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After we bore witness to the lackluster and horrific disaster known as Super ShowDown last Friday afternoon, we are now less than a few days away from WWE Stomping Grounds. The name itself is very interesting to say the least.
Honestly, it's downright bad! However, is Stomping Grounds the worst pay-per-view name in WWE history? Today, I am here to talk about five other names that may be make Stomping Grounds look good.
Now then, it is important to keep in mind that I am only covering WWE related pay-per-view names for this list. Therefore, names like WCW's "Capital Combat" from 1990, or ECW's "November to Remember" do not count. These have to be an exclusive WWE created and original pay per view title.
So without any further ado, let's get started with number five!
#5 In Your House: Beware of Dog (May 26-28 1996)
Here is a name that is downright hilarious. Back in the day when the WWE used theme related names for their two hour "In Your House" shows, one occurred in May 1996 with the theme "Beware of Dog".
Now, the theme of the show was centered around the feud at the time between "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels and "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith over the WWE Championship, and subsequently the supposed affair (kayfabe) Michaels had with Smith's wife, Diana. As the title would suggest, weren't we supposed to be afraid of The British Bulldog? (Laughs).
The name would insinuate that his bark was far worse than his bite, and it would be silly to sell to the WWE Universe that we should sell this name based on a wrestling character. The show itself though was pretty bad, to say the least. Very average show and you got what you paid for.
The most memorable and obvious moment was when the power went out for the bulk of the show due to a severe thunderstorm. Therefore, with the lights being out, the audience inside the arena were left literately in the dark to watch over half the show. The pay-per-view audience watching at home were subjected to a blank screen, with Vince McMahon and Jerry Lawler cutting in from time to time with updates.
Because of this unfortunate occurrence, we only go to see the opening match between Hunter Hearst Helmsley (Triple H) and "Wildman" Marc Mero, and the main event between Shawn Michaels and Davey Boy Smith. The WWE was forced to reschedule the show for the Pay-Per-View audience for the following Tuesday for the three matches that we missed, plus reimburse PPV buyers for the original Sunday airing.
#4 Taboo Tuesday
Next up on our list is a head scratcher. The name is a bit out there, even for WWE standards. Let's be honest here, ladies and gentlemen, what exactly is "taboo" about Tuesday? How random of a name can you get here?
Now, before I go any further, I will give the WWE credit where it's due for wanting to try something new, something fresh for the time. The year 2004 was a rebuilding year for the WWE after losing the likes of Brock Lesnar, Goldberg, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, along with a new direction in place that featured Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit at the forefront of the company as respective World Champions for both RAW and SmackDown, respectively.
The idea behind the show is something that nowadays seems like not a big thing, but for the time was revolutionary. The WWE gave the fans a chance to vote for who they would like to see wrestle this guy or that guy, pick a match stipulation, things of that nature.
The voting itself was subject to criticism. Many fans felt the voting system through WWE.com was rigged or purposely set up. Chris Jericho would call out wrestling fans and claim the voting system was indeed 100% legit.
The problem is, when you this idea for a wrestling show and base around fans voting for what they would like to see, the name itself doesn't fit at all whatsoever. The following year, we would see the name dropped for "Cyber Sunday", with the exact same concept. Arguably, that name was better than Taboo Tuesday. To date, the WWE has filed trademark for the name Taboo Tuesday so we may see the return of this event at some point down the road.
The event itself was a success, in spite of the name. We saw some good matches on the show, specifically the Steel Cage Match between Randy Orton and Ric Flair. Triple H successfully defending the World Heavyweight Championship against Shawn Michaels, an Chris Benoit and Edge capturing the World Tag Team Titles over La Resistance.
The concept was good, but the execution of the name was a bitter pill to swallow.
#3 This Tuesday in Texas
To continue on with our "Tuesday" theme, we have our next event entitled: "This Tuesday in Texas". The event took place in December 1991. The event became a one off pay-per-view style event that would be classified as a glorified house show event.
