Worst PPV Matches In The Triple H Era That Fans Hated


On the whole, WWE’s PPVs/PLEs have improved ever since Triple H took over creative control of WWE in 2022, with shorter match cards meaning matches get more time, focus, and storytelling. However, not every match has always delivered, and at times these shows have featured some absolute stinkers.

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We will take a look at some of the matchups on PPV that fans absolutely hated. Whether it be through poor in-ring work, terrible booking on Triple H’s part, or a complete misfire on match structure, the following bouts are among the worst during Triple H’s tenure as Chief Content Officer of WWE.

10

LA Knight Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Survivor Series: War Games 2024

LA Knight vs Shinsuke Nakamura (WWE Survivor Series 2024)

  • The US Title was on the line
  • Nakamura’s new gimmick wasn’t great
  • Fans were shocked by the result, in a bad way

This was one of the slowest and most boring matches under Triple H’s watch. Shinsuke Nakamura’s new heel character was inspiring no one, with his offense lethargic and bland. LA Knight was unable to get the crowd invested either due to the pacing, leading to a very boring United States Championship match.

Nakamura ended up winning the match cleanly, which came as a shock to pretty much everyone considering Knight’s popularity. This led to one of the worst title reigns in recent memory, making fans hate this match hindsight so much more.

9

Nia Jax Vs. Liv Morgan

Crown Jewel 2024

Nia Jax vs. Liv Morgan (WWE Crown Jewel 2024)

  • This was a champion vs. champion match
  • Morgan became the Crown Jewel Champion
  • The match was very sloppy

Fans were pretty indifferent about the whole ‘Crown Jewel Champion’ concept anyway, but to then put forth a pretty bad match on top of that, then the entire concept felt like a complete waste of time.

Nia Jax and Liv Morgan had very little chemistry and didn’t show much quality despite being the WWE Women’s Champion and Women’s World Champion respectively. They could have done a lot better but simply didn’t gel, and the overbooking on the outside was a big distraction and only served to weaken the match more. At the very least, Morgan’s win was a nice moment as she showed some very authentic emotion.

8

Austin Theory Vs. John Cena

WrestleMania 39 Saturday

John Cena wrestling Austin Theory at WrestleMania

  • The US Title was on the line
  • Cena didn’t put in much effort for the match
  • Theory gained nothing in victory

WrestleMania 39 opened up with Austin Theory defending his US Title against John Cena in what was, on paper, supposed to be a star-making moment for the young name. Cena wrestled this like a house show match, hardly taking a bump and seemingly not putting in much effort.

The match saw Cena get visible victories over Theory, only to be thwarted by shenanigans, up until Theory cheated to win, looking incredibly weak and gaining nothing in his victory. Fans were not impressed with this match in the slightest.

7

Liv Morgan Vs. Rhea Ripley

Bad Blood 2024

  • Dominik Mysterio was trapped in a shark cage
  • The action was disjointed and messy
  • Raquel Rodriguez’s return was botched

The Liv Morgan vs. Rhea Ripley feud dragged on a lot and had several unsatisfying moments, one of which was this match at Bad Blood 2024. The focus was mostly on Dominik Mysterio suspended in a shark cage, distracting from the match itself. It must be said that Morgan and Ripley were not on top form, having a pretty underwhelming matchup.

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To make matters worse, the finish saw the return of Raquel Rodriguez, but some missed timing by either the referee or Rodriguez led to a very awkward final stretch that made this match even worse.

6

Roman Reigns Vs. Jey Uso

SummerSlam 2023

Roman Reigns v Jey Uso SummerSlam 2023 Cropped

  • Tribal Combat made no sense
  • This match dragged on for too long
  • The crowd gradually lost interest in the main event

Fans were looking forward to Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso after their pair of strong matches in 2020, but in an attempt to recreate a dramatic story, this match was instead a long, plodding, boring main event that was supposed to be methodical, but actually ended up being a slog.

The promise of no interference was thrown out the window too as both Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso made their presence known to cost Jey the match in a questionable and baffling booking call from Triple H.

5

Bianca Belair Vs. Alexa Bliss

Royal Rumble 2023

Bianca Belair vs. Alexa Bliss Royal Rumble 2023

  • The action in this match was very slow
  • Uncle Howdy made his presence known
  • There was zero follow up to this storyline

The RAW Women’s Championship was on the line at the Royal Rumble 2023 event in a very poor showing from Bianca Belair and Alexa Bliss. Their technical work had no energy to it, with the match never getting into a second gear before it then ended.

The focus on Bliss’ darker side and the presence of Uncle Howdy post-match failed to make up for the poor chemistry the two competitors had. This was one of the weaker wins of Belair’s lengthy run with the gold.

4

Shayna Baszler Vs. Ronda Rousey

SummerSlam 2023

Ronda Rousey vs Shayna Baszler WWE SummerSlam 2023

  • This was contested under MMA Rules
  • Rousey’s final WWE match to date
  • The audience were silent for the whole thing

After a pretty nothing build, Shayna Baszler and Ronda Rousey finally got a chance to showcase their skills in an MMA Rules match at SummerSlam 2023… only to completely lose the audience and compete in one of the quietest matches in recent memory.

The heat was non-existent, and although their technical work wasn’t too bad, they did nothing to wow the audience or to make anyone care. Many hated this one, and it was the worst way for Rousey to say goodbye to the WWE.

3

Bray Wyatt Vs. LA Knight

Royal Rumble 2023

Bray Wyatt v LA Knight Royal Rumble 2023 Cropped

  • This match had a Mountain Dew sponsor
  • It was contested under ‘Lights Out’
  • The match was hard to watch and was booked weirdly

Bray Wyatt’s return match came against LA Knight in a Mountain Dew Pitch Black match, which was a sponsored take on the ‘Lights Out’ concept, literally turning the lights off and wrestling with glow in the dark apparatus and gear.

It was a complete eyesore and hard to watch, despite the best efforts of Wyatt and Knight to try and make it work. The whole thing was a disaster, especially when Wyatt aligned with Uncle Howdy after his win, completely throwing out the window the entire build in their story up to that point.

2

Ronda Rousey Vs. Shotzi

Survivor Series: War Games 2022

Shotzi v Ronda Rousey Survivor Series 2022 Cropped

  • Rousey’s SmackDown Women’s Title reign was going poorly
  • This match featured some botches
  • Their chemistry was not at a good enough level for a PPV match

Ronda Rousey had poor match after poor match in her second run with WWE, and one of her worst came at Survivor Series in her successful title defense against Shotzi. The two just didn’t click on this night, with botched moves, awkward sequences, and a crowd who got less and less interested as it went on.

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This was a case of one mistake leading to another, and it ended up being an off night for both women, but at the same time a match that many fans disliked.

1

Jimmy Uso Vs. Jey Uso

WrestleMania 40 Saturday

Jimmy Uso superkicks Jey Uso at WrestleMania

  • The Usos had one of the worst matches of the year
  • Fans were not invested in the action of the bout
  • WWE didn’t give them enough time to tell a strong story

The lackluster match between Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso will forever go down as one of the worst matches in WrestleMania history, mostly due to how much it fell below expectations.

A cold audience, repetitive moves, forced drama, and a rushed structure led to this failing miserably. Jey Uso’s win should’ve been a big moment, but instead it exists as a moment that fans hated from the Triple H era of PPVs.



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