(Special thanks to an anonymous user for suggesting this match. If you'd like to see a match covered on the Worst in the World, leave a comment down below.)
An often discussed aspect of professional wrestling is the backstage politicking of Hulk Hogan. Throughout his career as a major attraction in wrestling, Hogan's philosophy has always been to protect Hulk Hogan...OK, sometimes he'd help Ed Leslie, but most of the time it was to protect Hulk Hogan. Because of that philosophy and Hogan's influence as a top guy, there have been multiple instances where a company's booking and other wrestlers have suffered as a result. Would having Mr. Perfect win the 1990 Royal Rumble made sense and could have elevated a rising star and potentially created a new main event player? Yes, but that would require Hogan to not win, and that doesn't work for Hogan, so he wins the Rumble even though he doesn't need elevating. Would booking Randy Orton to beat Hogan at SummerSlam 2006 have elevated Orton and his Legend Killer gimmick, not to mention how it would have made sense for a 53-year-old, part-time wrestler in Hogan to put over someone half his age? Yes, but that doesn't protect Hogan, so Hogan goes over. There's no shortage of stories surrounding this, but if you've ever wondered what the polar opposite of that philosophy is, a good place to look is with Sting.Unlike Hulk Hogan, Sting's method seems to be going with the flow and doing what creative wanted him to do, regardless of if taking part in it would be damaging to his perception overall. Hell, the only example I can think of Sting going to bat (for lack of a better term) for himself creatively was Starrcade 1997, but even that was in response to another wrestler (unsurprisingly, Hulk Hogan) using his creative control to benefit himself at the cost of the company.As such, Sting has taken part in some truly silly storylines & matches. You want Sting to wrestle in a giant cage with an electric chair in the middle of the ring? No problem. You want him fight in a graveyard or have a match where you have to set your opponent on fire as part of a feud with Vampiro? Absolutely he's in. Want him to start acting & looking like the Joker, essentially taking his gimmick that's look was already based on a comic book character and adding on another comic book character's look? You don't have to ask him twice. You'd be hard-pressed to find another top baby face that has been involved in as many wacky shit as Sting has. Sure, guys like Steve Austin, John Cena, and Hulk Hogan himself have taken part in some outlandish matches & angles from time to time, but nowhere near as often as The Stinger has. And today, we're taking a look at one of those outlandish matches. This is the infamous Last Rites match between Sting and Abyss at TNA's Destination X 2007.
This show takes place right in the middle of what is heavily considered the peak of Total Nonstop Action between 2006 and 2007, far removed from days of The Asylum and the weekly pay-per-views, and before the Main Event Mafia and the arrival of Hulk Hogan & Eric Bischoff dominated the company. Between homegrown talents like AJ Styles and Samoa Joe standing out on their own, to established names like Kurt Angle and Christian Cage thriving, to a strong X-Division featuring guys like Chris Sabin, Christopher Daniels, and Jay Lethal among others, this short period of time in TNA has become one of my favorites. That being said, there was still some wacky shit that seeped through the cracks during this period. Hell, at the very next pay-per-view, Lockdown, there is not one, but two all-time bad TNA gimmick matches in the Blindfold Steel Cage match and the Electrified Steel Cage match (which, trust me, I'll get to that one day.) The Last Rites match might not be quite as infamous as those two matches, but it's still among TNA's most notably bad matches.
Sting & Abyss had been feuding since November the previous year when Abyss won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship from Sting at Genesis (this was a weird DQ finish, but they just gave the title to Abyss anyway.) Following Abyss losing the title to Christian Cage after he wormed his way into the feud, Sting had set out to humanize Abyss and free him from Father James Mitchell's control. This led to TNA delving into the lore of Abyss, as Sting would reveal his real name Chris Parks (a slight deviation from his real name Chris Park), and that he had served six years in prison for shooting his father in the back, sending him into a coma. This led to the much better Prison Yard match at Against All Odds, which Sting would win, but would face off one last time here in the Last Rites match. The match is a casket match, a stipulation that on it's own isn't too detrimental, if not a bit lackluster. But don't you worry, TNA and head writer Vince Russo have an idea that'll make it A LOT dumber.