It took place shortly after the Survivor Series, where we saw the controversial finish between Hulk Hogan and The Undertaker for the WWE Championship, which led to The Undertaker capturing his first WWE Championship thanks to interference from "Nature Boy" Ric Flair. As a result, (kayfabe) WWE President Jack Tunney issued a rematch between Hogan and Undertaker for this show.
Additionally, we saw "Macho Man" Randy Savage battle Jake "The Snake" Roberts in a grudge match to settle their differences. Savage had been bit by a King Cobra and was sidelined, with Jake being "suspended" for his actions. Jack Tunney reinstated Roberts and booked the match for the show.
Why on earth the WWE would go with a name like this is beyond me, even for the time. This name was very atrocious to say the least. The undercard was lame. The main events that were advertised were good, but left nothing settled. Roberts and Savage continued to feud. The WWE Championship would be held up following Hogan's victory over The Undertaker thanks to Ric Flair getting involved once again.
Needless to say, the event wasn't memorable outside of the very name. This makes you wonder exactly what the WWE were smoking at the time. We always give the company a hard time for their bad ideas, but even in 1991 the organization showed for every great idea they had, they always to had that one very bad one that slipped through the cracks and to the surface.
#2 Over the Limit
Next up we have WWE Over the Limit. A name is supposed to put emphasis on speed and going beyond that limitations. Okay, maybe I am being too literal but what else would you expect from the WWE with a name like this? Nowadays, this would be a great name if the WWE were to a hold a show featuring the roster of 205 Live, or even combining the talents of 205 Live with NXT for one night only.
Anyway, let's talk about the shows themselves. The WWE held approximately three Over the Limit events starting in 2010 through 2012. The shows were met relatively negative reviews. The 2010 show, for instance, drew in 197,000 buys, with an estimated 11,000 in attendance.
The show was criticized severely for the bad endings and stoppage of matches for any type of blood. The "I Quit" match was meant to be a signature match used solely for these shows, yet was only used for the first two events and was discarded in the 2012 show.
The event was generally regarded as one of the worst shows of all-time, even considered to be one of the oddballs of the PPV lineup. While the show would get noticeably better from year to year, this was one event that WWE could have done without.
The name made no sense whatsoever. Given what the event had for the signature match type as the main draw for the 2010 and 2011 showings, I would rather have seen the WWE go back to using "Breaking Point" as the PPV name rather than this hot garbage.
Nevertheless, this was during an awkward time for WWE during the height of the "PG Era", typically with John Cena at the helm and the company pushing the family friendly environment to its fullest.
#1 Great Balls of Fire
Now we have the grand daddy of all really bad pay-per-view names to ever be produced by the WWE to date. I have been a wrestling fan for over twenty five years and counting. I've seen bad PPV names, but this one takes the cake. Out of all the silly, random names you could come up with from a creative standpoint, this is your next big idea, WWE?
Alright, before I go off on a rant for just how silly and stupid this idea is, let me get to the matches. First off, you actually had what should've been a great main event to close out the show for the WWE Universal Championship between then champion Brock Lesnar and Samoa Joe. Instead, the match was only six minutes long and didn't live up to expectations.
On the plus side, however, we did have two great matches with the Iron Man Tag Team Title match between The Hardyz and The Bar. Even the Ambulance Match between Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman wasn't half bad at all, despite what you may think of the match on paper.
This is by far the most horrible name I believe you could ever use for a pay-per-view title, by WWE standards at the very least. Granted, that statement can be argued and debated until we all turn blue in the face. No matter how you slice this up, the WWE has to go down a better creative path than this.
Do not get me wrong here. I love the WWE! I don't hate the company. I would love for see them get back on track, get on a solid creative forefront and get with the program.
In conclusion, Great Balls of Fire is the epitome of all bad pay-per-view names by the WWE, to date.
Do you agree with the list? What PPV names by the WWE would you consider to be among the worst of all-time.
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