Top 10 Wrestling Pay Per Views of 2005

2005 is where every promotion in North America finally step up their game. 2004 is one of the most regrettable years for the WWE which gave newer, more promising promotions a chance. 2005 is where WWE fixed their mistakes, TNA grew into the undisputed number 2 promotion in all of wrestling, and Ring of Honor finally took more risks to make their calendar year more interesting. For the WWE, everything you’ve known about the Ruthless Agression era and modern wrestling finally had it’s kick start here. Vince finally found his top stars with John Cena and Dave Batista and finally (and mercifully) end Triple H’s reign of terror. This would be the last time were WWE were putting new act over in a consistant basis as Vince never again push many of his rosters to stardom quite like this. Though Smackdown still is a weaker half of the Brand extension, I can easily say that Raw was far more enjoyable now. What’s also interesting is that WWE offer us an ECW reunion show. After years of hearing ECW chants in WWE shows and a successful DVD sale with Rise & Fall of ECW, releasing One Night Stand was a no brainer. TNA wrestling became absolutely hot in time where monthly Pay Per Views were consistant, Jarrett’s reign of terror had more constrains, the X Division was becoming more of an attraction, and wrestling fans found a home outside of the WWE. TNA’s consistant calendar year was complete where they finally made their first signature event with Bound For Glory (could have picked a better name) and forever gave the company an identity where all wrestling fans understood what is there to be expected. Meanwhile ROH was was the year in the company’s history by having the great roster and finally producing fantastic shows instead of randomizing the bouts. I feel so bad for what was happening in Japan considering that NOAH was one cruise control and New-Japan kept sucking as they continue Inoki’s worked-MMA matches. For North American wrestling fans, WWE, TNA, and ROH were among the best times of being a wrestling fan. As one of the best years in wrestling, what was the best night to be a wrestling fan? 

The Year 2005 Wrestling Rewards

• Wrestler of 2005: AJ Styles 
• Underrated Wrestler of 2005: Paul London
• Feud of 2005: Edge & Lita vs. Matt Hardy
• Wrestling Match of 2005: AJ Styles vs Christopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe – TNA Unbreakable
• Wrestling Promotion of 2005: TNA Wrestling

 

Number 10. – TNA No Surrender

I cannot blame you if you see No Surrender 2005 as one of the weaker TNA pay per views of 2005. The real issue is that many of the undercard just had too many random matches. Still as one of the weaker shows for TNA in 2005, it’s still miles better than many of WWE and ROH’s shows of the same year. Part of my appreciation for No Surrender is that this is Raven’s first NWA World Heavyweight Championship title defense. The best part of all is that there was no Jeff Jarrett in sight. Instead, we had “The Monster” Abyss taking on Raven for the World belt in a Dog Collar match and I loved every minute of this ECW-style match. The rest of the card was… just there where I had no interest of AJ Styles having a match with Sean Waltman as revenge for losing the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, Christopher Daniels defending the X Division championship agaisnt  Petey Williams should have been better, Samoa Joe squashed another X Division star with Chris Sabin, 3Live Kru’s issues with Monty Brown and Billy Gun in a tag match against each other, nor do care about the meaningless 2005 TNA Super X Cup Tournament that still is continuing since the TNA Asylum-years. More or less, this was a middle of the road show and No Surrender did it’s job in making another watchable Pay Per View as the calendar year kept moving. 

 

