Ranking Every WWE PPVs From 2017 (So Far)
Was Battleground really the worst PPV of the year so far, or is it OK compared to the rest of 2017?
With Battleground over and done with, WWE now march on to SummerSlam, thus beginning the latter portion of the PPV calendar year. Obviously, it’s too early to give a final verdict, but thus far, 2017 on PPV has been an underwhelming year to say the least.
While they’ve more-or-less delivered where it counts on the big shows, the Superstar Shakeup in the spring and some questionable booking has really left the B shows wanting for good, consistent cards.
Still, this is WWE, and they won't be looking back as all their attention is on throwing the biggest party of the summer. However, as we are wrestling fans, it is our solemn duty to go through what has transpired in 2017, categorize everything, and put it in a neat and tidy ranking so that we are assured in a tiny way that the universe is nice and orderly.
This list audits WWE’s PPV offerings thus far in 2017 and ranks them from worst to best. Some of these might actually surprise you. After all, it's not like Battleground is seriously the worst PPV of 2017 and possibly of several years, right?
10. Battleground
Yeah, you knew this one was gonna be near the bottom.
Battleground 2017 was the culmination of the problems brewing on SmackDown ever since the superstar shakeup: the poor quality of the main-eventers, the dire state of the women’s division, the pushing of the wrong guys into the wrong slots, and the most head scratching of booking decisions.
What started with so much promise thanks to an excellent tag team title match between the Usos and the New Day quickly nosedived thanks to a miserable Nakamura/Baron Corbin bout. Regardless of his upside potential, Baron Corbin simply should not be Mr. Money in the Bank, and this p**s-poor match with Nakamura really showed it. After a forgettable women’s 5-way, the match with the most promise (Owens vs. Styles) disappointed with a damp leverage pin finish. John Cena vs. Rusev and Zayn vs. Mike Kanellis were dull as you’d expect, and finally... Great Khali returned to help Jinder Mahal win the Punjabi Prison contest.
Now, in terms of sports entertainment factor, Punjabi Prison did deliver. Still a bad match is a bad match, and Khali’s inclusion is probably not gonna add a star to Meltzer’s rating. SmackDown has a lot of talent, but this show is exhibit A of why they need to get their s**t together.