Abyss is out first with James Mitchell nowhere in sight, and its here we see that one of the ways TNA tried to set the mood for this match was to stick a bunch of plastic candelabras on top of the ring posts.This is not a decision that inspires a lot of confidence. Sting then makes his entrance, prompting Abyss to exit the ring and start a brawl at ringside. Sting gets the better of the exchange to start, punching & chopping Abyss before slamming his head into the ring steps. Sting then throws Abyss into a guard rail before throwing him back into the ring steps. Sting then sets Abyss against the guard rail and goes for the Stinger Splash, but Abyss dodges it, sending Sting ribs first into the guard rail. I've said this before, but I don't think I've ever seen Sting successfully hit the Stinger Splash to someone against a guardrail. It must have a less than 5% success rate. Abyss grabs a chair and hit Sting across the back before clubbing Sting with punches. Abyss finally rolls Sting into the ring before we get a shot of another way TNA tried to create ambiance for this match; prop tombstones with just "R.I.P" carved into them.It's like they raided a Spirit Halloween an hour before the show. Abyss whips Sting into the corner and charges at him, but Sting catches him with a boot before going back to the punches and chops. The two then trade counters before Abyss catches Sting on a crossbody attempt, only for Sting to slip out and hit the Scorpion Death Drop. Abyss stumbles into the corner, allowing Sting to hit a Stinger Splash to his back before following up with another to the front. Abyss doesn't abide by the rule of threes, however, and counters a third attempt by Sting when he grabs one of the candelabras and smashes him with it. And even though I made fun of them earlier, the candelabras were apparently good enough props to, unless he pulls off the most seamless blade job of all time, bust Sting open for real.With Sting down & bloody, Abyss signals to the sky and that's when we get Vince Russo & TNA's spin on the casket match.The lights turn blue and smoke begins to pour out as a casket is lowered down into the ring on a platform. It reeks of "doing too much", and it's all theatrics that don't actually add to the match. In fact, it actual makes the match worse because now Sting & Abyss have to work in a ring with significantly less room. Unsurprisingly, TNA would switch to the more traditional casket match where the casket is at ringside instead of actually in the ring. As the casket reaches the ground, we get some very clear, very loud, and very deserved "FIRE RUSSO!" chants. It's hard to blame them. Internally, however, the reaction from the company was essentially that they weren't so out of touch, but that the fans were wrong. Reports have come out that TNA management blamed smart mark fans trying to take over the show for the chants, and that Jeff Jarrett & Dutch Mantel were more to blame than Vince Russo. Dixie Carter herself has also pointed the blame at Mantel and said that after hearing the "FIRE RUSSO" chants, she threatened to fire someone the next time she heard them...someone other than Vince Russo. Mantel has since denied that claim. Regardless of who created this match, it's still a terrible creative decision. And there are still six minutes left in this match.
Abyss opens the casket and throws Sting in. He slams one half of the casket shut and goes to close the second half, but Sting pushes back, keeping the lid open before he chops Abyss away. Sting exits the casket and punches Abyss, but Abyss knocks him back down with a big boot. Abyss exits the ring to grab one of the tombstones, carrying it into the ring and setting it up in the corner. Abyss tries to throw Sting into it, but Sting counters, takes him down, and locks in the Scorpion Death Lock. Sting keeps the hold locked in for about 10 seconds as Abyss visually taps out. Sting eventually breaks the hold before the chair and hits Abyss in the head. Sting then places the tombstone in front of Abyss' head before grabbing his signature baseball bat and cracking the tombstone in half with it. Sting drags Abyss into the casket, getting one half shut, but Abyss pushes and keeps the second half open. Sting even tries to lay on the casket lid to shut it, but Abyss powers out. Abyss grabs Sting by the throat and climbs out of the casket, tossing Sting into the corner. Sting fends him off with a back elbow, but Abyss rebounds, grabs Sting by the throat again, and chokeslams him onto the lid, causing the lid to buckle under the weight. This actually gets the crowd back into the match, with a TNA chant breaking out.
Abyss exits the ring and grabs another chair, sliding it into the ring before bringing another tombstone into the ring. Abyss sets up the two chairs before placing the tombstone across them. Abyss drags Sting over to the corner and sets him on the top rope for a superplex. Sting fights back, however, and grabs one of the candelabras, smashing it across Abyss' back and sending him backwards through the tombstone. Sting quickly drags Abyss over to the casket, tossing him in and closing both halves of the lid for the win. Sting lays on the casket as it's raised back towards the ceiling, giving us this fairly funny visual.Sting eventually gets off the casket to close out this match.
The Verdict
This is one of those matches where the stipulation & concept of the match is worse than the actual match itself. This is obviously not a very good match, but it's just a pretty lackluster hardcore match with a dumb version of a casket match. Sting & Abyss tried with what they were handed and while I wouldn't recommend watching this (even for a laugh), it's not going too far down the list.
The Rankings (Best to Worst)
- Sgt. Slaughter vs Colonel DeBeers-AWA SuperClash III
- Tommy Dreamer vs Bully Ray-Victory Road 2011
- Corporal Cajun & Lt. Loco vs The Perfect Event-Halloween Havoc 2000
- Triple H vs Kevin Nash-TLC: Tables, Ladders, and Chairs 2011
- Wrath vs Glacier-World War 3 1998
- The Rock's 25th Anniversary Battle Royal-Survivor Series 2021
- Wendi Richter & The Top Gunns vs The Diamond Exchange-AWA SuperClash III
- Wahoo McDaniel vs Manny Fernandez-AWA SuperClash III
- Rick Rude vs Jake Roberts-WrestleMania IV
- Too Much vs Al Snow & Head-King of the Ring 1998
- Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns-Greatest Royal Rumble
- Ernest Miller vs Norman Smiley-Fall Brawl 1998
- The Concrete Crypt Match-The Great American Bash 2004
- Shane McMahon vs Eric Bischoff-SummerSlam 2003
- Mordecai vs Hardcore Holly-The Great American Bash 2004
- Luther Reigns vs Charlie Haas-The Great American Bash 2004
- The Tag Team Gauntlet-Extreme Rules 2010
- The Gimmick Battle Royal-WrestleMania X-Seven
- Hernandez vs Matt Morgan-Victory Road 2011
- Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt-WrestleMania 33
- Vampiro vs Sting-Great American Bash 2000
- T&A vs Head Cheese-WrestleMania 2000
- David Arquette & Diamond Dallas Page vs Jeff Jarrett & Eric Bischoff-WCW Thunder (4/26/2000)
- Tyson Fury vs Braun Strowman-Crown Jewel 2019
- The Women's Tag Team Turmoil-WrestleMania 37 (Night 1)
- Triple H vs Sgt. Slaughter-D-Generation X: In Your House
- Konnan vs One Man Gang-SuperBrawl VI
- Ultimate Warrior vs Hercules-WrestleMania IV
- Candice LeRae vs Christina Von Eerie-PWG DIO!
