10 Times WWE Booked Themselves Into A Corner

5. Hell In A Cell 2012

Baszler Fiend
WWE.com

Following Night of Champions 2012, the CM Punk Vs. John Cena main event of which went to a draw as pretext for the Hell In A Cell blowoff, Cena was forced to undergo surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow.

This necessitated a change of plans, but Hell In A Cell predated the Network era. WWE had to deliver an attraction worth purchasing, and since Cena was the preeminent or only draw, WWE made the only viable decision it could make by installing the white-hot Ryback as Punk's challenger. The problem, of course, is that Ryback was white-hot, and Punk was in no position to lose the WWE Championship ahead of his Royal Rumble match with the Rock.

To put it more succinctly, WWE were f*cked, and they responded by dislodging the appendage and jamming it directly into us by way of a f*ck finish.

At the end of a deeply underwhelming match, WWE scrolled through its rolodex of unfulfilling 'Let's deal with it later' bullsh*t by having guest referee Brad Maddox inexplicably turn on Ryback via low blow. Maddox explained on RAW that, embittered by his lack of success as an in-ring talent, he wished to make himself "famous".

Also Paul Heyman paid him off, but by this point nobody cared.

Contributor
Contributor

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!