3. "I Quit" Match - Breaking Point (2009)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skDUf_TC_Hc The ill-fated Breaking Point PPV was an attempt to condition the WWE audience to better appreciate submission-style wrestling. As evidenced by the lackluster buyrate and the fact that the PPV only had a one year run, the audience did not much care for the concept. It is a shame. Orton and Cena had an "I Quit" match with few peers in the modern context. Submission and "I Quit" matches evoke, to many a wrestling enthusiast, visions of Stone Cold Steve Austin and Bret Hart mixing it up at WrestleMania 13 or Terry Funk and the incomparable Ric Flair ending their personal war at the November 1989 Clash of the Champions. In all honesty, Orton vs. Cena was not far off of that mark. It certainly was not as good or as memorable, but it was something to see in its own right. Much as Hell in a Cell proved to be a month later, "I Quit" was a scenario that did not really benefit John Cena. Orton was the personality that had drawn comparisons to serial killers of Hollywood lore. His cold and calculating nature was a perfect fit for being locked inside a cage with a devil-inspired nickname and he was an ideal candidate to dominate a match that involved no rules and no other way to win but complete annihilation of an opponent. Cena has always gotten by on his wherewithal. It is what had allowed him to become a master of the Last Man Standing match and win the only other "I Quit" match of his career (against JBL at Judgment Day 2005). Not even Cena's biggest critic could deny his toughness. His gritty style had made him famous, but placed against a man who was once described as "one second away from snapping and attacking everyone in the arena," Cena's guts and hustle seemed no match. It made for a thoroughly-engaging story, with Orton doing everything short of castrating Cena to retain the WWE Championship, but ultimately coming up short. Cena proved too resilient; Orton simply not tough enough.
Chad Matthews
Contributor
"The Doc" Chad Matthews has written wrestling columns for over a decade. A physician by trade, Matthews began writing about wrestling as a hobby, but it became a passion. After 30 years as a wrestling fan, "The Doc" gives an unmatched analytical perspective on pro wrestling in the modern era. He is a long-time columnist for Lordsofpain.net and hosts a weekly podcast on the LOP Radio Network called "The Doc Says." His first book - The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment - ranks the Top 90 wrestlers from 1983 to present day, was originally published in December 2013, and is now in its third edition.
Matthews lives in North Carolina with his wife, two kids, and two dogs.
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