- Rick Rude vs Hawk-Clash of the Champions XXV
- The Rock 'n' Roll Express vs The Stud Stable-AWA SuperClash III
- Shelton Benjamin vs Viscera-New Year's Revolution 2006
- Steve McMichael vs Reggie White-Slamboree 1997
- General Rection vs Lance Storm & Jim Duggan-Halloween Havoc 2000
- Chyna vs Ivory-WrestleMania X-Seven
- Lars Sullivan vs Lucha House Party-Super Showdown 2019
- The Last Rites Match-Destination X 2007
- Alexa Bliss vs Bayley-Extreme Rules 2017
- The Tag Team Fatal 4-Way Match-WrestleMania 13
- The Barbed Wire Christmas Tree Match-TNA iMPACT (12/20/2007)
- Gunner vs Garett Bischoff-Against All Odds 2012
- Tag Team Battle Royal-WrestleMania XIV
- EVIL vs Tomohiro Ishii-Wrestle Kingdom 16 (Day 1)
- The Chamber of Horrors-Halloween Havoc 1991
- Toru Yano vs Great O-Khan-New Japan Cup 2021 (Day 6)
- Glacier vs Wrath-The Great American Bash 1997
- The Natural Disasters vs Money Inc.-WrestleMania VIII
- Ivan Koloff vs Paul Jones-Clash of the Champions IV
- ODB, Taylor Wilde, and Roxxi vs The Kongtourage-Genesis 2009
- Rachel Evers vs Marti Belle-Mae Young Classic (Episode 2)
- Kazushi Sakuraba & Yuji Nagata vs Daniel & Rolles Gracie-Wrestle Kingdom 8
- Ivory vs Tori-SummerSlam 1999
- Giant Baba vs Bulldog Bob Brown-AWA WrestleRock
- The Reverse Battle Royal-Impact! (10/26/2006)
- The Undertaker vs King Mabel-In Your House 5: Season's Beatings
- Savio Vega vs Rocky Maivia-In Your House 14: Revenge of the Taker
- Jerry Blackwell vs Boris Zhukov-SuperClash II
- Nikita Koloff vs Bobby Eaton-Bunkhouse Stampede
- Alex Wright vs Steve McMichael-Halloween Havoc 1997
- The Great Khali vs Kane-WrestleMania 23
- Savio Vega vs Crush vs Faarooq-Ground Zero: In Your House
- The Shockmaster vs Awesome/King Kong-Starrcade 1993
- Greg Gagne vs Ron Garvin-AWA SuperClash III
- Total Divas vs Other Divas-Survivor Series 2013
- The Intercontinental Championship Elimination Chamber-Elimination Chamber 2015
- The Oddities vs Kaientai-SummerSlam 1998
- Team RAW vs Team SmackDown Men's Elimination Match-Survivor Series 2017
- Hulk Hogan vs Sid Justice-WrestleMania VIII
- Paul Ellering vs Teddy Long-Capital Combat
- Dusty Rhodes vs Big Boss Man-Saturday Night's Main Event (10/31/1989)
- The First Blood DNA Match-Halloween Havoc 2000
- Konnan vs Scott Hall-Fall Brawl 1998
- Damian Priest vs The Miz-WrestleMania Backlash
- Tyson Tomko vs Stevie Richards-Unforgiven 2004
- Kane vs The Great Khali-SummerSlam 2009
- The 2022 Women's Royal Rumble
- Rick Steiner vs Scott Steiner-Fall Brawl 1998
- The Extreme Elimination Chamber-December to Dismember 2006
- Hollywood Hogan vs The Giant-Hog Wild
- Hollywood Hogan vs The Giant-Souled Out 1997
- Dustin Rhodes & King Kong vs Awesome Kong & The Equalizer-Battlebowl
- Finlay & Little Bastard vs The Boogeyman & Little Boogeyman-No Way Out 2007
- Mr. Anderson vs Rob Van Dam-Victory Road 2011
- Jake Roberts vs Andre the Giant-WrestleMania V
- El Gigante vs Nailz-G1 Climax 1994 (Day 1)
- Yokozuna vs King Mabel-In Your House 4
- Dusty Rhodes vs The Honky Tonk Man-SummerSlam 1989
- Sting & Hawk vs Meng & Kurasawa-Clash of the Champions XXXI
- The Hurt Business vs RETRIBUTION-WWE Monday Night RAW (10/26/2020)
- Hulk Hogan vs Randy Savage-Uncensored 1998
- Santino Marella vs Heath Slater-WWE Friday Night SmackDown (9/27/2013)
- Al Snow vs Big Boss Man-Unforgiven 1999
- Vince Russo vs Ric Flair-WCW Monday Nitro (6/5/2000)
- Allie vs Leva Bates-Fyter Fest 2019
- Mickie James vs Ashley-Royal Rumble 2006
- Antonio Inoki vs The Great Antonio-NJPW Sumo Hall Show (12/8/1977)
- Christy Hemme vs Big Fat Oily Guy-Against All Odds 2007
- Kenzo Suzuki vs Billy Gunn-The Great American Bash 2004
- The Big Show vs Erick Rowan-TLC: Tables, Ladders, Chairs 2014
- British Bulldog & Jim Neidhart vs The Dancing Fools-Fall Brawl 1998
- Stevie Ray vs Konnan-World War 3 1998
- Vampiro vs The KISS Demon-Bash at the Beach 2000
