{"id":149348,"date":"2025-12-26T12:38:30","date_gmt":"2025-12-26T17:38:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=149348"},"modified":"2025-12-26T12:38:30","modified_gmt":"2025-12-26T17:38:30","slug":"wwe-attitude-era-all-december-ppv-main-events-ranked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/12\/26\/wwe-attitude-era-all-december-ppv-main-events-ranked\/","title":{"rendered":"WWE Attitude Era: All December PPV Main Events, Ranked"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>December is usually a slow month for professional wrestling, as the holidays take everyone&#8217;s time and attention. While nowadays there are no PLEs in December (the last was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wwe.com\/playlist\/tlc-2020-video-highlights\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">TLC 2020<\/a>), that wasn&#8217;t the case in the Attitude Era. For many years, December was no different from any other month.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/12\/23\/5-best-matches-of-mick-foleys-wwe-career\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">5 Best Matches Of Mick Foley&#8217;s WWE Career<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Unlike the PG Era, which had TLC, and the Ruthless Aggression Era, which had Armageddon, the Attitude Era didn&#8217;t have its own signature event. Instead, WWE cycled through several events during wrestling&#8217;s most chaotic and unpredictable era. The main events ranged from iconic classics to forgotten matches. In this article, we&#8217;ll rank them all from worst to best.<\/p>\n<h2>5. Stone Cold Steve Austin Vs. The Undertaker (Rock Bottom 1998)<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH: \u201cStone Cold\u201d Steve Austin vs. Undertaker \u2013 Buried Alive Match: Rock Bottom 1998\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/INpWemK3Ldc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Cagematch Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=40580#:~:text=with%20guide)-,4.33,-Current%20Total%20Rating\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">4.33<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Dave Meltzer&#8217;s Rating: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.profightdb.com\/cards\/wwf\/rock-bottom-87.html#:~:text=%22Buried%20Alive%22-,%C2%BE*,-see%20all%20cards\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">0.75 Stars<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Stone Cold and The Undertaker are two of the biggest names in the entire history of WWE. With that said, the pair didn&#8217;t exactly have a lot of chemistry inside the squared circle. While they engaged in some entertaining battles over the years &#8211; SummerSlam 1998 or Fully Loaded 1999 come to mind &#8211; many of their other battles left a lot to be desired.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>They just didn&#8217;t have the chemistry, as you mentioned, that you wanna see. I don&#8217;t know why that was. &#8211; Jim Ross on Steve Austin&#8217;s chemistry with The Undertaker (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/wwe\/news-the-undertaker-chemistry-wwe-legend-jim-ross-says#:~:text=They%20just%20didn%27t%20have%20the%20chemistry%2C%20as%20you%20mentioned%2C%20that%20you%20wanna%20see.%20I%20don%27t%20know%20why%20that%20was.\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">h\/t Sportskeeda<\/a>)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The worst match The Deadman and The Texas Rattlesnake had took place at Rock Bottom &#8217;98. The fans in Vancouver were ready to love their Buried Alive Match, but the stipulation limited what both legends could do. The whole thing quickly turned into an overbooked mess. Kane ran in near the end and helped Austin bury The Undertaker alive, extending their never-ending rivalry and earning Austin a spot in the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2019\/01\/25\/going-the-distance-winning-the-royal-rumble-from-the-starting-duo\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">&#8217;99 Royal Rumble Match<\/a>.<!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2>4. Triple H vs. Vince McMahon (Armageddon 1999)<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Cagematch Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=25395#:~:text=with%20guide)-,5.18,-Current%20Total%20Rating\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">5.18<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Dave Meltzer&#8217;s Rating: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.profightdb.com\/cards\/wwf\/armageddon-3999-101.html#:~:text=No%20Holds%20Barred-,*%C2%BD,-see%20all%20cards\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">1.5 Stars<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Speaking of overbooking, that&#8217;s the perfect word to describe the wild No Holds Barred Match between Triple H and Vince McMahon from Armageddon 1999. On paper, this should definitely be last on our list, but for some insane reason, it was actually better than the aforementioned Austin\/Undertaker Buried Alive Match.<\/p>\n<p>Triple H and Vince McMahon fought all over the arena as the smoke and mirrors elevated the quality of their bout. Stephanie McMahon was the difference maker in the end, shockingly turning on her father to help The Game win their bout and forming the McMahon-Helmsley Regime that would rule the World Wrestling Federation in 2000.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">On this day in 1999, Vince McMahon faced off against Triple H in the main event of Armageddon 99.<\/p>\n<p>The match is most famous for Stephanie McMahon shocking the world and turning her back on Vince at the end of the match.<\/p>\n<p>The birth of the McMahon-Helmsley Era <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/HgUbCkVJds\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/HgUbCkVJds<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NukemTalksWrestling (@NukemWrestling) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NukemWrestling\/status\/1734664425775173863?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 12, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2>3. Shawn Michaels Vs. Ken Shamrock (D-Generation X: In Your House 1997)<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH: Shawn Michaels vs. Ken Shamrock | WWE Title Match: DX: In Your House\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aAinyNgVCBU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Cagematch Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=31344#:~:text=with%20guide)-,5.44,-Current%20Total%20Rating\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">5.44<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Dave Meltzer&#8217;s Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=31344#:~:text=WON%20rating%3A-,***,-Match%20type%3A\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">3 Stars<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>D-Generation X were on top of the world in late 1997 with Shawn Michaels holding the WWF Championship. The group had a pay-per-view named after them in December &#8217;97, just one month after the infamous <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2024\/06\/27\/best-worst-screwjobs-in-wwe-history\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Montreal Screwjob<\/a> incident. Shawn Michaels, who had more heat than ever at the time, put his WWF Title up for grabs against The World&#8217;s Most Dangerous Man, Ken Shamrock.<\/p>\n<p>There was nothing wrong with their match from a technical standpoint. It was a fine main event with an incredibly lame DQ ending, which never helps. The ending felt even more deflating, given that fans always expected more than &#8220;just&#8221; a fine main event when Shawn Michaels was involved. Still, their match was good enough to earn a spot in the top three.