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WWE is done with pay-per-views and Network Specials for 2017 and many WWE fans have strong feelings regarding the year that was.
On one hand, 2017 gave us the Mae Young Classic, the WWE UK Specials, fantastic tag team wrestling, the resurrection of War Games and the breakout year for Braun Strowman. On the other hand, 2017 was also responsible for the “Bayley: This is Your Life” segment, the House of Horror match, a man basically winning the first-ever Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match, the resurrection of the Punjabi Prison and a rumored retirement of one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time in a match that didn’t do him justice.
To say that WWE in 2017 had its ups and downs is a gross understatement reflecting on a year that some fans are calling one of the worst in recent memory. And some while fans argue that declaring 2017 one of the worst years is an exaggeration, some of the main events from this year don’t help 2017’s case - especially from their bigger shows.
Main Events are often the biggest matches on the card and the matches every fan expects to deliver. They don’t necessarily have to be the best match on the card, but they have to meet fan expectations and a lot of WWE’s 2017 main events were a mixed bag.
So, to get a better sense of how well the year went, this article will review the main events from Raw and SmackDown pay-per-views, Takeover Specials, and other big shows on the WWE Network.
Between pay-per-views, Takeover Specials and the tournaments, there were a total of 24 main events this year and the first 12 mentioned on this list will primarily be the worst matches from 2017.
#12 Fastlane - Kevin Owens(c) vs. Goldberg (Universal Championship)
Following Goldberg’s defeat of Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series 2016, the former World Heavyweight Champion set his sights on Kevin Owens with the goal of taking his Universal Championship. Jericho accepted the challenge on behalf of Owens and this decision led to Owens attacking Jericho weeks later at the Festival of Friendship.
The “match” lasted 20 seconds with Goldberg hitting a Spear and a Jackhammer on a distracted Owens to win his first world title in over 14 years.
It made sense for Owens to lose to the man who defeated Lesnar, but 20 seconds for a pay-per-view main event during WrestleMania season is pathetic.
Ultimately, the match served to set up the action-packed rematch between Lesnar and Goldberg at WrestleMania 33, but it’s a shame it had to come at the expense of the longest reigning Universal Champion at the time.
#11 Battleground - Jinder Mahal(c) vs Randy Orton (WWE Championship)
Jinder Mahal and Randy Orton had been feuding over the WWE Championship for most of the summer and the company decided to bring their feud to an end by resurrecting the Punjabi Prison match.
This marked the third Punjabi Prison match in WWE history, but sadly reminded fans why the match hadn’t been used for over 10 years. This was the worst match Mahal and Orton had with very few memorable moments except for Orton knocking Samir Singh off the structure and through an announcement table and The Great Khali returning to help Mahal retain the title.
Here’s to hoping that 2017 produced the last Punjabi Prison match we will ever see.
#10 Backlash – Randy Orton(c) vs Jinder Mahal (WWE Championship)
Jinder Mahal had been with the WWE for many years prior to 2017 and spent most of his time losing matches. Despite his history of losses, the company decided to pluck him from obscurity and make him a WWE Champion.
Unfortunately, Mahal’s run with the title would continue a trend of lacklustre WWE Championship bouts that began at WrestleMania 33. To his credit, Mahal would have a better match with Orton at Money in the Bank, but their first match was the epitome of boredom.
The few moments that stood out in their encounter were Orton giving Mahal a back suplex onto the announcement table, Orton hitting Mahal with a superplex from the top rope, and Orton giving both Singh Brothers back suplexes onto the announcement table.
#9 WrestleMania 33 - Roman Reigns vs. The Undertaker
After their confrontation at the Royal Rumble, The Undertaker returned to confront Roman Reigns which lead to their match at WrestleMania 33. Fans weren't too excited for the buildup of the match and were even less excited when it was revealed to be the main event of the show.
WWE tried everything they could to make this match work; a solid video package, adding the No Holds Barred stipulation and Jim Ross providing commentary. Unfortunately, the in-ring action failed to deliver and only served to remind fans how old and worn-out The Undertaker had become.
The beginning of the bout was decent and featured some solid action, but a weak Last Ride, an embarrassing Tombstone Piledriver botch from Reigns, a botched Hells Gate and the overabundance of finishers and chair shots made the match feel like a lesser version of The Undertaker’s match against Triple H at WrestleMania 27.
The match ended with Reigns victorious, The Undertaker possibly retired and fans feeling a mix of sadness and dissatisfaction.
#8 Clash of Champions – AJ Styles(c) vs. Jinder Mahal (WWE Championship)
Jinder Mahal’s WWE Championship reign seemed like it had no end in sight until AJ Styles defeated him on the UK SmackDown episode. This lead to Mahal invoking his rematch for the Clash of Champions pay-per-view and challenging for the belt for the first time since his match at Backlash.
Mahal busted out some new moves to attempt to regain the WWE Championship, but the match was a big disappointment for what many fans expect from Style’s matches. The WWE Championship match from the UK episode was really good, but their followup left a lot to be desired.
The biggest moments of the match were Mahal suplexing Styles on to the announcement table, Styles taking out The Singh Brothers, and Styles making Mahal submit with the Calf Crusher.
#7 No Mercy – Brock Lesnar(c) vs Braun Strowman (Universal Championship)
After the encounters, Braun Strowman and Brock Lesnar had at SummerSlam and on Monday Night Raw, many fans expected the match between the Monster Among Men and the Beast Incarnate to be more destructive and intense bout than Lesnar’s match with Goldberg at WrestleMania 33.
The buildup to the match portrayed Strowman as Lesnar’s biggest challenge ever, but the match at No Mercy failed to make Strowman as dominant as he was perceived.
