10 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About No Mercy
Unmerciful.
The new brand split is well under way, with both Raw and Smackdown having produced one pay-per-view/Network special apiece over the past month or so. Smackdown presented Backlash in early September, which was followed by Raw's Clash of Champions just two weeks later. The general consensus seems to be that the blue brand's effort was superior, and eyes are now turned towards No Mercy, which will take place on Sunday, October 9th.
To a great many fans, the name 'No Mercy' will conjure up images of WWE's incredibly well-received Nintendo 64 video game (released in 2000), but it was also a WWE 'B' pay-per-view running from 1999 until 2008. It began life as a UK-exclusive PPV before WWE bizarrely made it a US event just months later and it has been both Smackdown and Raw-exclusive in the past, too.
It was, generally speaking, one of WWE's superior B PPVs, responsible for many classic contests such as the Hardy Boys versus Edge and Christian in the first ever tag team ladder match in '99 (US event, of course) and The Rock and Chris Jericho's WCW World Heavyweight Title match in 2001. While usually good, it's not exactly perfect and, as with most WWE pay-per-view events, its history is littered with things the company would rather fans not dwell on.
Baffling booking decisions, disastrous title changes and unplanned nudity: these are the things WWE wants you to forget about No Mercy...
10. The Undertaker's Losing Record
The Undertaker is often touted - by WWE and its fans - as being one of, if not the greatest performer in the company's history. His career and accomplishments speak for themselves and it's fair to say that WWE have done everything in their power to protect one of their biggest draws. That includes winning more often than not, especially when it comes to pay-per-view (21 WrestleManias on the bounce isn't bad, is it?).
When it comes to No Mercy, however, The Deadman hasn't always been the beneficiary of favoured booking. He's wrestled on seven No Mercy pay-per-views (main eventing three in a row between '02 and 04) but only won on one of those occasions - in 2001 against Booker T. The rest of the time, 'Taker was looking at the lights (or trying to break out of a casket/hearse).
In the UK version of the event in 1999, 'Taker was unsuccessful in his attempt to wrest the title away from Steve Austin in a triple threat match also involving Triple H, just as he was in '02 and 03 when he failed to upend Brock Lesnar in Hell in a Cell and Biker Chain matches. A spot of Heidenreich interference lead to him losing a 'Last Ride' match to JBL in '04 and a year later Randy and Bob Orton Jr. beat him at his own Casket Match game.
In 2006 he was disqualified in his match with Mr. Kennedy and then in 2008 he was knocked out by Big Show and then counted out in a Last Man Standing match. That's a pretty spotty resumé for someone who is touted as being some sort of mythical, practically unbeatable creature.
As an aside, 'Taker missed No Mercy 1999 (US Version) and 2000 due to injuries - he was recovering from a laundry list of injuries in '99 and then had emergency surgery on his gallbladder the year after.