SummerSlam By The Numbers WWE DON'T Want You To Remember

6. 157,000

SummerSlam 92 thumb
WWE

The million pieces Mabel shattered Diesel's back into with his colossal rear at SummerSlam '95 didn't equate to the number of sets tuning into see such a spectacle: just 205,000 homes bought into Big Daddy Cool, the lowest WWE's traditional number two show had ever drawn on pay-per-view.

Diesel clearly wasn't the answer, but there was an overall malaise in the product which couldn't be lifted simply by shifting the strap to flamboyant underdog Shawn Michaels. A year after the Heartbreak Kid captured those of the fans with his thrilling ladder match reverse opposite Razor Ramon, he faced a main event monster of his own, in the form of the formidable Vader.

On paper, the match promised to be almost the exact opposite of the previous summer's demonstration of continental drift. Unfortunately, the response was the same - worse, even. Where Diesel has crashed, Shawn burned: SummerSlam '96 earned just 157,000 buys, the lowest in the show's history in the pre-Network era.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.