- Team WCW vs nWo Wolfpac vs nWo Hollywood-Fall Brawl 1998
- Vampiro vs Oklahoma-Starrcade 1999
- Diesel vs King Mabel-SummerSlam 1995
- Big Swole vs Penelope Ford, Rebel, and Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D.-AEW Dynamite (8/27/2020)
- Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant-WrestleMania III
- Jinder Mahal vs Randy Orton-Battleground 2017
- Van Hammer vs Terrance Taylor-Clash of the Champions XVI
- Goldberg vs KroniK-Halloween Havoc 2000
- Junkyard Dog vs Moondog Spot-Wrestling Classic
- The New Blood Gauntlet-WCW Monday Nitro (6/5/2000)
- Chris Jericho vs "Goldberg"-Fall Brawl 1998
- Jimmy Valiant vs Wayne Bloom-AWA SuperClash III
- Hulk Hogan vs Kevin Nash-WCW Monday Nitro (1/4/1999)
- Sting vs Hulk Hogan-Halloween Havoc 1999
- Hulk Hogan vs Jeff Jarrett-Bash at the Beach 2000
- Kazuchika Okada & Toru Yano vs EVIL & Dick Togo-The New Beginning in Hiroshima 2021 (Day 2)
- Glacier vs Mortis-Slamboree 1997
- Michael Nakazawa vs Alex Jebailey-Fyter Fest 2019
- The 1997 World War 3 Match
- The 2022 Men's Royal Rumble
- Roman Reigns vs The Undertaker-WrestleMania 33
- Konnan vs Stevie Ray-Slamboree 1999
- The 1998 World War 3
- The Undertaker vs Goldberg-Super ShowDown 2019
- Hiroshi Wajima vs Tom Magee-All Japan Pro Wrestling 1988
- Jim Duggan vs Big Boss Man-Royal Rumble 1990
- Meng vs Jim Duggan-Uncensored 1995
- Jim Steele vs The Equalizer-SuperBrawl IV
- The Golden Truth vs Breezango-Money in the Bank 2016
- The Undertaker vs Giant González-WrestleMania IX
- Sting vs Tony Palmore-Battle 7
- D-Generation X vs Brothers of Destruction-Crown Jewel
- Wendi Richter vs Leilani Kai-WrestleMania
- Goldberg vs Brock Lesnar-WrestleMania XX
- Hornswoggle vs Chavo Guerrero-WWE Monday Night Raw (7/20/2009)
- Edge vs Triple H vs Vladimir Kozlov-Survivor Series 2008
- Rosita & Sarita vs Angelina Love & Winter-Victory Road 2011
- Kevin Sullivan vs Dave Sullivan-SuperBrawl V
- Steve McMichael vs Brian Adams-Road Wild 1998
- Scott Hall vs Roddy Piper-SuperBrawl IX
- Boris Zhukov vs Paul Samson-Beach Brawl
- Roddy Piper vs Hollywood Hogan-Halloween Havoc 1997
- Kane vs The Great Khali-Breaking Point
- Hollywood Hogan & Dennis Rodman vs Diamond Dallas Page & Karl Malone-Bash at the Beach 1998
- PN News & Bobby Eaton vs Steve Austin & Terrance Taylor-Great American Bash 1991
- Scott Steiner vs Sid Vicious vs Jeff Jarrett vs Road Warrior Animal-Sin
- Hollywood Hogan vs Roddy Piper-SuperBrawl 1997
- The 2015 Royal Rumble Match
- Kazuchika Okada vs Gedo-New Japan Cup 2020 (Day 2)
- Batista vs The Great Khali-SummerSlam 2007
- Sting vs Hollywood Hogan-Starrcade 1997
- Sable vs Tori-WrestleMania XV
- Super Invader vs Todd Champion-WrestleWar 1992
- Brock Lesnar vs Cain Velasquez-Crown Jewel 2019
- King Kong Bundy & Jim Neidhart vs Yokozuna & Jake Roberts-Heroes of Wrestling
- Sid Vicious vs The Nightstalker-Clash of the Champions XIII
- Mabel vs Savio Vega-King of the Ring 1995
- Monty Brown vs Trytan-Destination X 2005
- The 8-Divas Tag Match-Survivor Series 1999
- The Fabulous Freebirds vs The Renegade Warriors-Halloween Havoc 1990
- The Knockouts Gauntlet-One Night Only: Live! 2016
- AJ Styles vs Frank Trigg-No Surrender 2008
- Rick Rude vs Masahiro Chono-Halloween Havoc 1992
- Mike Awesome vs Vampiro-Halloween Havoc 2000
- Bray Wyatt vs John Cena-Extreme Rules 2014
- Brothers of Destruction vs KroniK-Unforgiven 2001
- The Miss WrestleMania Battle Royal-WrestleMania 25
- Mabel vs The Undertaker-King of the Ring 1995
- Wendi Richter vs The Fabulous Moolah-The Brawl to End it All
- David Flair vs Kimberly Page-Mayhem 1999
- The Truth Commission vs The Disciples of Apocolypse-Survivor Series 1997
- Daffney vs Miss Hancock-Bash at the Beach 2000
- The Bushwhacker vs The Fabulous Rougeaus-WrestleMania V
- Randy Orton vs "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt-WrestleMania 37 (Night 2)
- Lex Luger vs Sting-WWA The Retribution