Number 9. – Bound For Glory

Ah, yes. All of that hard work that TNA had built just to make their own Wrestlemania. Honestly, the first Bound For Glory is a mess with over-booking and the strangest decision making that I’ve ever seen from any promotion. But it’s that guilty pleasure type of show that I can’t help but love. Everything about Bound For Glory in the 2/3 of the show was spectacular. It just got absolutely messy and entirely rushed having Rhino win the Ten-Man Gauntlet match to replace Kevin Nash in the main event to face Jeff Jarrett at the end. I’m proud that the promising ECW star and the last ECW World Heavyweight Champion finally got his big break by winning the brutal Monster’s Ball match against Sabu, Abyss, and Jeff Hardy, then eliminating Abyss, and just beat Jeff Jarret for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in about 5 minutes. A big part of me wishes it was Raven that won the battle royal match and win back the NWA World Heavyweight Championship that was stolen from him in a forgettable houseshow, but having the last ever ECW champion to beat Jeff Jarrett was a better decision than keeping Nash in the main event and win the World belt. Can you imagine how much of a disaster it would have been if Nash became the face of the TNA? Because the finish of the first ever Bound For Glory was so rushed, it almost ruined the show. Thankfully the rest of the card was TNA at its finest. You can honestly pick a match of the night whether if it’s AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels in a 30-minute Ironman Match for the X Division Championship, The Monster’s Ball Match, America’s Most wanted forever beating The Naturals for the NWA Tag belts, The fun Ultimate X match between Petey Williams vs. Chris Sabin vs. Matt Bentley, Monty Brown beating Lance Hoyt, or the opening dream match with Samoa Joe vs Jushin “Thunder” Liger. Can you see why I want to like Bound For Glory much more? This was a stacked and epic card and give Rhino the full-push without any build-up into a babyface felt so off and almost ruined the show. 

 

Number 8. – TNA Hard Justice

As much as I love to give shit to Jeff Jarret and his own reign of terror, the best thing I can say is that he’s always willing to put AJ Styles over. Having AJ Styles beat Jeff Jarrett again for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship one more time will always feel like an act of mercy on TNA’s part. That main event will always be one of the most satisfying title changes in the company’s history because they’ve done a very good job in making us hate Jeff Jarrett, and AJ was the right guy to do the honor and be the face of the company. While the main event was absolutely great, the rest of the card was a mixed-bag. Michael Shane and Trinity vs Chris Sabin and Traci was a decent intergender tag match, Raven vs. Sean Waltman in the Clockwork Orange House of Fun match was a great hardcore bouth, Scott D’Moore saving his Team Canada in the opening match will always bring laughter out of me. The rest of the show however were cons. Christopher Daniels had an unworthy opponent in defending his X Division Championship against Shocker. Honestly? Thy couldn’t get a better X-Division wrestling to compete against Daniels? The Naturals beating America’s Most Wanted for the NWA World Tag belts is always a bad decision, and the dissapointing tag match between Monty Brown and Billy Gunn vs. Ron Killings and Diamond Dallas Page was poorly handed. I’m not dissapointed that Billy Gunn ruined the awesome 3Live Kru tio team. I’m more upset that this is Diamond Dallas Page’s last ever TNA PPV appearance and never again will we see DDP have his glory days like in WCW. You could say that Hard Justice 2005 is a one match show, but damn it was a feel good moment to see Jeff Jarrett do the right thing for TNA. 

 

Number 7.  –  Wrestlemania 21

This is honestly one of my favorite Wrestlemanias of all time not because there were plenty of great matches offered here, but also this was a change of course for the WWE. Wrestlemania 21 was one of the most important Wrestlemania’s in WWE history. It saw the rise to success of Edge, Batista and John Cena (for better or for worse). Though two main events were average at best, the beginning and middle of the show was what I really want to see in a Wrestlemania! We had ourselves the best opening match since Wrestlemania X with Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero showing such great in-ring work. We also had our very first Money in the Bank Ladder Match with Edge winning victorious. Quite frankly, this still is the best Money in the Bank Ladder Match in the WWE! We should also remember that Undertaker faced off his youngest opponent Randy Orton and beat him & his father Bob Orton.  The match that certainly stole the show was the Angle-Michaels match that was perfectly performed (despite the fact that the announcer’s table didn’t break) that it became the best WWE match of 2005 (The AJ Style-Samoa Joe-Christopher Daniels match in TNA is the best match of 2005). Sure there was a lot of drawback like the Women’s match, the Sumo Match, and the average main events, but it was historic to have our first ever Money in the Bank Ladder Match, but the rest of the matches were definitely “Wrestlemania material.” Hell, even the segments of the show were just as good as the matches having Hulk Hogan return pose to the crowd like in the Hogan-era and a memorable Piper’s Pit with Stone Cold Steve Austin as the special guest! “WrestleMania Goes Hollywood” fit the part of a huge entertainment gala, as the show was preceded by entertaining parodies of classic films, starring the roster. Wrestlemania 21 was a spectacle that offered the highest of qualities that WWE is capable of.

