The Biggest Party of the Summer has been home to some spectacular matches from the 2000s. From the first Tables, Ladders and Chairs match to The Rock passing the torch to Brock Lesnar, SummerSlam has been home to some spectacular moments for the WWE Universe. As one of WWE's "Big Four" events of the year, management always lines up some great matches for their summer fans.
However, for every classic match at SummerSlam, there have unfortunately been just as many duds. Wrestlers always try and put on their best matches possible in front of capacity crowds, but it is not always easy given the circumstances. Sometimes, despite their best efforts, matches can turn ugly. The real question is - do any of the greatest wrestlers of all time end up on this list?
10 2001 - Kane & The Undertaker vs Kanyon & DDP
When The Invasion began in 2001, many fans were excited to see some of the top WCW stars have matches with their favorite WWE wrestlers. Unfortunately, the angle did not provide the 5-star matches that fans had always hoped for, and one of the most cited examples was how Diamond Dallas Page was treated.
Revealed to be "the stalker" of The Undertaker's wife, fans started to get excited about seeing The Undertaker get his hands on the tormentor. Ultimately, DDP ran away from the SummerSlam match, and fans were left very displeased about the encounter.
9 2000 - The Kat vs Terri
2000 was far away from the Women's Revolution, and the women's wrestling matches were very different from the competitive encounters that fans are treated to today. Matches were much more focused around sexuality and not athleticism, and were certainly not geared towards fans of in-ring action.
Case in point - the match between The Kat and Terri was billed as a "Thong Stinkface Match," which was certainly not a catch-as-catch-can wrestling match, and one of the low points for female talent.
8 2008 - Matt Hardy vs Mark Henry
While both Mark Henry and Matt Hardy have had Hall of Fame level careers in their own right, their clash over the ECW Championship was not befitting of their legacy.
The two engaged in a slow and boring match in 2008 that did not have fans chanting "E-C-W" but had them hoping that it would end. These two are capable of good matches, but they did not have chemistry together that summer.
7 2009 - Kane vs The Great Khali
Unfortunately, anytime there are two giants in the ring, the likelihood of having a poor match is higher than normal considering the athletic possibilities. While Kane has proven that he has the ability to put on great matches despite being a monster, he needs a partner who is capable of working his style of match.
However, The Great Khali was hardly capable of working very well in the ring at all, which means this match was doomed from the start.
6 2000 - Kane vs The Undertaker
While The Brothers of Destruction have had a historic rivalry over the years which has spanned multiple decades, not every match of theirs would reach top tier status. As the "American Bad Ass," The Undertaker was attacked by his brother which wound up setting them up for a brawl at SummerSlam, which ended quickly when 'Taker removed Kane's mask and he ran for the hills.
They would face off later in the year to a much better match, but this one left fans wanting much more.
5 2003 - Shane McMahon vs Eric Bischoff
When both men featured in the match are not trained wrestlers, the recipe for success is not there to begin with. While Shane McMahon has been featured in many matches and shown athletic ability, Eric Bischoff has the athletic prowess of a baked potato.
The match turned in to a brawl very quickly to hide the lack of athleticism, but on a card which had some very impressive matches, this one stuck out like a sore thumb.
4 2005 - Chris Benoit vs Orlando Jordan
Despite the downfall of Chris Benoit in his final days, his wrestling legacy points to him being one of the most technically sound wrestlers that WWE has ever seen. However, his match for the United States Championship with Orlando Jordan is among the worst in his career.
Lasting only 25 seconds, the match was certainly not as advertised, and left fans confused as to why they paid money to watch it.
3 2008 - Triple H vs The Great Khali
Triple H has prided himself on having great matches with everyone he stepped in the ring with, making himself "The Game." However, not even he could pull The Great Khali to a good match for the WWE Championship.
Triple H is used to matches that balance technical skill and strength, but Khali was very limited in his in-ring activities and struggled to pull off basic techniques at times due to his size. What resulted was a match that The Game would rather have erased from his resume.
2 2005 - Shawn Michaels vs Hulk Hogan
On paper, a match between two of the biggest icons in WWE history should have been a fantastic affair for fans and should have been a match that would be talked about for years to come.
While fans did talk about this match for a long time, it was for all the wrong reasons. Hogan vs Michaels would wind up living in infamy due to the backstage politics involved and is more of a joke in the history books versus a hallmark moment.
1 2007 - Batista vs The Great Khali
Many fans do not remember that The Great Khali was actually a former World Heavyweight Champion, but he was set to defend the championship against Batista, who was searching for another belt for his resume.
Unfortunately, instead of the match ending in the "good guy" Batista triumphing, it ended in a disqualification finish which set up for another match in the future. Based on this one, fans wanted this feud to be over as soon as possible.