10 OTHER Gimmick Matches WWE Needs To Revisit

5. Boiler Room Brawl

Punjabi Prison 2006 Great American Bash
WWE Network

WWE should be celebrated for experimenting beyond the confines of the traditional squared circle, irrespective of the fact that they're only putting Bray Wyatt in these daft situations because BROKEN Matt Hardy has experienced so much success outside of the traditional norm.

But the company got it drastically wrong at Payback. The House of Horrors match was somehow boring and ludicrous - an unenviable combination which saw Wrestle Cr*p induct it in record time. RD Reynolds was so confident of its sh*tty timelessness that he didn't bother waiting out the customary grace period.

WWE should have reverted to a proven formula. Going the Boiler Room Brawl route would have achieved much the same thing - letting Bray and Randy Orton smash each other with an assortment of weapons in a unique attraction of an environment, only without the embarrassing surroundings of a bloody haunted house. Suspension of disbelief - difficult to achieve when pre-taping a match at night for broadcast during daylight - is also far easier. That's sort of what pro wrestling is built on.

The match is such an inherent winner that even The Big Show circa 1999 - i.e., an out of shape and out of his depth behemoth - pulled an entertaining one out of his arse at Backlash.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!