10 Gems That Saved Rotten Wrestling PPVs

7. Daniel Bryan Vs. Bray Wyatt (WWE Royal Rumble 2014)

Chris Jericho, Rob Van Dam RVD
WWE.com

Who could ever forget the disaster that was the 2014 Royal Rumble pay-per-view? Going into the show, fans had almost demanded the chance to cheer on their hero Daniel Bryan in the 30-man over-the-top-rope main event. That titular match would be Bryan-less, the bearded warrior was nowhere to be found aside from a show-opener opposite Bray Wyatt.

Infamously, Batista made his return and won the Rumble, something that didn't appeal to the Pittsburgh audience. Booing mercilessly at 'The Animal', fans were disgusted that Bryan wasn't in the match. Even poor Rey Mysterio ended up incurring the wrath of angry spectators, his number 30 slot had people tearing their hair out in audible frustration.

A bloated John Cena vs. Randy Orton match (inferior to the SummerSlam 2007 gem) and Brock Lesnar vs. Big Show tussle that was more like an extended angle than a match were the other offerings. Neither thrilled like Bryan and Wyatt.

Looking like they had something to prove, Bray and Bryan went over 20 minutes. Nothing that followed could hope to surpass the match quality they produced.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.