Every WWE PPV Main Event From 2010, Ranked Worst To Best

A new decade began with WWE in 2010, and usual suspects were still involved at the top end of pay-per-views. John Cena, Edge, and Randy Orton remained ever-present in the main event scene. The likes of Triple H and The Undertaker wrestled part-time instead of being part of the presentation regularly but were still featured in some marquee matches.

There were a plethora of World Championship changes, and new faces were etched into the title picture. Whilst, some of the main events that WWE produced were generally good, there were a few that had no right to close out a pay-per-view.

13 Randy Orton Vs. Wade Barrett - Bragging Rights

Randy Orton v Wade Barrett Bragging Rights 2010 Cropped

Just four months into his run on the main roster, Wade Barrett challenged Randy Orton for the WWE Championship in his first singles pay-per-view main event at Bragging Rights. The leader of the Nexus would fire John Cena if he failed to win the match.

This was a boring WWE Championship match, and Barrett wasn't quite ready for the main event scene yet. The Nexus interfered and they pummeled Orton. Nevertheless, Orton retained the WWE Championship by DQ as Cena hit Barrett with the AA.

12 Sheamus Vs. John Cena - Money In The Bank

Sheamus v John Cena Money in the Bank 2010 Cropped

Sheamus and John Cena's steel cage match for the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank was bitterly disappointing. Big Match John was looking to regain the WWE Title, he lost to Sheamus for the second time in his career.

Both men managed to connect with their respective finishers, but they couldn't see the job through. Moreover, the Nexus was lurking around ringside, and Sheamus managed to retain the WWE Championship as he climbed over the cage, and fended off Heath Slater and David Otunga who were in his path.

11 John Cena Vs. Wade Barrett - TLC

John Cena v Wade Barrett TLC 2010 Cropped

Wade Barrett headlined a WWE pay-per-view for the third time in succession, and he collided with his former Nexus stablemate John Cena at TLC in a chairs match. The drama unfolded before the match even began as Cena removed every member of Nexus from the equation, so Barrett had to battle on his lonesome.

This was an average chairs match, and Cena dominated large parts of the match. There were six chairs lined up in the ring, and Cena connected with an AA on Barrett en route to picking up a pinfall victory.

10 Randy Orton Vs. Wade Barrett - Survivor Series

Randy Orton v Wade Barrett Survivor Series 2010 Cropped

Randy Orton and Wade Barrett once again locked horns in another WWE Championship match at Survivor Series. This time John Cena was the special guest referee, but there was a caveat as Cena would be fired if he failed to crown Barrett as the new WWE Champion.

Their WWE Championship match was an improvement on their Bragging Rights match. Moreover, Barrett gave it his best shot here, but Orton retained the WWE Title with an RKO with Cena "fired."

9 Kane Vs. The Undertaker - Hell In A Cell

Kane v The Undertaker Hell in a Cell 2010 Cropped

For the umpteenth time, Kane and The Undertaker were rivals once again. Kane was the reigning World Heavyweight Champion, and he defended his title in a Hell in a Cell match with Undertaker seeking an eighth run as World Champion.

Paul Bearer was in Undertaker's corner, and he had a massive impact on the outcome. It was a mediocre match, and the pair have had better matches. Ultimately, Bearer betrayed Undertaker by shining the urn in Undertaker's face, Kane chokeslammed his brother to retain the World Heavyweight Championship and he sided with his father once again.

8 Team WWE Vs. Team Nexus - SummerSlam

SummerSlam should have been Nexus' night as they battled with Team WWE's John Cena, Chris Jericho, Edge, Bret Hart, R-Truth, John Morrison, and Daniel Bryan in a 7-on-7 elimination tag team match. There were some good exchanges in this bout with Nexus looking strong in parts.

In later interviews, Chris Jericho and Edge believed that the Nexus should have gone over but Cena disagreed. In quick succession, Cena eliminated Justin Gabriel and Wade Barrett to secure the win for Team WWE in a match that they did not need to win.

7 John Cena Vs. Sheamus Vs. Randy Orton Vs. Edge - Fatal-4-Way

John Cena v Sheamus v Randy Orton v Edge Fatal 4-Way 2010 Cropped

John Cena defended the WWE Championship in a fatal-4-way match against Sheamus, Randy Orton, and Edge at the sole Fatal-4-Way event. All four men gave it their all in an entertaining fatal-4-way match with several near falls and falls being broken up to prevent someone from winning the match.