 

Number 6. – TNA Destination X

The first Destination X was so damn fun to watch. On paper it feels like just another night for TNA, but watching Destination X in it’s entirety was absolutely jam-packed! Like Holy Crap was this show so action packed that it never started to get boring. Even Billy Gunn vs. Kevin Nash sounded like a really bad idea but it turned out to be a fun match. The opener with Team Canada vs the 3Live Kru and America’s Most Wanted was so much fun that always set the tone of fast-paced action. Dustin Rhode and Raven had a great combination in their Texas Bullrope Match. Monty Brown vs. Trytan was also nessessarily breif if they went to a no contest. And Jeff Hardy vs. Abyss in a Falls Cout Anywhere match as Attitude era as you can get. Yes Jeff Jarrett did spoil the night by burying Diamond Dallas Page but damn it, DDP main evented for the very last time and he was treated MUCH better than when he was in the WWE. Even though there was no way in hell that DDP was going to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship from Jeff Jarrett, I was more than satisfied to see DDP be the DDP that I remember from WCW in 1999. But the match of the night had to be the Ultimate X Challenge fof the X Division Championship between Christopher Daniels vs. AJ Styles vs. Ron Killing vs. Elix Skipper. It was an Ultimate X match but contenders had to be eliminated by pinfall, submission or DQ until two men remained and had to do a proper Ultimate X match. This was honestly not the best Ultimate X match because there was an elimination stipulation involved but having Christopher Daniels win his first reign as X Division champion and held it for several month really pushed “The Fallen Angel” into a top contender. Destination X was indeed a fun show to watch and is worth anyone’s time when going back to TNA’s time in 2005. 

 

Number 5. – TNA Final Resolution

For the longest time I wondered why TNA Final Resolution is regarded as one of TNA’s best pay per view events. There were a lot of standard matches that felt middle of the road. Then I remembered that his show pushed Monty Brown to the main event. Then I remembered the greatest Ultimate X match was held here. And AMW’s return to the NWA tag championship after defeating Triple X at Turning Point 2004 (the show prior) was a joyous moment. Even dispite Jeff Jarrett spoiled all the fun and buried the most charasmatic and talented big man in the company, this was Monty Brown’s crowning achievement by pulling double duty in beating Kevin Nash and Scott Hall and then facing Jeff Jarrett for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Though Brown lost, he lost strong and this was the very last time we would see Monty Brown propperly in the main event picture. It was also great that after ending Triple X at Turning Point 2004, AMW challenged the NWA World Tag Team Champions Team Canada’s Bobby Roode and Eric Young. That tag team match was intense considering how much AMW earn those Tag Team titles and Team Canada once was TNA’s hottest heels. The look of Scott D’Moore’s face when his team lost the belts will always get a huge laugh out of me. The best of match of the night is without question The Ultimate X match between AJ Styles vs. Petey Williams vs. Chris Sabin for the X Division Championship. This match absoultey kicked so much ass and it still remains one of, if not the best, Ultimate X match of all time. The amount of flips, high flying, stiff shots, hard landing, and in-ring psychology was masterfully executed. Wrestlers everywhere today are heavily influenced with this style, but rarely do you ever see it mixed with in-ring psychology like it is here. There are so many moments where I thought AJ Styles was dead because any other wrestler would botch that match and actually have a career threatening injury out of amount of the bumps he took that night. And how he won got that X Division belt from an arm injury is one of the most creative and victories that I’ve seen from any gimmick match. Final Resolution 2005 may not be as great of a show as most wrestling fans say it is but that Ultimate X match won it for me and ultimately elevated the show into greatness. 

 

