10 Memorably Punishing WWE Matches
1. The Rock Vs. Mankind - Royal Rumble 1999
In the annals of brutal WWE matches, a page is set aside for what the Rock did to Mankind in 1999. An 'I Quit' match is already liable to be rather less tender and loving than a regular encounter. That night, something happened in the depths of The Rock's brain that told him a hyped-up Madison Square Gardens crowd would only be satisfied with an act of homicidal violence against Mick Foley.
The match's climax saw Mankind handcuffed, whereupon the Rock smacked him in the face with a chair. Again, that would be enough for anyone else, but the Rock did it ten more times.
Demanding Mankind verbally submit, Foley replied, "You'll have to kill me," in one of the most dramatic moments in wrestling history.
A concussed, bleeding Mick Foley was consoled by his distraught family backstage as seen in the documentary Beyond the Mat. It was a monstrous, brutal, unforgettable match that spanned the gap between amazing entertainment, and taking it way, way too far.