Ecw Brutal Matches

[Gracia Bradshaw]

If you're looking for things that differentiate AEW from WWE, the level of violence is one of the biggest. While modern WWE has largely done away with blood, AEW embraced it from day one. You don't even need to pay for a PPV to see the difference, as AEW has never shied away from pushing the envelope in terms of the level of gore you can show on basic cable. When Vince McMahon took a shot at AEW for doing "Blood and Guts," Tony Khan's promotion wore it like a badge of honor, adopting the phrase as the name of their new version of the WarGames match.

There are tons of worthy matches that we're leaving out. Some that you might think would be natural fits, like Dustin Rhodes vs. Cody Rhodes from Double or Nothing, missed the cut simply because this is a list of the most brutal, not just the bloodiest. We're also leaving out matches with serious legitimate injuries, such as Sammy Guevara vs. Matt Hardy or Jon Moxley vs. Adam Page. Those matches are brutal, but not the kind of brutal we want to celebrate. We also could've just said "Every Darby Allin match, there, we're done" as that man finds new ways to test fate on a monthly basis, but that would make for a boring list.

It didn't take long for fans to see just how hardcore AEW was willing to go. The first Fyter Fest was just AEW's second event and it was headlined by what would become a staple of the promotion, a Lights Out match. Always taking place as the last match on a show, a Lights Out match is basically an unsanctioned bout that does not count towards the record books, one where anything goes. Here, for the first time, we got to see what that would mean in an AEW context. If there were two men on the initial roster that were up to the challenge, it was Jon Moxley and Joey Janela, two men who had both competed in incredibly violent matches on the indies and were no strangers to deathmatches.

That 2019 Moxley/Omega feud culminated with a Lights Out match of its own at the first Full Gear. Going in, everyone knew Moxley thrived in this kind of environment, but there was a lot of curiosity about what Omega would do in a major PPV main event in a style of match he didn't regularly work. He ended up taking to it like a fish to water, mixing in his usual athletic, polished offense with all the plunder fans were quickly coming to expect from AEW gimmick matches. The bar for props got raised again here, with the two men ending up using broken glass, mousetraps, and even a screwdriver.

The last decade has seen women's wrestling make steady yet sometimes frustratingly slow progress in terms of being seen as equal to men's wrestling. There are still a ton of milestone moments women's divisions have yet to have been given, but on this night, a few more happened. This was just the third Lights Out match in AEW history, but the first on TV, and the first between two women. More importantly, this was the first time women had main evented an AEW event of any significance. Britt Baker and Thunder Rosa earned every bit of those status symbols in this match, one that was just as rough and gruesome as what the men put on, and as good of a match as nearly anything AEW did that year.

Another great example of how a wild stipulation can elevate a feud comes from Best Friends and Satana & Ortiz. They're two good teams that are often relegated to the midcard. They're also more than capable of having good traditional matches against each other, and indeed have had some. But put them in a Parking Lot Brawl and you get a match that is a career-best for both teams, far better than most people could've ever predicted. Surrounded by vehicles and onlookers, these four men put on a match unlike anything AEW has seen before or since.

If you've never watched this match before and view it after reading this list, for most of its runtime you might be wondering why it was even included. You'll see a very good No-DQ match, but nothing too notable compared to other matches here. Then somewhere along the way, you might wonder why Cody Rhodes is wrestling with a weird clear substance smeared all over his back. Then near the end of the match, you'll see Brandi Rhodes set a table on fire. Then you'll see Cody superplex Andrade through it. Then you'll see Cody take the brunt of the fire, and the flames linger on his leg for a while. Then you'll get it.

This might be the most underrated match on this list. Taking place on a "Rampage" rather than a "Dynamite" or PPV, and featuring four midcard talents rather than any of the top stars in the division, it's easy to overlook this match. If you did, though, you'd only be punishing yourself. This match is as bloody and vicious as any on this list, with barbed wire and tacks both coming into play. It features some truly scary bumps, including a moonsault kneedrop and a big suplex onto a chair. It's the type of wrestling match that you watch almost like a horror movie, with your eyes half covered.

