WWE: Ranking Every Pay-Per-View In 2018 From Worst To First
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Many fans will give differing opinions on how successful 2018 was in the WWE, but one thing the WWE succeeded in over the course of the past 12 months was its pay-per-view lineup.
The WWE had a stellar output of pay-per-views in 2018, starting with the Royal Rumble in January all the way through TLC in December, and there were many shows throughout the course of the year that could be considered pay-per-view of the year candidates.
History was even made on WWE pay-per-view in 2018, adding to the successful overall year despite a couple of more lackluster shows. Let’s take a look at every WWE main roster pay-per-view in 2018 ranked from worst to best.
12. Extreme Rules
It’s dubbed as the one night of the year the WWE goes extreme and it’s been a staple of WWE pay-per-view since its inception in 2009. Extreme Rules is typically one of the best pay-per-view offerings the WWE puts out on a yearly basis, but in 2018, that wasn’t the case.
Extreme Rules 2018 just never had that big show feel from the start, and despite a few glimpses of success, this year’s show never clicked on all cylinders. The first big blow regarding this show was the horrendous match between Carmella and Asuka for the SmackDown Women’s Championship in which, even in a shark cage hanging above the ring, James Ellsworth still managed to help Carmella defeat Asuka in a flat out degrading way that hurt Asuka’s character.
Then there was Shinsuke Nakamura’s United States Championship win over Jeff Hardy in which he hit Hardy with a low blow before the bell rang, only to pin him six seconds after the bell rang. The steel cage match between Braun Strowman and Kevin Owens was entertaining enough with a big spot at the end, but even it was pretty quirky. The SmackDown Tag Team Championship match between The Bludgeon Brothers and Team Hell No was weird as well.
A pre-match attack doomed Team Hell No in a match in which Daniel Bryan and Kane never really had a chance. Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax fell flat as well, but AJ Styles vs. Rusev for the WWE Championship and Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley both hit the mark. And even though it wasn’t as great as most thought it would be, Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler for the Intercontinental Championship in a 30-minute Iron Man Match was a solid main event.
There were positives to take away from this show, but ultimately, Extreme Rules was probably the weakest pay-per-view offering from the WWE in 2018.