10 Things WWE Regrets About Survivor Series

9. Testing, Testing

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WWE.com

2001's Immunity Battle was both a terrible idea and a great one.

It portrayed virtually everybody who performed in it as expendable which, while not strictly untrue, was not the ideal way to promote them. In the year prior, the 24/7 Hardcore Title reign cast even the most tedious of jabronis in stupidly fun segments. One year later, the lower card was an indistinguishable mass of literally redundant jobbers. 2001's murderous rampage extended across the entire company. And two more companies. What a disaster it was.

Still, the match was a potential platform to elevate somebody, anybody, into a meaningful position. There was major scope to push either a slime ball chancer of a chickensh*t heel, or an absolute sociopath contractually free to embark on a reign of terror. This didn't happen. The WWF awarded Test with the push, and they didn't so much as shove him.

The RAW brand was dire, following the initial brand extension: a largely hoss-heavy roster of passé headline acts and career midcarders. It needed something exciting to compete critically with SmackDown - which instead was later placed in critical condition for daring to compete.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!