Number 6.  –  TNA Unbreakable 2005

I think it’s unfair to say Unbreakable 2005 is a one-match show. I agree that the triple threat main event match between AJ Stylez, Christopher Daniels, and Samoa Joe still remains TNA’s greatest match, but consider how under-appreciated the rest of the card is. This was the show that did all it can to promote TNA’s first-ever Bound For Glory and despite how BFG 2005 was disappointing, the show before it is so much better. To see the 3Live Kru opening the match brings so many good feelings for me. The Roderick Strong vs Austin Aries match is a great follow up and an unappreciated match. If it went on a little bit longer it would have been better because these two have so much good chemistry together. An X Division match between Petey Williams and Chris Sabin is even better showing what they always do best together in the ring. I was also satisfied to see Bobby Roode burying Jeff Hardy in this match because Hardy’s inconsistent appearances showed him what’s up. Hell, even Sabu vs Abyss was one hell of a brawl. That reminiscent feeling of bringing ECW to TNA just puts a smile on my face when watching this match. Having Sabu blackhole slammed into the thumbtacks has always been a satisfying conclusion to a match like this. The only dud was Billy Gunn and Monty Brown vs. Apolo and Lance Hyot and pushing the Naturals into the tag team champions is a bit undeserved. But you have to consider that Raven’s title defense against Rhino was excellent. Neither one of these two ever faced in ECW and to have TNA put these two ECW veterans square off was almost a dream come true! And you don’t need to have me say anything about the main event match triple threat match for the X Division Championship. It still remains the best match of the 2000s and one of my personal favorites since then. Just watching that triple threat main event got better with age and upon each viewing I have more appreciation for that very match. This is the very reason why TNA’s X Division is truly an attraction and that match was a masterclass performance with no botches whatsoever. Give Unbreakable another chance and you’ll see why TNA once was the best alternative to WWE.

 

Number 3.  –  ROH Manhattan Mayhem I

Why can’t ROH ever again make a show to surpass the first Manhattan Mayhem, I may never know. Think about it! The biggest issue about Ring of Honor that kept them from growing as a company is that they’ve always placed everyone in their roster in one division and it does not work. Imagine if the opener is the bathroom, the mid-card is the kitchen, upper-card is the living room, and the main event is the bedroom. ROH decided to make their house into one single room and they never learn from this. However, in 2005, they got the whole thing right. Their first official Pay Per View was when they gave us a variety of gimmick matches. ROH’s Manhattan Mayhem is as special as ECW’s Barely Legal. ROH since then was always scared of being too far away from being “honorable” by trying to be Japanese wrestling in American soil. If only they decide to go all out in Manhattan Mayhem I, then they’ll get more people watching. Manhattan Mayhem I the greatest pay-per-view in Ring of Honor history. It was also one of the most important. Every match is good with several delivering some of the most iconic moments in ROH history. Nigel McGuiness vs. Colt Cabana was one of the biggest sleeper matches of the night where the two competitors had the best technical bout possible. Black Tiger vs. James Gibson is also a fantastic sleeper hit that looked okay-ish on paper but over-delivered. Jack Evans & Roderick Strong vs. BJ Whitmer & Jimmy Jacobs for the ROH Tag titles as as intense and that seriously out performed. Alex Shelly and Austin Aries had a fantastic ROH World Championship match together. The Pure Match championship between Samoa Joe and Jay Lethal was absolutely spectacular and one of the best purt matches in ROH’s history. Both Joe & Lethal pulled double duty from being opponents for the Pure title to wrestling together as a tag team in the main event against The Rottweilers (Homicide & Low Ki). Talk about a better match for Lethal as he took a nasty bump from Homicide’s Cop Killa finisher and was put through a stretcher out of the building. The match of the night had Jimmy Rave vs. CM Punk in a Dog Collar match and it was one of the most brutal matches in ROH History. Go out your way and check out CM Punk vs Jimmy Rave’s Dog Collar match. From Samoa Joe and Jay Lethal pull double duty, to the violent spectable of Jimmy Rave and CM Punk, this is one of the very few shows that have their weakest show to be 4 stars and everything else was above expectations.  More importantly, this was the event that opened the door for ROH to grow beyond just New York. The first Manhattan Mayhem is the best ROH show and it’s so frustrating that the promotion could never surpass this level of quality throughout their history.

 

