20/20 hindsight is typical in wrestling. It’s too easy to look back at WWE's special events and say a different match should have headlined it. However, it seemed to make sense for a long time that WWE World Title matches should be the finisher to a card and one makes allowances for big stars (say, Hulk Hogan) closing a show. Sure, the bout may be bad, but it still worked in plans as the main event.
RELATED: 10 Times The Wrong Person Won The Royal Rumble (& Who Should've Won)
Sometimes, the main event can be a baffling choice even for its time. The scenario can be worse if the match is awful and an undercard bout was so much better. It makes fans wonder why WWE would have wasted the main event this way when the better alternative was clear from the start. There are 10 WWE matches that really should have been the main events of their shows. Sometimes even Vince McMahon himself has trouble figuring out which works best as a proper PPV finisher.
10 Rob Van Dam vs Edge, Vengeance 2006
The entire DX/McMahon feud of 2006 was bad already before The Spirit Squad got involved. Wasting a PPV main event on this was idiotic, even if it’s a case of Vince McMahon getting his way. The better choice was RVD defending the WWE Title against Edge, a classic clash of egos and styles.
It was a fantastic battle with RVD just narrowly winning. Given that Van Dam’s title reign would end on a harsh note, not having him headline as champion is even worse.
9 AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe, SuperShowdown 2018
The 2018 Super ShowDown card made for a fun show with an excellent cruiserweight battle. But the Undertaker/HHH main event had both men showing their age and were just awful to watch.
Related: WWE Network Era: The 10 Worst PPV Main Events
The superior choice would have been AJ Styles and Samoa Joe, as at long last, fans got to see the TNA rivalry revived in WWE. The pair had a thrilling 23-minute match ending with Styles winning by submission.
8 2006 Royal Rumble
The Royal Rumble should be the last match of the PPV. Having 2006 end with Kurt Angle defending the World Heavyweight Title against Mark Henry was done simply so The Undertaker could come out and destroy the ring with lightning.
The Rumble itself was terrific, with Rey Mysterio going the distance to win it all in an emotional battle. It’s a shame one of Rey’s greatest moments didn’t get the main event slot and prove the Rumble should cap off the show.
7 AJ Styles vs Shinsuke Nakamura, Backlash 2018
The main event of Backlash 2018 was an awful bout as Roman Reigns defeated Samoa Joe in a match with no real stakes. Maybe nothing could have saved the show, but the AJ Styles/Shinsuke Nakamura title match was a better choice.
Related: Backlash: 5 Greatest Matches (& 5 Worst)
The pair had a fine bout with plenty of back-and-forth action. The match ended in a draw, which was rough. However, despite this, Nakamura should have been battling Styles in the main event of Backlash.
6 JBL vs Eddie Guerrero, The Great American Bash 2004
The 2004 Great American Bash has one of the worst PPV main events ever: The Undertaker vs The Dudley Boyz, which ended with Paul Bearer buried in cement. This was a bizarre choice for a finish, especially as the card had a top-notch Eddie Guerrero/JBL Texas Bullrope match for the WWE Title.
It was a bloody affair that worked in selling JBL as a threat who ended up winning the title. This sure would have been a better finisher to end the show on much better terms with fans.
5 Hollywood Hulk Hogan vs The Rock, WrestleMania X8
At the time, putting HHH vs Chris Jericho for the WWE Title made a good Mania main event. Yet, the encounter between The Hulkster and The Great One was on an entirely different level. The Rock and Hulk Hogan was one of the greatest “dream matches” of all time. The stars of two different eras finally facing off was all over the promotional materials, so booking it as the main event should have been natural.
Related: 10 Best WWE Matches Robbed Of A Main Event Spot
Fans witnessed an amazing clash of titans and turned on the good guy, The Rock, in favor of the villain, Hollywood Hogan. This classic fight not being the main event of Mania was an odd choice.
4 CM Punk vs Daniel Bryan, Over The Limit 2012
A major 2012 PPV had the main event of John Cena vs….John Laurentis. That’s bad enough, but worse is the fact that the undercard had a real dream battle in CM Punk vs Daniel Bryan. The classic ROH rivalry was revived in a new setting with the pair tearing down the house in a fantastic war.
The battle was amazing, with Punk getting the victory, and had this been the main event, the crowd would have gone home happy rather than the lame finale they got.
3 Kofi Kingston vs Daniel Bryan, Wrestlemania 35
This may be a controversial choice. Yes, having a women’s match as the main event of WrestleMania was historic. But the Becky Lynch/Charlotte/Ronda Rousey battle turned into a letdown with a botched ending. Much better was the stunning WWE Title match of Kofi Kingston and Daniel Bryan, a serious Match of the Year candidate with terrific action and drama.
Related: 10 Times Great Matches Had Terrible Finishes
Kofi’s victory for the title was a beautiful moment for his career, and the crowd went wild. Having this as the closer of the show would have been a better call than a lackluster attempt at highlighting the Women's Revolution.
2 Bret Hart vs Owen Hart, Summerslam ‘94
SummerSlam ‘94 had one of the worst main events in the show’s history as The Undertaker battled an imposter in an awful fight. That choice was worse given the card could have had the perfect main event of Bret vs Owen Hart in a cage match.
The two brothers did their best to top their WrestleMania battle in a fine match filled with terrific chemistry and psychology as well as top-level action. This being the main event would have been so much better on multiple levels.
1 Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels WrestleMania XXV
Usually, the WWE Title should be the main event of Mania. However, an exception should have been made for the legendary battle between Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels. The match was an absolute masterpiece, with the two men tearing it up like never before in a stunning contest.
Even HHH and Randy Orton knew their title match was going to be lacking, considering the bland stipulation of the contest and the awesome performance of Michaels and The Deadman earlier in the night. WWE avoided making the same mistake two years in a row by having the 'Taker/HBK rematch be the main event of WrestleMania 26.
