10 Reasons WWE Is Incapable Of Creating New Main Event Stars
8. Gimmick Match Oversaturation
Back in 1998, when The Rock defended his Intercontinental Title against Triple H in a Ladder match at SummerSlam, the stipulation itself conveyed a message to the audience: both men were poised for greatness.
The Ladder match was a rare occurrence back then. The steel only made an appearance when two midcard talents were on the cusp of true stardom. The fact that the event was held in the notoriously raucous Madison Square Garden helped, as did the fact that both men were in the ascendency. The ladder merely acted as a fitting symbol of their ascension.
Hell In A Cell used to be the sole preserve of the megastar. Triple H in 2000 cemented his main event credentials by stepping into it - in only the sixth iteration of the gimmick - at No Way Out in an absorbing, brutal war with Cactus Jack. The ladder match represented the precipice. The Cell symbolised his arrival. It was an intelligently tiered system, but it no longer exists.
Nowadays, the gimmick match has lost its lustre entirely. More than half of the roster has been thrust into a ladder match of some description. Luke Harper was never in main event plans as 2014 drew to a close - but the TLC gimmick pay-per-view mandated that he had to take part in one.
No gimmick matches are major anymore. That few full time stars are, either, is likely not a coincidence,