5 Great upsets in Survivor Series history

The Wyatt Family is looking to knock off two modern wrestling legends on Sunday.No matter how old they get, The Undertaker and Kane will always carry a certain mystique, particularly when they’re teaming up as The Brothers of Destruction. As such, if the Wyatts could knock them off at Sunday’s Survivor Series, it would be something of an upset and set the faction up as the most fearsome group in the sport.Survivor Series has held multiple upsets over the years, both in the traditional elimination matches and in other formats. Hereâs the five that stand out the most, each with various reasons for being a surprise.

#1 Team Cena wins (2014)

Sting played a role in the final result for last year’s event.

To find a great Survivor Series upset, fans can look no further in history than last year.

While the original lineups for Team Cena vs. Team Authority – with The Authority’s control of the company on the line – were pretty even, things took a turn in the middle of the match. With the teams down to Big Show, John Cena and a hobbled Dolph Ziggler against Seth Rollins, Kane and Luke Harper, Big Show made the decision to turn heel and knock Cena out.

He walked out, Cena got pinned and Ziggler was left to fend for himself.

Ziggler, with help from Sting at the end, managed to beat those three men and win the match for the good guys, taking the company out of Authority’s hands temporarily.

#2 Cena defends his title (2009)

John Cena held off Triple H and Shawn Michaels to retain his title.

As JBL is so quick to point out at every opportunity, you can’t count out John Cena in a big match.

But the odds certainly weren’t in his favor in an always-tricky Triple Threat match against Triple H and Shawn Michaels. As if the understood allegiance between his two opponents wasn’t enough, the D-Generation X teammates came to the ring together.

That bond quickly dissolved with the title on the line, though, and Cena survived a wild match to hold on to his WWE Championship. Maybe Michaels and The Game couldn’t see him?

#3 Batista escapes the Cell (2007)

Undertaker has had countless memorable moments in Hell in a Cell matches.

There may be no more a daunting task in professional wrestling than defending a title against The Undertaker in a Hell in a Cell match. There’s no way to retain without getting an actual victory, and The Phenom is a tough man to beat.

Batista managed to do just that to keep a grip on the World Heavyweight Championship. He had help from Edge, who snuck in as a cameraman, but The Animal also took a pair of Tombstone Piledrivers and lived to tell the tale with his title intact.

#4 Mankind beats Austin (1998)

The 1998 edition of Survivor Series is one that has come to the thinking fan’s mind a lot in recent weeks, as it was also the home to a WWF Championship tournament after the main title had to be vacated.

As the bracket developed, it would have been easy to assume the company was cruising for a matchup between Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock for the belt. That match never happened, though, as Mankind got lots of help from Corporate cronies and the McMahon family to knock Austin out of the tournament in the semifinal round.

#5 Hart beats Diesel (1995)

Bret Hart’s wrestling ability was second to none and made the difference against Diesel.

Few would doubt Bret Hart’s place at or near the top of the list of professional wrestling’s top in-ring technicians. But when he faced off against Diesel at the 1995 edition of Survivor Series, he clearly had his work cut out for him.

Diesel was a much bigger man and moved well for his size, and that became an issue in a No DQ match as a beaten Bret Hart seemed headed for a Jackknife Powerbomb. He managed to dodge that move and countered with a small package to take home the WWF Championship.