The ‘PG Era’ gets a lot of slack from many WWE fans, some reasons valid and some not. While many negatives have come since WWE’s decision to turn PG and focus on creating more family-friendly content, the action inside the ropes has remained stellar.
This era of WWE is loosely defined as July 22, 2008, the day the company changed from TV-14 to PG, until March 22, 2014, right before WrestleMania 30 and the WWE Network’s first live PPV. While these constraints are a bit foggy, following these rules led to around 15 candidates for this list.
Without a doubt, this era showcased some absolute classics of the industry, with a plethora of them being the last match of their respective shows.
10 Royal Rumble Match (Royal Rumble 2010)
The Royal Rumble match main evented five of the six Royal Rumble PPV events in this era, however, WWE’s biggest stipulation match went through a bit of a rough patch during this era. That said, 2010’s version was truly spectacular.
It featured an all-star lineup including John Cena, Triple H, Batista, Shawn Michaels, CM Punk, Chris Jericho and a returning Edge, among others. The Rated-R Superstar’s return, CM Punk’s short run of dominance and Shawn Michaels’ desperate attempt to win the match to secure a WrestleMania rematch with The Undertaker that sets this match apart, making this a potential top 10 Royal Rumble match of all-time, and the best of the PG Era.
9 CM Punk V. Jeff Hardy (SummerSlam 2009)
There’s not much better than a Ladder Match…except for a TLC Match. What’s even better than a TLC Match? One where the stipulation feels earned and the storyline heading into the match is the best storyline of that particular year.
All of these ingredients mixed together to set up a fantastic SummerSlam 2009 main event for the World Heavyweight Championship between CM Punk and Jeff Hardy, right in the midst of their classic feud. Punk cashed in Money in the Bank on Hardy in June 2009, turning heel in the process, sparking Punk’s Straight Edge heel character that was the polar opposite of Hardy.
At the Biggest Party of the Summer, Punk and Hardy put on one of the best modern TLC matches, stacking up with Hardy’s clash with Edge in the same stipulation just a few months earlier among the best of the PG Era. Stick around for the end of the match for a little something extra…
8 Jeff Hardy V. Edge (Extreme Rules 2009)
Speaking of Hardy and Edge’s TLC match from 2009, this bout is just the slightest bit better in this writer’s humble opinion. While this match may not have as great of a storyline going into it, it does have high drama, great pay-off and a cliffhanger at the end that leaves the fans wanting more.
While this was the Charismatic Enigma and Ultimate Opportunist’s first one-on-one TLC Match together, they famously clashed in many groundbreaking Ladder and TLC matches in years past in their respective tag teams. When they met in their singles encounter, the two greats found a way to create magic nonetheless.
Not only was their World Heavyweight Championship TLC Match great, with creative spots and a creative finish, but the post-match Money in the Bank cash-in makes it just that much sweeter.
7 The Undertaker V. Edge (SummerSlam 2008)
The first Hell in a Cell match of the PG Era is among the best. It’s been said by the Rated-R Superstar himself that when he and his opponent were first pitched the match, they each thought they would be competing under TV-14 guidelines, as the WWE had not yet turned PG.
Given these two men had to readjust their styles and original match plans to fit accordingly with the new PG style, they each found a way to put together a fitting conclusion to their rivalry that had been raging on for over a year, through callbacks and fun spots. Throughout the first main event of this era, Edge and The Undertaker found ways to showcase violence without being gruesome, walking that perfect line.
6 John Cena V. Brock Lesnar (Extreme Rules 2012)
Everyone knows this Extreme Rules match between John Cena and Brock Lesnar had the wrong finish. That doesn’t make it any less of a great, brutal contest that was truly a breath of fresh air in the PG Era.
John Cena had been dominating the WWE main event scene for seven years at this point, rising to superstardom while Lesnar was away from the company, conquering NJPW and UFC after his failed NFL run. When Lesnar returned to the company after eight years the night after WrestleMania 28, after receiving one of the loudest crowd reactions of all time, Lesnar went straight for Cena.