If you want the most brutality by volume for your buck, this match, AEW's second annual Blood and Guts, is the one for you. Two teams of six men apiece went to the greatest of lengths to live up to that match name over a whopping 46 minutes bell to bell. AEW's take on the classic WarGames featured some deviations from the original version, with wrestlers climbing the closed roof cage, as well as weapons getting into the mix. The match produced all sorts of incredible visuals, whether it was Claudio Castagnoli giant swinging Chris Jericho on the top of the cage, or Angelo Parker hanging upside down from a support beam, drenched in his own blood.

We started this list with matches from Janela and Omega, so it only makes sense that we end with a match between the two. Yet another Lights Out match, this was the first of a trilogy of matches the two would have against each other, and also their best. It took place on just the second-ever episode of AEW "Dark" and was a great way of getting fans' attention by offering something that would end up being quite different than the kinds of matches people would soon come to expect from the show. This wasn't a short little undercard squash, this was two wrestlers shooting for the moon, trying to have a top-tier level match.

Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) was founded in 1992 as Eastern Championship Wrestling. In the summer of 1994, Eastern Championship Wrestling rechristened itself as the anti-establishment Extreme Championship Wrestling, when the company broke away from the National Wrestling Alliance in acrimonious circumstances.

Awesome performed breath-taking aerials for a six feet six inch giant, including a tope and springboard plancha. The pair smashed each other with scarily brutal chair shots and repeatedly put each other through tables. The finish came when Awesome hit a top rope power bomb on Tanaka.

New Jack and Vic Grimes were contesting an average brawl when the pair ascended a scaffold. Two tables were set up underneath them but a miscommunication between the pair led to a near fatal accident.

Back in 1996, the pair were bitter enemies and engaged in a succession of classic match-ups but none more brutal than the chairs and tables spot fest at The Dr Is In event. The winner of the bout was the man who could place the other on a stretcher.

After a feeling out process, both men hit each other with everything they had with brain rattling chair shots. The most memorable moment saw RVD reverse a triple jump DDT attempt from Sabu with a fishermen buster through a table. As the match marched towards a conclusion, Sabu attempted a triple jump moonsault but was smashed with a chair on his descent.

The ECW stint allowed Mick Foley to reinvent his career after the WCW disappointment at the end. Foley clearly fit into the company with his hardcore wrestling style, but the emotional promos were what put him over the top to get signed by WWE.

Mick Foley came out of retirement in 2004 to have a program with Randy Orton. WWE wanted Orton to become a main event superstar and loved the concept of having a long program with Foley. The two finally had a singles match full of violence at Backlash 2004.

Foley held nothing back despite his history of brutal injuries and an older age. Thumbtacks, chairs, tables and barbed wire were all utilized in the vicious encounter. Orton and Foley delivered an instant classic with Mick once again proving no one touched him at hardcore matches.

Foley was obviously the biggest star and best all-around performer in the match. The outstanding match saw them using weapons for one of the first times in a mainstream promotion. Foley took a few brutal bumps and was attacked by everything dangerous to make the match memorable.

The rivalry between Triple H and Mick Foley culminated at No Way Out 2000. Their prior match at the Royal Rumble was better, but this one had more violence inside of the Hell in a Cell structure. Foley put his career on the line with plans to retire for good after the loss.

The performance showed that Foley was wrestling as if it was the last match of his career. They used the same weapons from the Rumble but added the element of fire when gasoline lit the 2x4 of barbed wire. Foley took a couple of bumps off the cell through a commentary table and through the cell into the ring.

Mick Foley and Terry Funk popularized the hardcore wrestling style when bringing it from Japan to the United States. Both wrestlers were good without the glorified violence, but they enjoyed the art of the death match that was loved in Japan.

The King of Death Matches event saw Foley and Funk facing off in a terrifying masterpiece. Foley used weapons like chairs, barbed wire, fire, and a branding iron to prove his commitment. The perk of working with his wrestling hero and mentor Funk likely inspired him to get even wilder.

Rock handcuffed Foley and hit him with a chair eleven different times right on his head with zero protection. The feud benefited from having such a violent match, but it is extremely hard to watch back today. Foley laid his body on the line and went too far in a performance that will follow him forever.

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