Survivor Series has been one of WWE’s “big four” for well over three decades, and whilst the show has gone up and down in prominence over the years, it still holds a strong and historical place in the eyes of many WWE fans.
In 2008, the event wasn’t quite at the level it had been at in the past, but it was still an anticipated event, with many big names ensuring that there was star power up and down the card, with a big return scheduled for the main event too. There are several things that fans should know about the 2008 edition of the show, from key moments to interesting facts and tidbits.
10 John Cena’s Return From Injury
At SummerSlam 2008, John Cena was ruled out with an injury due to suffering a herniated disc. It took him until WWE’s next big four PPV to make a return, as Shane McMahon announced that in his first match back, he would challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship.
In the main event, he did battle with Chris Jericho, who had been reigning as World Heavyweight Champion for a few months. Cena would win this match, which marked the very first time he won the “Big Gold” belt.
9 Vladimir Kozlov’s WWE PPV Debut
Vladimir Kozlov was one of WWE’s several failed projects at creating a dominant monster heel. They clearly had a lot of stock in him early on, as in his very first PPV match in WWE, he challenged for the WWE Championship.
This was a clear misjudgment on the side of WWE, as the Kozlov project would ultimately become a failure, and he, like many other “monster heels”, became a comedic character.
8 Shortest Ever 5-on-5 Traditional Survivor Series Match
Survivor Series is renowned for the classic “Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Match”, which has been a staple part of the majority of these shows. When it comes to the 5-on-5 tag team elimination matches, 2008 hosted the shortest ever one.
In the Divas division, Team Raw took on Team SmackDown, with the match seeing nine eliminations in just nine minutes, which was very reflective of how little time the Divas were given around this period.
7 First Survivor Series Aired In HD
The quality of viewing for most things nowadays is pristine, top notch, and crystal clear, but back in 2008, the world was still progressing and getting more advanced technologically.
In 2008, Survivor Series became the very first show in the event’s history to be broadcast in High Definition, making it the clearest Survivor Series ever when it aired.
6 Edge & Vickie Guerrero’s Reunion
The relationship between Edge and Vickie Guerrero was a major part of WWE programming from 2007 to 2009, with the pair dominating SmackDown during this period as a top power couple. In 2008, in which their wedding descended into disaster, Guerrero decided to split with Edge, booking him in a Hell in a Cell match which would write him off TV for months.
However, at Survivor Series, the pair reunited during the shocking conclusion to the WWE Championship match, in which Guerrero brought out Edge to replace Jeff Hardy in the bout. Time mended their wounds in this instance.
5 Jerry Lawler’s Historical Fact Mishap
Following the conclusion of the main event, in which John Cena won the World Heavyweight Championship from Chris Jericho, Jerry Lawler proclaimed that this was the very first Survivor Series in which both the WWE and World Heavyweight Titles had changed hands in the same night. This was meant to add a lot of prestige to the event - but it was a completely false fact.
Back in 2002, just six years prior, The Big Show defeated Brock Lesnar to become the new WWE Champion, and Shawn Michaels outlasted five others to be crowned the new World Heavyweight Champion in the first ever Elimination Chamber.
4 First WWE Title Change Of The PG Era
In terms of title changes, Survivor Series 2008 did in fact hold one special distinction. WWE switched from their “Ruthless Aggression Era” to the “PG Era” earlier that year.
Edge would overcome both Triple H and Vladimir Kozlov at the show, winning the WWE Championship. This marked the first time during the PG Era that WWE’s top prize had changed hands, with Triple H holding it throughout the transition phase.
3 Cody Rhodes Became The First Offspring Survivor Of A Former Survivor Series Winner
There have been several second or third generation names that have wrestled at the Survivor Series event, but Cody Rhodes became the first child of a former Survivor Series “survivor” to also become a survivor at the show.
In 1989, Dusty Rhodes was on the winning side in his match along with Brutus Beefcake, and in 2008, Cody Rhodes was a winner too.
2 Randy Orton Equaled A Survivor Series Record
Randy Orton is one of the most prolific performers in Survivor Series history, with him being a survivor more times than any other wrestler. In 2008, he was well on his way to earning that notoriety, as he equaled a big record.
When he won the match for his team, he became the only man alongside Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior to be a survivor for a fourth time. Of course, Orton would subsequently beat his own record with more wins over time.
1 The PPV “Won” A Trio Of Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards
Whilst some decent matches took place at Survivor Series 2008, it was a very badly received show. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter awarded the event various awards, including the Worst PPV of 2008, with the WWE Title match being selected as the Worst Match of 2008.
Perhaps the worst of all the awards was the “Most Disgusting Promotional Tactic”, as Jeff Hardy (who was scheduled to be a part of the WWE Championship match) was announced to have been found injured in a hotel stairwell on the day of the event. This was all a work, with legit media outlets discovering that Hardy wasn’t in any hospitals that day. Taking away WWE’s most over star on the day of the event was a questionable move.