time there.

1. Fuego Del Sol

WWE.com

One of the sweetest wrestling stories of 2021 was Fuego Del Sol's quest to win an AEW contract, something that was eventually given to him by Sammy Guevara after his spirited match with Miro on the debut episode of Rampage.

Guevara, incidentally, is another member of the one-match WWE club, having competed in a dark match loss against Los Matadores at a TV taping back in April 2015.

His best friend Fuego has also wrestled in a solitary bout for WWE, though not under his masked persona.

Working without the hood as KJ Orso, he took on Erick Rowan on the January 6, 2020 episode of Raw. It went about how expected, i.e. he was completely destroyed within thirty seconds, before the former Wyatt Family man tried to introduce him to that thing he carried around in that bag, which resulted in Orso getting sprayed with bright red liquid and fleeing the scene.