4. The Extreme Rules PPV
The PPV itself actually began under the title One Night Stand/Extreme Rules in 2008 and is an offshoot of that groundbreaking event. It is the one night a year that the WWE go hardcore and is in fact many peoples favorite PPV outside of the big four (Royal Rumble, Summerslam, Survivor Series, Wrestlemania). But there is another more important legacy that this event represents that not many people realize. After the Chris Benoit incident hardcore wrestling became frowned upon. As the general consensus was that he did what he did due to the constant barrage of headshots and abuse he suffered in his career (which when you look back, was a lot more than even your average wrestler) resulting in a diminished mental capacity to the point of dementia. So in this environment and with the progress in neurological medical science it was obvious to anyone with a brain (pun intended) that ECW's days were numbered. You can't have an extreme brand when you can no longer provide the hardcore element for reasons of employee health (especially mental health) and safety. So regardless on your feelings of the subject they had good cause to bring about the end of ECW. But once a year we get to relive that what made this infamous brand great. For one night the weapons are brought back to the ring and brutality is insured. The Extreme Rules PPV has become a great homage to that iconic brand of sports entertainment and will keep the spirit alive for years to come. Just like its predecessor, One Night Stand was originally created to do.