- The Beverly Brothers vs The Bushwhackers-Royal Rumble 1992
- Savio Vega vs Rocky Maivia-WWF Monday Night Raw (4/14/1997)
- Teddy Long vs Eric Bischoff-Survivor Series 2005
- Mike Sanders vs Ernest Miller-Halloween Havoc 2000
- Savio Vega vs Rocky Maivia-WWF Shotgun Saturday Night (1/25/1997)
- Greg Valentine vs George Steele-Heroes of Wrestling
- Abdullah the Butcher vs One Man Gang-Heroes of Wrestling
- Major Gunns vs Miss Hancock-New Blood Rising
- Vince Russo vs Booker T-WCW Monday Nitro (9/25/2000)
- Bradshaw & Trish Stratus vs Christopher Nowinski & Jackie Gayda-WWE Monday Night RAW (7/8/2002)
- The Countdown to Armageddon Match-WCW Thunder (10/18/2000)
- Triple H vs Scott Steiner-Royal Rumble 2003
- Goldberg vs "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt-Super ShowDown 2020
- Mr. McMahon vs Pat McAfee-WrestleMania 38 (Night 2)
- Santina Marella vs Vickie & Chavo Guerrero-Extreme Rules 2009
- Kevin Nash vs Scott Steiner vs Goldberg-New Blood Rising
- Brock Lesnar vs The Undertaker-WrestleMania XXX
- Hollywood Hogan vs The Warrior-Halloween Havoc 1998
- Mr. T vs Roddy Piper-WrestleMania 2
- The Royal Family vs Clowns R' Us-Survivor Series 1994
- The House of Horrors Match-Payback 2017
- The Blacktop Bully vs Dustin Rhodes-Uncensored 1995
- Team Dos Caras vs Team El Canek-Leyendas Mexicanas 2017
- Pat Patterson vs Gerald Brisco-King of the Ring 2000
- The Wyatt Swamp Fight-The Horror Show at Extreme Rules
- The Four Doinks vs Team Bigelow-Survivor Series 1993
- Sting vs Jeff Hardy-Victory Road 2011
- Bret Hart vs Mr. McMahon-WrestleMania XVI
- WarGames 2000: Russo's Revenge-WCW Monday Nitro (9/4/2000)
- Oz vs Tim Parker-SuperBrawl
- Brock Lesnar vs Braun Strowman-Crown Jewel 2018
- Brock Lesnar vs Ricochet-Super ShowDown 2020
- Toru Yano vs KENTA-G1 Climax 2021 (Day 1)
- Konnan & Tygress vs Shane Douglas & Torrie Wilson-Halloween Havoc 2000
- The Fabulous Moolah vs Ivory-No Mercy 1999
- New Jack vs Vic Grimes-Living Dangerously 2000
- The Mighty Maccabee vs The Iron Sheik-Maccabiah Mania II: Shekel Slam
- Van Hammer vs Doug Somers-Halloween Havoc 1991
- Eddy Steinblock vs One Warrior Nation-DWA Wrestling Legends Tour 2010 (Day 2)
- Ultimate Warrior vs Andre the Giant-Saturday Night's Main Event (11/25/1989)
- Jeff Jarrett vs Sting-Halloween Havoc 2000
- The Doomsday Cage Match-Uncensored 1996
- "Donald Trump" vs "Rosie O'Donnell"-WWE Monday Night RAW (1/8/2007)
- Kane vs The Undertaker-Judgement Day 1998
- Toru Yano vs Jado-New Japan Cup 2020 (Day 1)
- Rebel vs Shelly Martinez-One Night Only: Knockouts Knockdown
- Sable vs Torrie Wilson-The Great American Bash 2004
- The Evening Gown Pool Match-Armageddon 1999
- Kaitlyn vs Maxine-NXT (10/19/2010)
- Sabu vs The Sandman-November to Remember 1997
- The 1996 World War 3 Match
- Seth Rollins vs "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt-Hell in a Cell 2019
- Michael Cole vs Jerry Lawler-WrestleMania XXVII
- The Bushwhackers vs Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff-Heroes of Wrestling
- James Storm vs Chris Harris-Lockdown 2007
- John Laurinaitis vs John Cena-Over the Limit 2012
- Hulk Hogan vs The Giant-Halloween Havoc 1995
- The Shark Cage Match-Big Time Wrestling (1976)
- Ultimate Warrior vs Goldust-In Your House 7
- Los Villanos vs Los Psycho Circus-Triplemania XXIII
- Jenna Morasca vs Sharmell-Victory Road 2009
- The Lingerie Street Fight Battle Royal-AWA SuperClash III
- Akira Maeda vs Andre the Giant-NJPW Big Fighter Series 1986 (Day 15)
- The 1995 World War 3 Match
- New Jack vs Vic Grimes-XPW Freefall
Thanks for reading! Be sure to share if you enjoyed and leave any suggestions for matches you'd like to see covered on the Worst in the World in the comments. In two weeks, I'll be doing a multi-match post and taking a look at a feud from 2018 where WWE seriously damaged the stock of one the best women's wrestlers in the company. Stay tuned.
