10 Lessons WWE Can Learn From The Biggest SummerSlam Buy-Rates Ever

This one ties into the previous point about who to place in the main event.

While the wrestling purists among us may claim that the better technicians are deserving of top billing, in the case of SummerSlam, great matches do not necessarily equal great buy rates.

If we think back to some of the great main events and WWE Championship bouts in SummerSlam history, there are a number that come to mind; Shawn Michaels vs. Vader in 1996, Bret Hart vs. Undertaker in 1997, and Daniel Bryan vs. John Cena in 2013—a show that also featured the excellent CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar battle.

But each of these PPVs are in the bottom eight on the all-time highest buys list. And further classics, such as Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels from 1995, and Bret Hart vs. his brother Owen in 1994, are also amongst the least-bought shows.

And back at the top of the buys list, we’ve seen the likes of Hulk Hogan vs. Shawn Michaels in 2005 (vastly entertaining but not a match of high-quality, technical wrestling) and Hogan and Warrior vs. Savage and Zeus in 1989 amongst the most-bought shows.

Bottom line being, while the hardcore fans may disagree, wrestling masterclasses don’t necessarily result in lots of PPV buys—suggesting that maybe the casuals make up a more significant slice of the audience.