Ranking WWE's Empty Arena Pay Per Views From Worst To Best
As the fans begin to make their return, how did the past 12 months stack up for WWE?
The pandemic era has been a mixed bag for WWE. On the one hand the company has turned over record profits and made headlines with celebrity tie ins. On the other, mass staff cuts and some less than stellar COVID practises have thrust the business into the spotlight for the wrong reasons.
Through it all, though, WWE has maintained and kept the entertainment coming, and for this, we’re grateful - for the most part, at least. WrestleMania 37 will see fans return to the show of shows, bringing down the curtain on a full year of the empty arena era.
So how will history remember this most bizarre period for the business? Well, true to form, there were good events and bad ones, matches that will stand the test of time and those that are best forgotten ASAP.
Vince et al will be eager to draw a line under the 12 months of silent sports halls and jarring vibes of the ThunderDome, but it hasn’t all been bad. From worst to best, this is an ever-eventful year in the life of WWE.
13. The Horror Show At Extreme Rules
Encapsulating all of modern WWE’s worst instincts in one show, this July event had it all. Supernatural nonsense and bad cinematics? The swamp match between Bray and Braun was the nadir of the hit and miss pre-taped segments, a melodramatic folly from which they quickly moved on.
Flogging a dead horse and dumb stipulations? Seth Rollins and Rey Mysterio had magnificent chemistry but their feud went on forever, and the “eye for an eye” stipulation was only going to disappoint, the half hearted effects detracting from what was a perfectly enjoyable match to that point.
Random booking with zero build? See Dolph Ziggler inserting himself into the title picture because he used to be mates with McIntyre, or something - again two talented workers in a fine clash, but precious little in the way of logic.
Even the best match, a dynamite scrap between Sasha Banks and Asuka, fell victim to a silly finish in which Sasha’s pal Bayley declared herself the referee after a green mist spot, counting the pin for Sasha before a Dusty finish the following night. A show to forget for all involved.