Brock Lesnar and the Top 15 Wrestlers We Want to See Back in a WWE Ring

Brock Lesnar's retirement from MMA has the wrestling world buzzing. His brief WWE career gave us numerous memorable matches and showed us how potentially bright his star can shine.

But is he the wrestler fans want back the most?

Lesnar doesn't love the sport like a second generation superstar or a ring rat long obsessed with wrestling. Will he then choose to return to the grueling schedule of WWE? 

If it was up to the fans, he'd be thrown in the mix again right away. There are others, though, that we want back more. 

Whether out due to injury, jumping ship to TNA or retiring, these 15 men and women have left fans hoping and waiting for more. 

Honorable Mentions

Batista—Though not likely to move past his issues with Vince McMahon, he's still got a few big matches left in him.

Gail Kim—Never appreciated or properly utilized, someone as talented as Kim can always be an asset.

JBL—Certainly past his prime, we'd at least like to see him in a manager role.

Alberto Del Rio—Given too much, too soon, Del Rio is a valuable talent regardless who will be missed while he recovers. 

15. Mickie James

The current WWE Divas division is paper thin.  Lately most matches are some combination of Beth Phoenix and Natalya vs. Kelly Kelly and Eve. 

A Mickie James return makes the division far more robust. 

Arguably the best female wrestler competing right now, James is a fantastic worker who combines strength, agility and ring savvy to create compelling matches. 

Being in TNA is probably better for her career as they tend to take women at least slightly more seriously, but how delectable does Beth Phoenix vs. Mickie James sound?

14. Rob Van Dam

At his peak, RVD electrified an audience.  Though slower with less spring in his legs, he could still wow a WWE crowd.

TNA made him a world champion, something WWE won't be doing for him now, so it’s understandable that he’d stay there.  But he knows there are more eyes on WWE and Van Dam has always fed off the fans. 

Finding him a partner and having them go after Air Boom would have fans gasping and oohing until they ran out of breath. 

13. Jeff Hardy

Personal issues and problems with drugs have derailed the fantastically talented Hardy.  The allegedly toxic environment of TNA is probably not the best place for him.     

Wrestling purists often scoff at his unique approach to the sport, but fans know excitement when they see it, regardless of the form. 

CM Punk can thank Hardy for helping him reach the level he's reached.  Their battles in '09 were riveting.

Hardy is only 34 and though his body has taken some intense punishment, he's got a lot of daredevil offense left to offer. 

12. Christian

It shouldn't be too long before Captain Charisma returns from his ankle injury.  It feels like it's forever since we've seen Christian perform. 

Christian brings a love of the sport and a palpable intensity.

Though he may never get a title shot or main event match again, he always manages to make the most of his position on the WWE hierarchy. 

TLC 2011 missed his ladder expertise for sure.  It'll be exciting to see who he feuds when he gets back.    

11. Sin Cara

An injury at Survivor Series halted Sin Cara's momentum.  It seemed for a moment that a full scale luchador invasion was under way until that happened.

The acrobatic, exciting masked wonder was quickly building a WWE following. 

It shouldn't be too long before he's back but we've missed seeing that blur of blue and yellow fly around the ring.  Hunico has been in no man’s land without his initial WWE rival.    

He and all the other cruiserweight types need him to inject his unique brand of entertainment in their unofficial division. 

10. Shelton Benjamin

Lacking a true gimmick, having minimal personality on the mic and a decided lack of the it factor, it's easy to see why Shelton Benjamin is not working for WWE.

Does the Ring of Honor fan base appreciate his off the charts athleticism more?  Probably.

But put in the right situation, in a stable or given a talkative manager, Benjamin would be a tremendous asset for WWE.  Few guys can create masterpieces with a ladder better than him.

Benjamin always puts on rewatchable, unforgettable matches and WWE could always use more of those. 

9. Kharma

Signing Kharma was seen as a changing of WWE's ambivalent attitude towards their women wrestlers.  Before she even got her claws dug in though, she left to have a baby.  In her absence, the Divas division has treaded water at best.