The finish of the bout was spoiled by The Nexus who wreaked havoc and got involved in proceedings. They assaulted Cena, and Edge attempted to help his former rival. However, for the second time in his career, Sheamus won the WWE Championship and escaped into the crowd to prevent Nexus from attacking him.

6 John Cena Vs. Batista - Over The Limit

John Cena v Batista Over The Limit 2010 Cropped

The rivalry between John Cena and Batista was one of the best in 2010. Their feud came to a halt in an "I Quit" match at Over the Limit with Cena's WWE Championship up for grabs. The Animal dominated the early stages of the bout, and Cena refused to utter the words "I Quit."

Big Match John bled, and their fight spilled into the crowd. Batista got into one of the cars on stage, and he attempted to run Cena over but that was to no avail. Cena executed the AA on Batista onto the car, and Cena forced Batista to quit when he attempted to do it again. Cena executed the move again with Batista crashing through the stage floor.

5 Sheamus Vs. Randy Orton Vs. Wade Barrett Vs. John Cena Vs. Chris Jericho Vs. Edge - Night Of Champions

The deck was stacked against Sheamus in his latest WWE Title defense at Night of Champions. He featured in a six-pack challenge alongside Randy Orton, Wade Barrett, John Cena, Chris Jericho, and Edge. The six-time World Champion Y2J was the first to be eliminated with Orton removing him with an RKO.

Orton had a good 2010 as a babyface, and he eliminated Barrett with the RKO. Orton and Sheamus were the final two to slug it out, and the Viper got the better of Sheamus with a sixth World Championship reign beginning here.

4 The Undertaker Vs. Chris Jericho Vs. Rey Mysterio Vs. CM Punk Vs. R-Truth Vs. John Morrison - Elimination Chamber

Chris Jericho v Undertaker v CM Punk v John Morrison v R-Truth v Rey Mysterio Elimination Chamber 2010 Cropped

After getting burned by the flames on the way down the aisle, The Undertaker had to shift his focus toward his World Heavyweight Championship title defense inside the Elimination Chamber. His challengers were Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, R-Truth, and John Morrison.

This was an excellent Elimination Chamber match, and the two veterans Undertaker and Jericho were the final two to battle it out. They had good exchanges, but Shawn Michaels emerged from beneath the Chamber by lifting a panel, and he laid out Undertaker with Sweet Chin Music. Jericho was in shock, but he seized the opportunity and became a six-time World Champion.

3 Royal Rumble Match - Royal Rumble

The 2010 Royal Rumble match was one of the best that WWE produced. The stars aligned with the likes of John Cena, Chris Jericho, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Batista, and the returning Edge in action. The main storyline was Shawn Michaels' desperation to get another WrestleMania match with Undertaker, who was the reigning World Heavyweight Champion.

Nevertheless, HBK showed how desperate he was by eliminating Triple H, who he was Tag Team Champions with. Edge returned as the 29th entrant, and he lastly eliminated Cena to win the Royal Rumble match for the first time in his career.

2 John Cena Vs. Batista - Extreme Rules

John Cena v Batista Extreme Rules 2010 Cropped

Batista was looking to regain the WWE Championship he dropped to John Cena at WrestleMania 26. This time the two rivals were battling in a Last Man Standing match. This encounter was better than their WrestleMania match as it allowed both men to use weapons.

Both competitors had refused to stay down, and they'd get up at an eighth or ninth count. Nevertheless, Cena used his initiative as he tied Batista's feet to the ring post, where he was unable to move, and he retained the WWE Championship.

1 The Undertaker Vs. Shawn Michaels - WrestleMania 26

Undertaker v Shawn Michaels WrestleMania 26 Cropped

Something had to give in The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels' epic at WrestleMania 26. Undertaker strolled into WrestleMania with a 17-0 unbeaten streak at WrestleMania, and HBK's career was on the line. This match was off the charts, and both brought their A-games here.

As predicted, both kicked out of each other's respective finishing maneuvers. Fans were in awe of seeing two veterans going toe-to-toe. Ultimately, Michaels' legendary wrestling career came to a halt with Undertaker finishing off Michaels with a jaw-dropping jumping Tombstone Piledriver.