10 Old WWE Gimmick Matches That Need To Say In The Past
Please don't make us sit through another Kennel From Hell.
Recent weeks have seen WWE reach inside their deep bag of gimmick matches to pull a number of old stipulations into the supposed 'New Era,' with the Punjabi Prison the most recent example. The cage match variant will be reprised for Jinder Mahal and Randy Orton's clash at Battleground 2017 on July 23rd - the stipulation's first outing in 10 years.
At Extreme Rules, WWE brought back the old 'On A Pole' gimmick for Bayley vs. Alexa Bliss, and at Greats Balls Of Fire, Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns will compete in the company's first Ambulance match since January 2015.
WWE are trying to build excitement, but there's a reason these stipulations were consigned to the past in the first place. The Punjabi Prison has never produced an enjoyable bout, and the pole variations remain one of wrestling's most universally maligned tropes.
The worrying thing is that they've barely scratched the surface when it comes to reintroducing old match types. The past is littered with flawed stipulations that have rarely produced excitement, and are best left in the past, rather than clogging the modern product. Unfortunately, current form suggests there's a chance we haven't seen the last of them...
10. Blindfold Match
The fact that the Blindfold match was not only conceived in the first place, but used time and time again over multiple decades is baffling. The concept is simple: take two wrestlers, put blindfolds over their eyes, and let 'hilarity' ensue. Unfortunately, things rarely pan out like that, and these matches inevitably come down to two fools bumbling around the ring with no idea what they’re doing.
Rick Martel and Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts had a moderately entertaining Blindfold match at WrestleMania VII, but the gimmick has a very low ceiling, as far as quality goes. Hamstrung by their kayfabe lack of vision, the participants are restricted to all but the most basic wrestling moves, giving them little chance to get the crowd worked up.
Unless they feature a skilled comedy wrestler, Blindfold bouts are the pits. Even then, stinkers like Santino Marella vs. Drew McIntyre prove that there’s no simple formula for success with this stipulation. WWE aren’t even the worst offenders, though: TNA presented a Blindfold Cage Match between Chris Harris and James Storm in 2007 which, if you’re brave enough to watch it, may destroy your faith in the sport forever.