Getting her back changes everything. 

She provides a legitimate rival for Beth Phoenix.  She brings an intensity and ferocity that may inspire the other women to step up their game. 

Even if she is just squashing Eve and Alicia Fox every night, WWE television will be better off with Kharma.   

8. Randy Orton

If his back issues have him out for a long time, he'll climb up this list.  For now though, we haven't had a chance to miss him.

Being on top for so long, being ever present and reliable has caused him to be underappreciated by many fans. 

Having an Orton-less SmackDown for awhile may force us to realize that we've been taking his talent for granted.  Wade Barrett is left without his newest rival and WWE is left without one of its best. 

7. Mark Henry

The recent World Heavyweight champ may retire soon.  He's had a long run in a brutal sport, but he was just beginning to tap into a higher level of heel when he suffered a groin injury. 

Before he calls it quits, WWE needs him to bring that magic back.

At an advanced stage of his career, Henry suddenly leaped from mediocrity to compelling.  Daniel Bryan needs a Goliath to conquer.  SmackDown needs a monster. 

6. Brock Lesnar

Lesnar's departed after a red hot WWE career to pursue an NFL career.  He simply wasn't a good enough football player to hang. 

He had more success with MMA, but after his recent beatdowns has decided to call it quits. 

Lesnar may be refusing to admit that he was born to be a pro wrestler.  Most guys take far longer to get to the level that he'd reached. 

If he were to dedicate himself to the craft, gaining experience as he went along, Lesnar could just keep getting better and better.  Fans keep clamoring for him to come back for a reason.

5. Shawn Michaels

A part of me wants to see Shawn Michaels keep his word and stay retired.  There's no better way to end a career than to put on that grand show he and the Undertaker gave us. 

But there's a selfish part that hungers for another kip up, another elbow drop, another scintillating superkick on a grand stage.  No one elevates himself for a big moment like HBK. 

His presence, even if brief, takes WWE to a higher level. 

Fans will not stop chanting "one more match" to Michaels regardless of his retirement status. 

4. Rey Mysterio

WWE would love to have Sin Cara slide in and replace Rey Mysterio, but there is no replacing a legend like him.

It's not only his jaw-dropping high-flying and innovative offense that draws fans to Mysterio, it's also a magnetic charisma that sucks in kids and adults alike.

Like many on this list, we're going to at some point come to terms with the fact that he’ll be hanging up his boots forever before too long.  Before that day comes, we'd go ballistic seeing him come down that aisle a few more times. 

3. Kurt Angle

When compiling a list of the best matches of many WWE wrestlers' careers, you will undoubtedly find a number of classics they had with Kurt Angle. 

Every match, every move seems to mean so much when Angle is involved. 

Even in the second-class TNA, Angle is managing to put do great work.  With better talent to work with, he could do so much more. 

Kurt Angle vs. CM Punk.  Kurt Angle vs. Dolph Ziggler.  Kurt Angle vs. Daniel Bryan.

Pay-per-views with those matches will have no trouble selling. 

2. Undertaker

The last time we saw the Undertaker, he was putting on another world-class performance at WrestleMania. 

Rumors of him putting his streak on the line against Triple H once again have fans salivating. 

We'd love to have him back sooner than that, though.  His legendary career winding down, we don't expect a full-time return, but every Dead Man match we can witness will be treasured. 

Though his body has slowed, Undertaker has refined his game to such a degree that every performance is a masterpiece. 

1. Chris Jericho

The recent cryptic "It Begins" promos on RAW may very well be about Chris Jericho, and if so we'll all have what we've been hungering for, but what if they aren't?

No one has as much left to offer than Jericho.

In his younger days he was a thrilling, high-flying hard worker dedicated to stealing every show he could, but in recent years has gotten even better in and out of the ring. Few guys have ever been such an enthralling heel. 

If the rumors of he and CM Punk going at it at WrestleMania are true, then fans will be spoiled with what those men are likely to produce together. If not, fans will have a knot in their stomach until "the best at what he does" returns.