The first minute of the match was very intense and saw Strowman no-sell a German Suplex and hit a Running Powerslam for a near fall, but the match started to lose steam once Lesnar locked in the Kimura Lock. Strowman would land two more Running Powerslams for a near fall, but the Beast Incarnate would retain the Universal Championship after one underwhelming F-5.
A match that was billed as a clash of titans ended up being a plain match to the dismay of many.
#6 Payback - Braun Strowman vs. Roman Reigns
Weeks after Roman Reigns defeated The Undertaker, Braun Strowman attacked the Big Dog and delivered one of the most brutal and over the top assaults in recent memory. Strowman lost to Reigns at Fastlane and was relegated to the WrestleMania pre-show, causing many fans to worry about his future. Fortunately, the Monster Among Men recovered nicely with his win at Payback.
The story of this match centred on Reigns fighting through the injuries he sustained against Strowman which severely limited what the former WWE Champion could offer to the match. Reigns hit a few Superman Punches, a Spear, and some other moves, but Strowman dominated the majority of the contest and ended the match after hitting a second Running Powerslam.
The match told a good story but would end up being one of the worst matches Strowman and Reigns had in 2017.
#5 NXT Takeover: San Antonio – Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs Bobby Roode (NXT Championship)
After The King of Strong Style defeated Samoa Joe to retain the NXT Championship, Bobby Roode would set his sights on Shinsuke Nakamura’s title.
The entrances and the crowd laid the foundation for both men to deliver a solid bout for NXT Takeover: San Antonio. The first half of the match was a back-and-forth effort, but the match shifted focus to Nakamura hurting his knee towards the end.
The big moments of the match were Nakamura countering a superplex with a Front Suplex from the top rope, Nakamura countering a powerbomb attempt with a sunset flip and a rolling knee strike, Roode using a single-legged Boston Crab to further injure Nakamura’s knee, and Roode hitting a second Glorious DDT to become the new NXT Champion.
#4 The Royal Rumble Match
The 2017 Royal Rumble had a slow start, but the momentum would pick up once Braun Strowman entered at #7. There were some good moments for a while with Tye Dillinger, Baron Corbin and others getting a chance to shine, but the match ultimately slowed to a crawl about half-way through.
The biggest entrants in the Royal Rumble, Goldberg, Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker, entered the match towards the end and revitalized the crowd, but the momentum nosedived once Roman Reigns entered the match at #30.
As the match neared its end, the crowd was growing increasingly angry with the prospect of Reigns winning the Royal Rumble match for the second time, but fans were relieved to see Randy Orton eliminate him to win his second Rumble.
However, the feeling of relief was short-lived once fans realized they could possibly have to watch another Cena-Orton match. The actual championship match at WrestleMania would be Orton vs. Bray Wyatt - and that match was bad.
A multi-time world champion won his second Royal Rumble in an uneventful match and went on to WrestleMania to win the title from Wyatt in a bad match.
It's safe to say that 2017 was not the best year for The Viper.
#3 Survivor Series – Team Raw vs Team SmackDown
After Shane McMahon invaded Monday Night Raw, both Raw and SmackDown would put teams together to battle at Survivor Series and prove which brand was superior.
Team Raw was comprised of Triple H, Kurt Angle, Finn Bálor, Samoa Joe and Braun Strowman while Team SmackDown was comprised of Shane McMahon, Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura, Bobby Roode and John Cena.
The first half of the match was fantastic and had some great confrontations like Bálor-Nakamura, Triple H-Roode and Joe-Cena. The big moments from the beginning were the exchange between Roode and Triple H, Team SmackDown suplexing Strowman through the announcement table and Joe hitting a belly-to-belly suplex from the top rope on McMahon.
However, the match would fall apart in the second half as only the part-timers and Strowman remained. The match ended when Triple H helped McMahon eliminate Angle only to eliminate McMahon himself.
A match that had little to nothing to do with Triple H ended with The Cerebral Assassin centre stage while a majority of the newer talents were brushed to the side.
#2 Mae Young Classic Finale – Kairi Sane vs Shayna Baszler
The Mae Young Classic was WWE’s first-ever large-scale women’s wrestling tournament and featured wrestlers from around the world, much like the Cruiserweight Classic from 2016. The tournament featured 32 competitors, but the finals would come down to Shayna Baszler and Kairi Sane.
Baszler had the strength advantage and worked over Sane’s elbow, but Sane used her speed to take back control and focused her attacks on Baszler’s midsection.
The highlights of the match were Sane countering Baszler’s submission with pinfall attempts, Baszler hitting two gutwrenching powerbombs, Baszler countering an elbow from the top rope with the Kirifuda Clutch, and Sane hitting the Insane Elbow to win the match and the tournament.
-#1 NXT Takeover: Orlando – Bobby Roode(c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (NXT Championship)
After Bobby Roode defeated Shinsuke Nakamura for the NXT Championship at Takeover: San Antonio, The King of Strong Style invoked his rematch clause for NXT Takeover: Orlando.
This match was more fast-paced then their previous encounter and began with Nakamura dominating the first half of the match with aggressive strikes only for Roode to regain control by working over Nakamura’s previously injured knee.
The highlights of the Orlando main event were Roode locking in the Figure 4 Leglock, Nakamura countering a submission attempt with his cross arm breaker/triangle choke combination, Roode countering a Kinshasa with a Spinebuster and Roode hitting the Glorious DDT after transitioning from the top rope in a tornado DDT-esque manoeuvre.
This match was essentially the same layout as the San Antonio show but was much better the second time around.
Look out for part two.