When the time came for their bout at Extreme Rules, Lesnar and Cena put together a gruesome and shocking Extreme Rules match that truly lived up to the stipulation name. If the result was different, this match may well be a spot or two higher.
5 Chris Jericho V. Shawn Michaels (No Mercy 2008)
Like CM Punk and Jeff Hardy’s TLC Match mentioned earlier in this list, Shawn Michaels and Chris Jericho went into this World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match with the best storyline of that calendar year and a real reason to settle things in a stipulation match. Y2J and HBK always created magic in-ring, and this may be their best ever bout with one another.
Throughout the course of the rivalry, Jericho became obsessed with proving to the fans that Michaels was the real villain, all while turning to the dark side himself. Their rivalry stretched from April-October and never got stale, all while putting together three great matches over the course of the feud.
No Mercy saw their feud come to an end in one of the best pure Ladder matches in company history, with earned drama and smart violence.
4 John Cena V. Daniel Bryan (SummerSlam 2013)
Daniel Bryan’s WWE journey is one of the greatest in company history, as he went from being fired on his first night in the company to becoming a multi-time World Champion. After losing his World Heavyweight Championship to Sheamus in 18 seconds to Sheamus at WrestleMania 28, the WWE Universe rallied behind him for a year and a half leading up to this match.
John Cena "hand-picked" Bryan to be his challenger for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam and the stage was set for an epic main event. While much is made of Daniel Bryan’s in-ring ability, Cena’s talent was on full display in this bout as well, making it one of both men’s greatest singles matches of their respective careers.
What makes this even greater is the fact that John Cena wrestled through tendonitis, swelling his elbow to the size of a tennis ball, yet he still worked over 20 minutes. The match was excellent, as was the post-match twist.
3 John Cena V. The Rock (WrestleMania 28)
John Cena V. The Rock may be a bit tainted due to the ‘Once in a Lifetime’ tagline being rendered completely false a year later when the two clashed in WrestleMania 29’s main event, however, their first meeting was and remains truly epic.
The two icons of the industry set up this bout over a year in advance, as they started feuding in the lead-up to WrestleMania 27 the year prior. Over the course of 2011 and early 2012, the titanic clash kept building and building through a series of superb promos and in-ring segments.
When the leader of the Cenation and The Great One finally met in-ring in The Rock’s hometown of Miami, it felt blockbuster and the in-ring action was great to match the occasion. A bit of a sentimental favorite at No. 3, this match is all about spectacle and it delivers.
2 The Undertaker V. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 26)
Another match that may be a bit tainted due to future events, although Shawn Michaels went back on this stipulation for a match eight years later at Crown Jewel, the in-ring work and drama in this bout still hold up.
Michaels and The Undertaker had chemistry in the ring that most opponents could only dream of having, where every time the two matched up against one another, they could do no wrong. Their Hell in a Cell Match in 1997 and their classic at WrestleMania 25, among countless others prove that to be the case.
With that in mind, add a truly compelling stipulation of The Undertaker’s (at the time) 17-0 WrestleMania undefeated streak against HBK’s career, and there is a recipe for greatness. The two men once again delivered, in a match that may not have been as good as the two other previously mentioned bouts, yet still a top ten WrestleMania main event of all time, and the best of the PG Era.
1 CM Punk V. John Cena (Money in the Bank 2011)
Although Michaels V. Taker may be the greatest WrestleMania main event of the PG Era, this list is counting down the ‘10 Best WWE PPV Main Events Of The PG Era’ and the WWE Championship match between John Cena and CM Punk at Money in the Bank 2011 was the only answer all along. What more can be said about this match that hasn’t already been said?
There’s a reason fans still bring up this bout as one of the greatest of all-time 11 years later, just go back and watch it. With the hottest storyline in years behind it and a Chicago crowd that needed to see Punk win, this match/storyline was lightning in a bottle.
Everything came together for one night to create a five-star masterpiece in the greatest (though they had many other greats) match between John Cena and CM Punk, each the other's greatest rival. Not only that, but easily the greatest WWE PPV main event of the PG Era.