10 Dumb Stipulation Matches WWE Should Never Book Again

In the leadup to their confrontation at Royal Rumble 2003, Triple H and Scott Steiner engaged in a contest of alpha male showmanship.

There were testosterone-filled promos, a pose-off, a bench press contest, and a pull-up competition, all meant to build anticipation for the first physical confrontation between the two hulks. But this was quickly undone when both The Game and Big Poppa Pump locked palms in an arm-wrestling competition on one episode of Monday Night Raw.

The old school appeal of two muscled-up rivals testing each other's strength is apparent, but in the kayfabe world of wrestling, it doesn't make for good theater. Rewatch the match, and you'll some of the most obvious over-selling in either man's career. The contest is completely devoid of drama, and it goes on longer than any shoot arm wrestle would. What a waste of the pair's first touch. The followup match was considered one of the worst in Royal Rumble history, which is thanks in part to this totally bogus stipulation being inserted into the build.

Lashley and Braun Strowman repeated the gimmick during a lifeless 2019 feud, and Hunter himself reprised the gimmick for a 2017 run with the Great Khali, so we know this is still in WWE's repertoire. We're lucky Drew McIntyre hasn't been booked to go palm-to-palm with Goldberg yet.