I got a few match requests from Wrestlemania 29
ReplyDeleteMark Henry vs Ryback
Alberto Del Rio vs Jack Swagger
John Cena vs The Rock
I'll add them to the list. WrestleMania 29 was actually the first Mania I ever bought so it has a special place in my heart, but I can still admit it's pretty bad. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteYeah Wrestlemania 29 felt like a long episode of Raw or Smackdown since none of the other matches screamed Wrestlemania (though Undertaker/CM Punk rocked)
DeleteHeres a match request where WWE tried to make Big Show the leader of the Yes! Movement and it led to one of the worst WWE Title matches ever!
ReplyDeleteRandy Orton vs Big Show Survivor Series 2013
That one's pretty long overdue since I actually said that was worse than the Total Divas/True Divas match from same show when I covered that match. I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a match from Wrestlemania 7
ReplyDeleteThe Mountie vs Tito Santana
That's gonna get covered as part of a WrestleMania 7 multi-match post. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a dream match that became a disappointing squash.
ReplyDeleteUndertaker vs John Cena Wrestlemania 34
I'll add it to the list. That match really annoyed when it first happened, mainly because it made that ending of WrestleMania 33 meaningless. All for a squash match. Thanks for the suggeston!
DeleteYeah it really did an emotional moment was ruined by a silly little squash match and the it didn't help Undertaker was having terrible matches afterwards a couple of which you covered. Thank god for that Undertaker was able to get one final classic at Wrestlemania 36 so he could ride off into the night for good and enjoy a well deserved retirement.
DeleteHere's a request from Raw
ReplyDeleteCharlotte Flair vs Lacey Evans Raw June 3rd 2019
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHere's a match that came from Cody Rhodes' worst feud in AEW
ReplyDeleteCody Rhodes vs Anthony Ogogo Double or Nothing 2021
I'll add it to the list. That whole feud was really where things started to go south for Cody in AEW. It also didn't help that Ogogo was so inexperienced in that match. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteYeah even Cody regretted doing this program.
DeleteHope you like political satire matches lol
ReplyDelete"Barack Obama" vs "Hillary Clinton" Raw 5/21/08
I had actually considered doing that as a special post for the midterms, but obviously I didn't end up doing it. Now that it's been recommended, it's definetly getting covered. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a last man standing match that indeed in dissapointment during a great blood feud between two legends
ReplyDeleteEdge vs Randy Orton Wrestlemania 36
Ended I mean
DeleteThat match really made the Edge comeback look like a disaster right off the bat. Thankfully he hasn't a match nearly as bad as that one since. I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteYeah and then you had that likely unintentional spot where they accidentaly referenced how Chris Benoit killed himself which was a big ol yikes.
DeleteHere's in my opinion the worst AEW match I've seen filled to the brim with overbooking, numerous interferences, a nonsensical heel turn and an ending so half assed that it would of fit right in during the final years of Vince McMahons stronghold over WWE!
ReplyDeleteChris Jericho vs Eddie Kingston Barbedwire Everywhere Match (Fyter Fest Week 2)
I'll add it to the list. That was another match that was a huge disappointment. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteYou're welcome! It was such a terrible ending to the Jericho/Kingston rivalry and just extended the feud between JAS/BCC that has dragged on forever even before Uncle Howdy reared his head. While they had great matches it was just time to move on to something else.
DeleteHeres a match request from the NWA promotion
ReplyDeleteTyrus vs Trevor Murdoch vs Matt Cardona NWA Hard Times
I'll add it to the list. Things were looking up for the NWA when Billy Corgan took over, but man has it fallen off lately. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteWell when your world champion is a guy whoss best known as the funkasaurus, who wasn't even good in his younger years and at this stage of his career is 50 years old, slow to the point he makes Omos look like Shawn Michaels and does not have the charisma and wrestling abilities that past NWA champions like Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes Harley Race, Cody Rhodes hell even Matt Cardona have then you need to reevaluate your booking choices.
DeleteHere are a couple of terrible Raw/Smackdown main events!
ReplyDeleteHardcore Holly vs Big Show Smackdown Jan 8th 2004
John Cena vs David Otunga/John Laurinaitis Raw June 18 2012
I'll add them to the list. Thanks for the suggestions!
DeleteHere's a match where the fate of TNA rested on two legends!
ReplyDeleteSting vs Hulk Hogan Bound for Glory 2011
I'll add it to the list. Only fitting I look at a Joker Sting match in the future after a briefly mentioned it here. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteWhen I read through your posts about certain matches, I can tell when some are blatantly terrible matches and when others are just matches with a bad spot/gimmick/moment. This match/post gave me the same feeling as the Hernandez-Morgan match from Victory Road 2011, where the match is okay/meh but the gimmick and execution of it all makes it worse.
ReplyDeleteSide question: for the Electrified Steel Cage Match from Lockdown that one year, wasn't that the event where they didn't have the actual steel cage and had to use string/rope to simulate the cage?
