10 WWE Matches Fans Couldn’t Give A Sh*t About After Watching A Classic

"...AND?!"

Lita Jazz Trish Stratus
WWE

"FOLLOW THAT!"

During the mid-1990s Shawn Michaels became known for spitting out those words as he confidently marched through curtains fuelled on post-match euphoria and whatever else he'd downed that day. He was ostensibly competing with the locker room - the intensely combative statement was for the benefit of just about anybody in earshot - but he knew in his heart very few of them had an inch of his talent.

He'd already labelled himself the 'Showstopper' shortly before augmenting it with a list of accolades to further propel himself beyond the chasing pack, to the point at which he was only really desperate to better his own best. He wasn't just hype, either - there were 'HBK' matches so sensational that even Michaels himself couldn't have followed them. Fortunately, his 'Main Event' tag eventually rang true, and nobody had to even try.

The cream had risen to the top, but WWE's rarely been a meritocracy and Vince McMahon hasn't held candles as tightly as the one he gripped hard for Shawn Michaels. The top performers aren't always on top, as Triple H and Randy Orton found out when they had to join Edge, John Cena and The Big Show in following the 'Boy Toy' and 'The Deadman's balls-out classic at WrestleMania 25.

'The Game' was a veteran of this sort of thing...

10. Triple H Vs Booker T (WrestleMania 19)

Lita Jazz Trish Stratus
WWE.com

...and this is not - for a change - another go at Triple H for being a racist in battle before winning the war. Today's moan at 'The Game' is entirely based on his propensity for having the most boring f*cking matches at the worst f*cking time.

WrestleMania 19 remains perhaps the best bottled line-up of all of WWE's top stars. Had John Cena graduated from the pre-show to the main roster and Roman Reigns been spotted somewhere in the crowd, it would have included just about every topline performer the company has promoted since their 1980s expansion.

Paranoid at his placement amongst said icons at the best of times, Hunter delivered a display that justifed his insecurity. Unable to remotely follow his best mate's magnificent show-stealer with Chris Jericho, the World Champion's use of an Indian Deathlock came some way to expressing the trapped malaise of the capacity crowd.

He infamously took 23 seconds to cover Booker T after nailing his match-winning Pedigree. In the old days, fans would often been seen rushing to the rails to high five their favourites following a finisher. He'd at least afforded the audience an equally slow stroll.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett