7 PPV Quality Main Events WWE Gave Away For Free

1. Vince McMahon Vs Eric Bischoff (Monday Night Raw, 23rd February 2004)

Vince McMahon Stone Cold Steve Austin Eric Bischoff
WWE Network

Until the cliché was rendered obsolete, their 2002 Monday Night Raw handshake was considered the ultimate 'Never Say Never' moment in all of wrestling. Yet, despite Eric Bischoff being under Vince McMahon's employ for three years following that memorable union, the pair were somehow never programmed against one another as a feature attraction at a major pay-per-view.

The closest fans came to a full-blooded sports entertainment scrap occurred on a pre-WrestleMania 20 edition of Monday Night Raw amidst the chaotic build to Brock Lesnar vs Bill Goldberg.

Having already dished out several favours for performers due to battle at the 'Show of Shows', Vince was hesitant to book the clash of the titans before Stone Cold Steve Austin twisted his arm with the promise of being a guest referee capable of coping with the potential volatilities.

He then agreed to test his man-in-the-middle chops by laughing along as McMahon and Bischoff took potshots at one another in a comedy brawl that merely served as a distraction for Brock Lesnar to invade the flagship show and floor 'The Rattlesnake' with an F5 to send a message to his WrestleMania foe. It ended an unsatisfying version of what once could, and should, have been a historic encounter.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett