10 Wrestling PPV Matches Allocated Far Too Little Time

We've already discussed what makes a match an absolute chore to sit through. Here, we look at the other side of the coin.

WWE's apparent rekindling of their squash match love affair is a welcome one. Not everything has to be a closely-contested back and forth affair. This booking only underlines the homogeneity which pervades modern wrestling and impedes the star creation process.

But there is a time and place in which to finish a match with minimal fuss.

A World title match, unless the circumstances are exceptional, shouldn't be over and done with in ten minutes. It devalues the very concept of the top strap, which historically would be fought over in hour-long marathons back in the territory days.

Even more annoyingly, certain wrestlers have received one of their first chances to strut their stuff on the big stage, following audience demand - only for the wrestler and the audience to be shortchanged.

In the interests of realism, too, guys who were previously capable of wrestling twenty minute clinics shouldn't be vanquished in under ten - regardless of whether or not alleged backstage transgressions forced the booker's hand...

Match Length: 08:03

Why it was too short: Nitro was a last minute replacement for Chris Benoit, who was due to best Punk in a match which would have elevated the Straight Edge Superstar in defeat and initiated a series based upon mutual respect between the two men.

We won't go into why that mouthwatering plan never materialised...

Instead, Punk and Morrison wrestled one another in a sub-par sub-ten minute outing which, due its placement on the midcard and abrupt length, instantly demoted the ECW title for which it was contested to midcard status - more so than it had been already, anyway.

The match itself wasn't terrible, but despite their respective talents, Nitro and Punk struggled to gel. The decisions made by Nitro in particular were misjudged. By adopting an atypical submissions-based approach, he discursively reminded the fans in attendance exactly who they were missing, who then did their bit to remind a beleaguered Nitro by chanting "We want Benoit!"

That said, given five or so more minutes, they could have captured their imagination by devising a thrilling and unpredictable finishing sequence to end on a high.

Their subsequent Pay Per View matches weren't much of an improvement, either. Watching them back now, you can half-understand WWE's reluctance to push Punk with the conviction he felt he deserved in 2008. They were more patient with him than we perhaps realise.