10 Simple Ideas From The Past That Would Save WWE In The Present

Whether it's a distraction, a surprise roll-up, or just a plain old stoppage, the idea of the clean finish seems a thing of the past. It doesn’t even have to be clean. There’s nothing wrong with seeing a heel rake the eyes behind the referee’s back before hitting a finisher and getting the win. The point is that a totally clean 1-2-3 finish, or a submission, rarely happens these days.

At the time of writing, Cesaro has just chalked up his second clean win over Daniel Bryan in three weeks. That's a testament both to The Swiss Cyborg's phenomenal talent, and to Bryan's selfless ability to put over other superstars, bit's the exception that proves the rule, and highlights just how infrequent decisive and emphatic victories are in WWE.

Building to a climax and finding the point in the match where the stakes are highest before hitting a finish to get the biggest pop from the crowd is a specialist skill. Look at Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior at Wrestlemania VI, or Brock Lesnar vs. The Rock at Summerslam 2002 to see how this can be done with style. Conversely, Eddie Guerrero’s brilliant framing of Kennedy on SmackDown in 2005 proves that, when done well and when done sparingly, a non-clean finish can be a lasting memory.