Number 2. – TNA Lockdown

What I love most about TNA Lockdown 2005 was that it was held on my birthday and this was an original concept from TNA. Dusty Rhodes is one genious when it comes to booking shows and this was the best thing he came up with since inventing the Wargames match. An entire event where all the matches in the card are cage matches. How fucking cool is that? That mean more high flying action, more brutality, and more insanity. Because this show gave me such an impression is why I always look forward to Lockdown every year, even if I am not tuned into TNA wrestling. Sure plenty of matches don’t age well. This is the match were Chris Candino had a nasty leg injury that led to his blood cloth and cost him his life later on. It sucks that such an amazing talent as Candino had to pass away because of a injury that gotten worse. Thankfully, the rest of the show did a lot of creative and exciting things with the cage match stipulation. How about Dustin Rhodes vs. Bobby Roode in a Best 2-out-of-3 falls cage match oddly called Prince of Darkness match or the first ever Xscape match between Shocker vs. Chris Sabin vs. Matt Bently vs. Sonjay Dutt? Hell America’s most Wanted had an epic tag team bouth with Team Canada’s Eric Young and Petey Williams. Christopher Daiels had an epic feud with his former Triple X partner Elix Skipper for the X Division Championship. Sure the first ever Lethal Lockdown was a very weak Wargame knockoff. Once again Kevin Nash no-showed this event so I don’t even know why BG James, DDP and X-Pac still kept the name Team Nash when facing Team Jarrett’s Jeff Jarrett, Monty Brown, and Billy Gun. Honestly that was the weakest match of the card. Because I have two match of the of the night. Raven vs. Jeff Hardy in a Tables cage match was the best brutal beat down of the night as Jeff swanton bombs Raven through the piles of tables from the top fo the cage. But in actuality, the match of the night will always be the main event between Abyss vs. AJ Styles for the World Championship #1 contenders. This is one of AJ’s greatest matches where he and Abyss brawled outside of the ring and almost got himself killed from the sickest cage door slams I’ve ever seen. God, that looked so brutal and the fun doesn’t end there where Abyss got top-rope powerbombed from the top of the cage to the thumbtack and even got Styles-clashed in the same thumbtacks. Lockdown 2005’s main event will always have a special place in my heart for telling a great David and Golliath story and the brutality towards an epic finish will always create a satisfying impression out of me. Go out your way and see TNA Lockdown 2005 and have a hell of a fun time! This is a concept of a PPV that never get old and because this gave me a hell of a first impression is why TNA’s Lockdown is my Wrestlemania for the company (not Bound For Glory).

WATCH TNA LOCKDOWN 2005 RIGHT NOW!!

 

Number 1.  –  ECW One Night Stand 2005

There have been among great debate over One Night Stand ’06 was better or was ’05 better. When we look at both of the cards and which was the one show that was closer to ECW… no doubt One Night Stand 2005 was better. Yes, I have to admit that Rob Van Dam beating Cena for the WWE Championship was the most satisfying title change ever, but there were WWE stars that never wrestled in ECW that were booked in the show. For that, One Night Stand 2005 is a better show by a close call. It’s true that absence makes the heart grow fonder. Though little didn’t miss WCW after it’s demise, everyone else missed ECW. I consider it a miracle that Vince McMahon gave this reunion it’s own Pay Per View because this show was better than it had every right to be. In the show’s beginning with Joey Styles cutting a promo, it felt like nothing changed between the roaring fans and the overall feeling in the Bingo Hall. The first half of the show is all filled with high flying madness with Chris Jericho (as Lion Heart) vs Lance Storm (his last match and Dawn Marie’s last appearance in WWE broadcasting), Super Crazy vs. Little Guido vs. Tajiri, and Rey Mysterio vs Psychosis. What a way to start the show as we later get antagonized by WWE’s heels from both Smackdown and RAW. This was the best way to get the crowd stirred up and express utmost hatred, and I loved it. Hell, even if Rob Van Dam wasn’t booked due to injury, he cut the best promo of his career reminding everyone of his moments before the hardcore came in for Sabu vs Rhyno. Hell, even watching Misato Tanaka vs Mike Awesome NEVER gets old and it’s another exciting match added to the rival’s history. Hell, even the Tommy Dreamer/Sandman vs. Dudley Boys made is without a doubt the wildest finish ever! And the brawl between WWE’s heels vs the entire ECW was the best conclusion to a Pay Per View that you can get. The only match that I do not enjoy watching is Benoit Family Killer vs Guerrero. Not only were either one of them interested in wrestling in ECW’s reunion but it was uncomfortable to see both of them upset with each other and what happened to them years later. But since no one talks about that dissapointing match you shouldn’t allow that to overshadow rest of the show. There have been many ECW reunion shows from Hardcore Homecoming, TNA’s Hardcore Justice, ECW One Night Stand 2006, and even an ECW revival in 2006. Try as they might, but they had lightning in the bottle with the first One Night Stand and still remains watchable.