It's not the normal cage they'd use, but I think it's still some kind of thin steel wire. I think it's the same material CZW would use for the Cage of Death. I don't think they ever use that style of cage again and I'm not sure why they made the change for this show.
DeleteYou know I'm thinking Bray Wyatt should of been sent to Raw so that way they could of used the time to explain the whole Uncle Howdy story, gave the Alexa Bliss subplot a speed up and Raw would of had a top star/top storyline while Bray wouldn't have to be overshadowed by the much better Bloodline storyline since it dominates Smackdown programing.
ReplyDeleteHeres a request that has a wrestler I'm surprised that has had no match of his been covered before.
Triple H vs Eugene Summerslam 2004
That might've helped. I haven't been the biggest fan of the Uncle Howdy stuff, but having go up against the Bloodline probably isn't helping.
DeleteAnd yes, I'll cover Triple H vs Eugene. Thanks for the suggestion!
I got a match request from Clash of the Champions XIII: Thanksgiving Thunder.
ReplyDeleteColonel DeKierk/Sergeant Krueger vs King Kahlua/Botswana Beast
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteSo I had the thought of looking for the lowest rated Young Bucks match according to WON. It's no secret that Dave Meltzer LOVES the Young Bucks so I wondered if there was ever a match he rated poorly that featured them. Scouring profightdb and cagematch.net, I may have found it:
ReplyDeleteEric Young & Shark Boy vs. Max & Jeremy Buck TNA Destination X '11. It was given a pretty rough rating of 1.5 stars from Dave
It's most likely nowhere as bad as most of the stuff already added here, but it could be interesting to see
That's one someone's already recommended, but thank you for the suggestion!
DeleteHas the straitjacket on a pole match ever been suggested? Tank Abbott threatening to kill Big Al (who was that guy?) at the February 2000 WCW PPV?
ReplyDeleteI'll add it to the list. I honestly have no idea where Big Al came from. He doesn't have a Wikipedia page or a Cagematch profile, and the Internet Wrestling Database lists that match as his only one ever. It had a name listed for him and when I searched that a college football coach that looks like him came up, which honestly just raises further questions. My best guess is that he's one of Tank Abbott's friends, but that doesn't explain how he ended up wrestling on a pay-per-view.
DeleteThanks for the suggestion!
Here's a match where egomania tried to ruin a future hall of famers career.
ReplyDeleteHulk Hogan vs Undertaker (Survivor Series 1991)
I'll add it to the list. Hogan acting like he got hurt in that match always makes me laugh just because of how extra safe the Tombstone he took was. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteThat was funny, even Shane McMahon knew Hogan was spewing crap lol. Hogan should atleast be thankful he wasn't Goldberg when he got tombstoned at Super Showdown.
DeleteHere's a couple of match requests from Survivor Series 1993.
ReplyDeleteHart Family vs HBKnights
Team Lex Luger vs Team Yokozuna
I'll add them to the list. Between those two and Four Doinks match, Survivor Series '93 was a nightmare of a show. Thanks for the suggestions!
DeleteIt truly was from the card having to be changed, Jerry Lawler being involved in legal troubles which led to the first request, and the godawful clowns match you truly have one of if not the worst Survivor Series show of all time.
DeleteHeres a future idea for a multi match post: Wrestlemania 32
ReplyDeleteUsos vs the Dudley Boyz
League of Nations vs The New Day
Brock Lesnar vs Dean Ambrose
Undertaker vs Shane McMahon
Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Roman Reigns vs Triple H
I'll add it to the list. WrestleMania 32 is among my least favorite WrestleManias so I'd love to do a deep dive into it. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHere's a match request which is the first ever casket/coffin match.
ReplyDeleteUndertaker vs Kamala (Survivor Series 1992)
That's gonna get covered as part of a multi-match post looking at some of the worst casket matches in WWE history. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a main event between two legends during a time period where WWE is focusing on it's younger stars.
ReplyDeleteRoddy Piper vs Jerry Lawler (King of the Ring 1994)
I'll add it to the list. Cause nothing screamed "New Generation" like two guys in their 40s. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a match from the Oct 9th 1995 episode of Monday Nitro
ReplyDeleteBig Bubba vs Road Warrior Hawk
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHere's another bad match in the storied rivalry between Hogan/Savage.
ReplyDeleteHulk Hogan vs Randy Savage (Halloween Havoc 1996)
I'll add it to the list. Maybe it was their real life heat becoming too much or Hogan's politicking, but it seems like Hogan & Savage just couldn't have good matches outside of WrestleMania 5. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHonestly it could be both but honestly there WCW matches are more wretched because of Hogan's iron grip on WCW
DeleteWCW Uncensored was traditionally their worst PPV in their history but while I never watched this particular show, the last version (2000) received horrible reviews from Cagematch. Along with the Yappapi Strap Match, FIVE matches received ratings below the 2.1 mark!
ReplyDeleteBrian Knobbs vs 3-Count (Hardcore Title Gauntlet Match)
Dustin Rhodes vs Terry Funk (Bullrope I Quit Match)
Sting vs Lex Luger (Lumberjack Cast Match)
Sid Vicious vs Jeff Jarrett
Hulk Hogan vs Ric Flair (Strap Match)
Other matches weren’t well received either. That’s another card you could do an entire feature on! What do you think?