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2>2. Stone Cold Steve Austin Vs. Chris Jericho (Vengeance 2001)<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&quot;Stone Cold&quot; Steve Austin vs. Chris Jericho  - Undisputed WWE Championship Match: Vengeance 2001\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/U_Rmvmk0FO8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Cagematch Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=289#:~:text=with%20guide)-,6.45,-Current%20Total%20Rating\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">6.45<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Dave Meltzer&#8217;s Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=289#:~:text=WON%20rating%3A-,***1\/4,-Match%20type%3A\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">3.25 Stars<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>By December 2001, the WCW\/ECW invasion angle had come and gone, with <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/11\/18\/team-wwf-the-alliance-survivor-series-2001\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Team WWF beating The Alliance in the main event of Survivor Series<\/a>. The next step was to get rid of all WCW titles, including the once-prestigious WCW World Heavyweight Championship. At Vengeance in December, The Rock would defend the WCW Title against Chris Jericho while WWF Champion Steve Austin would meet Kurt Angle. Then, the winners would meet in a title-for-title contest to crown the first WWF Undisputed Champion.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/12\/02\/list-of-chris-jericho-wwe-world-title-reigns-ranked\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">All Chris Jericho WWE World Title Reigns, Ranked<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Austin retained the WWF Championship against Angle in the first match of the mini-tournament, while The Great One dropped the Big Gold Belt to Y2J. The winners met just a few minutes later, with Jericho coming out on top thanks to Booker T&#8217;s interference. Jericho and Austin put on a good match before the former five-time (five-time!) WCW Champion came out, and history was made at the end of the night.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2>1. Six-Man Armageddon Hell In A Cell Match (Armageddon 2000)<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_149360\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-149360\" style=\"width: 1280px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-149360\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/armageddon-2000.jpg\" alt=\"A graphic from the 6-Man HEll in a Cell Match at Armageddon 2000\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/armageddon-2000.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/armageddon-2000-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/armageddon-2000-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/armageddon-2000-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-149360\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: WWE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Cagematch Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=233#:~:text=with%20guide)-,8.65,-Current%20Total%20Rating\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">8.65<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Dave Meltzer&#8217;s Rating: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagematch.net\/?id=111&amp;nr=233#:~:text=WON%20rating%3A-,****1\/2,-Match%20type%3A\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">4.5 Stars<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The unforgettable six-man Hell in a Cell Match from Armageddon 2000 is one of the wildest main events in the company&#8217;s history. Therefore, it&#8217;s no surprise to see it top this list. Kurt Angle, just 13 months into his main roster run, was already the WWF Champion. That night, the Olympic Gold Medalist stepped inside Hell in a Cell to defend his belt against The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, The Undertaker, and Rikishi. The result was an absolutely chaotic main event that is still talked about to this day.<\/p>\n<p>The highlight of the match was The Undertaker&#8217;s chokeslam to Rikishi off the top of the cell, but there was a lot more to the bout than\u00a0<em>just<\/em> that all-time great spot. It was unpredictable from start to finish. Everyone brawled all over ringside. Almost everyone bled buckets. The Rock and Austin teased their upcoming WrestleMania 17 showdown. In the middle of all this chaos, the &#8220;rookie&#8221; Angle found a way to leave the cell with his Championship intact.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH: WWE Title Six-Man Hell in a Cell Match: Armageddon 2000\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/mxiCDYfWHZQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3><strong><b>More From LWOS Pro Wrestling<\/b><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><em><i>Header photo \u2013 WWE \u2013 Stay tuned to the\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/\" target=\"_self\"><em><u><i>Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i> for more on The Attitude Eras, WWE, and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.<\/i><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><i>You can check out WWE programming on\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.netflix.com\/title\/81788927\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Netflix<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(Raw),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usanetwork.com\/wwe-friday-night-smackdown\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>USA Network<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(SmackDown),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cwtv.com\/shows\/wwe-nxt\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>The CW<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(NXT),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/tubitv.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Tubi<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Evolve),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aetv.com\/wwe\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>A&amp;E<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Superstar Sunday \u2013 Rivals, WWE LFG, and Greatest Moments), and\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peacocktv.com\/watch\/home\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Peacock<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Main Event, as well as archives and premium live event streaming). Follow WWE on social media to relive top moments and matches on\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/wwe\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>YouTube<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>, and catch fast-paced action on X (<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/i\/events\/1773457579022155776?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>WWE Speed<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>).<\/i><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>December is usually a slow month for professional wrestling, as the holidays take everyone&#8217;s time and attention. While nowadays there are no PLEs in December (the last was TLC 2020), that wasn&#8217;t the case in the Attitude Era. For many years, December was no different from any other month. RELATED: 5 Best Matches Of Mick [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5694,"featured_media":149361,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2192,4,3],"tags":[629,1253,245,395,550,297,75,6436],"class_list":["post-149348","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wrestling","category-wwe","category-wwe-universe","tag-stone-cold-steve-austin","tag-attitude-era","tag-kurt-angle","tag-shawn-michaels","tag-the-rock","tag-the-undertaker","tag-triple-h","tag-wwf-attitude"],"modified_by":"Steph Franchomme","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149348","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5694"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=149348"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149348\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":149359,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149348\/revisions\/149359"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/149361"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=149348"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=149348"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=149348"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}