The 10 Best Ruthless Aggression Era PPV Main Events, According To Dave Meltzer
The Ruthless Aggression Era was an intriguing one for WWE. They could mix some PPV main events with a few dud ones following a strong undercard but other times, a great main event to save an otherwise poor show. It helped that it had some sensational stars like John Cena, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar and so many more to make this era shine. That left a lot of bouts for famed Wrestling Observer editor Dave Meltzer to review over the Era.
RELATED: 10 Best Matches Of WWE's Ruthless Aggression Era, According To Dave Meltzer
Some bouts are impressive in how Meltzer could put together a terrific review for a match many agree with. Then again, sometimes Meltzer could give a higher rating for the main event than expected, yet it’s striking how many Ruthless Aggression Era PPVs boast main event ratings of four stars or more. These are the ten highest-rated main events of this time by Meltzer as a reminder of how magical this period could be for great matches.
Note: Chris Benoit matches are omitted from this list due to his horrific actions at the end of his life.
10 John Cena Vs Triple H Vs Edge, Backlash 2006, 4.25 Stars
Set up by all three men having beef with each other following WrestleMania, this turned into a terrific triple threat matchup. Edge smartly tried to stay out of it at first before the pair dragged him into the fight. They brawled all over with Triple H bloodied up and Lita also interfering.
Each was good, taking their foes down to try for a pin and the momentum swapping fast. Cena dropped Edge out of the ring before countering a Pedigree into a roll-up for the pin. Triple H took out everyone with a sledgehammer afterward to prove he was still The Game.
9 The Undertaker Vs Edge, WrestleMania 24, 4.25 Stars
It wasn’t just the World Heavyweight Championship at stake in this clash but also Edge vowing to end the Streak. While topping the earlier Shawn Michaels-Ric Flair bout was impossible, Undertaker and Edge put on a stellar conflict that went from a slow start to high-paced action, with Undertaker pulling out a bevy of classic moves.
RELATED: 10 Undertaker WWE Moments From The 2000s You Completely Forgot About
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder tried to interfere but were taken out. It looked like Edge was going to win with a Spear, only for Undertaker to reverse it into a Hell’s Gate for a submission win and one of his best WrestleMania matches ever.
8 John Cena Vs Edge, Unforgiven 2006: 4.25 Stars
Having traded the WWE Title back and forth a few times already in this year, it was little surprise John Cena and Edge saved the best for last. As it was Toronto, Edge was the crowd favorite defending the belt against Cena in a TLC match.
As the battle went on, the crowd slowly began backing Cena more as he came back from one nasty blow after another to fight with Edge as Lita also interfered. The famous ending had Cena hitting an FU off the ladders to send Edge through a pile of tables, then climbing to grab the belt. The crowd had to cheer Cena’s gusty performance in this amazing conflict.
7 John Cena Vs JBL, Judgment Day 2005: 4.25 Stars
One of John Cena’s first major matches as WWE Champion, he had a great entrance on a flatbed truck with a DJ playing his entrance theme. The I Quit match was a full-on war between him and JBL and far better than their lackluster WrestleMania 21 match.
Cena, in a rarity, was busted open in the battle but kept on going despite being choked and then bloodying up JBL. The ending was sudden, with JBL quitting when Cena threatened him with a huge exhaust pipe, then Cena smashed him through a glass panel anyway to end this crazy battle.
6 Elimination Chamber, Survivor Series 2002: 4.25 Stars
Historic as the first-ever Elimination Chamber match, it’s also still one of the best. No one was quite sure of what would happen with Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Rob Van Dam, Chris Jericho, Booker T and Kane in the huge Chamber, but they set the bar for every Elimination Chamber match to follow.
The action was stellar as it seems the rating was higher thanks to the unique circumstances. It culminated in Michaels capping off his stellar comeback by pinning Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship in a top-notch clash.
5 Brock Lesnar Vs Kurt Angle, WrestleMania 19: 4.25 Stars
While WrestleMania 19 had ups and downs, the main event is what makes it notable. It’s amazing it even happened as Angle was suffering serious neck issues and by rights shouldn’t have been wrestling at all.
But he and Brock turned out a terrific fight that went from brawling to technical work and back with ease. It’s infamous for Brock’s botched Shooting Star Press, but he still managed to continue to beat Angle for the WWE Championship. They would top it later in the year with some great bouts, but this match remains a WrestleMania main event classic.
4 Randy Orton Vs Triple H, No Mercy 2007: 4.5 Stars
This is one of those ratings that has some folks scratching their heads. The PPV itself was weird as Randy Orton was awarded the WWE Title when John Cena was injured. Triple H challenged him for the belt and beat Orton in the opener. Triple H’s scheduled match with Umaga was a title match where he retained.
Then Orton demanded a rematch which became a “Last Man Standing” main event. With no countout or DQ, the match was a crazy brawl, with Orton ending up beating the ten count to win the title. It was a good match, but four and a half stars seems a bit much even without the crazy booking.
3 John Cena Vs Edge Vs Randy Orton Vs Shawn Michaels, Backlash 2007: 4.5 Stars
Four top stars in one huge battle promised a war and that’s what fans got. The fun dynamic was the faces and heels briefly working as teams against their opponents before turning on each other. Indeed, Cena and HBK were more focused on each other than Rated-RKO.
RELATED: 10 Best WWE PPV Main Events Of The Ruthless Aggression Era
The ending was imaginative as Michaels hit Sweet Chin Music on Cena, which caused him to fall on Orton for the pin. It was a brilliantly booked battle that made for arguably the best fatal-four-way bout in WWE history.
2 The Undertaker Vs The Rock Vs Kurt Angle, Vengeance 2002: 4.5 Stars
While the Undertaker was pretty rough in 2002, this was a terrific exception. It started on a fun note with him and the Rock yelling at each other while Angle stood to the side, waving his arms for attention.
The match was one time The Rock and Undertaker worked well together with the fun idea of each guy breaking out their opponent’s moves like the Rock with a Chokeslam and Angle Lock. It was a series of wild near falls before the Rock took advantage of Angle hitting a slam to pin the Undertaker for the WWE Title. It capped off one of the better triple threat matches of the time.
1 Batista Vs Triple H, Vengeance 2005: 4.5 Stars
The culmination of the fantastic feud of Batista and Triple H, it made sense it ended in the chaos of Hell in the Cell. There were actually folks at the time thinking that Triple H might get the belt back but instead, he put Batista over in a masterful battle.
It was a terrific war with both guys going at it hard and a bloody clash, including a steel chair wrapped in barbed wire. It looked like Triple H might win with his trusty sledgehammer, but Batista got the Powerbomb on steel steps to retain. The fans had to applaud both men for this fabulous war that established Batista as a main eventer.