I'll add an Uncensored 2000 centered post to the list. I already had a plan to cover the Yappapi Strap match as part of another multi-match post (along with two other bad strap matches WCW booked at Uncensored over the years.) but I'll definitely take a look at the other matches (and then some) in their own post. Thanks for the suggestions!
DeleteHeres a Raw main event where it's just to show Vinces love for the LA Lakers.
ReplyDeleteTeam Lakers vs Team Nuggets (Raw May 25 2009)
I'll add it to the list. That match always makes me laugh because it was just so petty on Vince's part. Not to mention him picking a fight with a famously reclusive sports team owner like Stan Kroenke. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a Survivor Series elimination match from 1997
DeleteNew Age Outlaws/The Godwinns vs The Headbangers/The New Blackjacks
Yeah man when nothing goes his way or if he wants to entertain himself Vince will always throw his dirty laundry on his shows which the crowd has to suffer from ( an example being the Trump/O' Donnel match)
DeleteSince you've already covered Undertaker/Kane's match at Judgement Day 1998 here's the match that started that mess.
ReplyDeleteStone Cold vs Undertaker vs Kane (Breakdown 1998)
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres an Survivor Series elimination match where it's a bunch of midcarders vs one of the worst Survivor Series Teams ever made.
ReplyDeleteVal Venis/Mark Henry/Steve Blackman/Gangrel vs British Bulldog and The Mean Street Posse (Survivor Series 1999)
I feel bad for Davey Boy who went from competing for the WWE title to now tagging with the Mean Street Posse.
I'll add it to the list. Given his injuries (this match was around a year after the Fall Brawl match that caused him to get a spinal infection that nearly paralyzed him) Bulldog probably shouldn't have been in the ring regardless, but seeing him go from a world title contender to a random guy in a tag is sad. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a couple of matches from Starrcade 2000
ReplyDeleteGeneral Rection vs Shane Douglas
Sid Vicious vs Scott Steiner
I'll add them to the list. Thanks for the suggestions!
DeleteHeres a match from WCW World War 3 1997
ReplyDeleteAlex Wright vs Steve McMichael
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHere's a match on Raw during the Invasion storyline where it was so bad it got one of the participants fired and literally thrown out of the building.
ReplyDeleteBooker T vs Buff Bagwell (Raw July 2nd 2001)
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a few matches from Wrestlemania X-8
ReplyDeleteEdge vs Booker T
Jazz vs Lita vs Trish Stratus
Maven vs Goldust
I'll add them to the list. Honestly, if there was ever a feud that deserved to have one of it's matches covered, it was the one over a shampoo commercial. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteYeah man, of all the things to have two guys feud over the writers chose a japanese shampoo commercial I wonder what they were smoking to come up with that idea. It also wasn't a great way to have Edge's first singles match at Wrestlemania and not a great way to book Booker T for his first Wrestlemania.
DeleteHeres a sequel to the worst match of Royal Rumble 2003.
ReplyDeleteTriple H vs Scott Steiner (No Way Out 2003)
That's one I've been meaning to look at. Now that it's been requested, it's definitely going on the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a match from Royal Rumble 2004.
ReplyDeleteBatista/Ric Flair vs The Dudley Boyz
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres what happens when you make a match between two mediocre wrestlers.
ReplyDeleteOrlando Jordan vs Heidenreich Judgement Day
I'll add it to the list. Kind of surprised it's taken this long for a Heidenreich match to get requested. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteYeah I'm surprised nobody has requested a match of his because he has a ton of stinkers anyone can choose from.
DeleteHeres another divas stinker.
ReplyDeleteThe Bra and Panties Gauntlet (New Years Revolution 2006)
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteThis is how not to do David vs Goliath matches.
ReplyDeleteGreat Khali vs Hornswoggle (Survivor Series 2007)
I'll add it to the list. Plus it'll be fun to look back on the Vince's illegitimate son angle. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a bad womens elimination match.
ReplyDeleteTeam Phoenix vs Team McCool (Survivor Series 2008)
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a Smackdown match which involved a tranquilizer gun.
ReplyDeleteEddie Guerrero/Big Show vs Kurt Angle/Luthor Reigns Smackdown Sept 23 2004
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHere's one of the many matches involving John Cena/Randy Orton!
ReplyDeleteJohn Cena vs Randy Orton Hell in a Cell 2010
2009 I mean whoops
DeleteI'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteWell it's about time The Corre got a match covered here.
ReplyDeleteThe Corre vs Big Show/Kane/Kofi Kingston/Santino Marella Wrestlemania 27
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteHeres a match from the awful Rise Above Hate storyline!
ReplyDeleteJohn Cena vs Kane Royal Rumble 2012
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteThis is the match that pretty much was leading to the extinction of the funkasaurus.
ReplyDeleteBrodus Clay vs R Truth (TLC 2013)
I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteWell now that the Bellas have left WWE heres a match that kickstarted Nikki Bella's divas title reign and at the expense of one of WWE's best womens wrestlers at the time.
ReplyDeleteNikki Bella vs AJ Lee Survivor Series
I'll add it to the list. That match was really the start of the Bellas' confusing booking (Brie siding with Nikki after months of feuding for really no reason, and then they would just flip between face & heel before the Divas Revolution.) Thanks for the suggestion!
DeleteThey never do ridiculous things in other sports. They only do that in pro wrestling.
ReplyDelete