WWE Battleground: 10 Awesome Moments
The return of The Deadman!
Mainly due to the fact that it's considered a major Pay-Per-View and Battleground isn't, pretty much everyone had their eyes on SummerSlam before Battleground had even started. Largely because of this, this 'B' PPV was left out in the cold, deemed pretty much unnecessary by many fans, and almost seemed to be viewed as little more than a necessary evil on the Pay-Per-View calendar by WWE themselves. Nope, there was no way this was going to a memorable show, it just wasn't going to happen.
Oh, but it was, and shockingly so. Not only was there much to enjoy from an in-ring perspective, but the live crowd was also enthused across the board for pretty much everything that happened, and that beamed nicely across the world to viewers watching via PPV or the WWE Network.
Better yet, one major return completely shifted the goal posts, stunning everybody and coming so far out of left field that it wasn't even considered before the show went on the air. Make no mistake about it, for those lapsed wrestling fans who may have chosen the month of July to see what the WWE Network is all about, they've sure had their money's worth. Not only was 'The Beast In The East' earlier on in the month well worth checking out, but Battleground proved to be more than just filler on the road to SummerSlam, and this list explores why. 10 cool moments, some surprising, but all awesome.
10. Red Hot Atmosphere In Opener Set The Tone
Stand up each and every single person who was in attendance for WWE Battleground 2015 at the Scottrade Centre in St. Louis, Missouri, because you were utterly fantastic and helped turn what could have been a run-of-the-mill Pay-Per-View into an exciting one. Of course, hometown hero Randy Orton was in the opener, so people were always going to be hot, but their excitement didn't end after the first match was over.
It is fair to say that aside from the John Cena vs. Kevin Owens match and the main event, the live crowd were never more invested in a match than the curtain jerker. Both Sheamus and Orton gave folks a reason to be interested, and the audience duly obliged by being loud and animated throughout the bout.
It can be difficult to find rowdy crowds at WWE events nowadays, for a variety of reasons, but the capacity audience inside the building for Battleground helped things motor along at a nice pace. They were never hotter than for Randy Orton's patented RKO, which fittingly "came out of nowhere" and popped the crowd nicely.