10 Most Surprising WWE Main Eventers

If a person is main-eventing one of WWE's pay-per-view, you assume they are a big deal and part of a pretty elite group of people.

There are only so many pay-per-views and only so many top-tier talents to fill those top spots, with the same performers tending to get recycled in and out of main events depending on whatever is going on storyline-wise. Those with the most pay-per-view main events in company history are also either already hall of famers or will undoubtedly receive an induction when their in-ring careers are over, from The Undertaker to John Cena to Triple H to Randy Orton to Roman Reigns.

Occasionally, however, there's an outlier, someone you'd never dream in a month of Sundays would headline a show that you had to stump up for and amongst WWE's long history, we've found the best (or the worst) of those unlikely main eventers.

From the cruel to the unusually booked, find out 10 surprising WWE pay-per-view main eventers below!

10. Gene Snitsky

WWE

Gene Snitsky was plucked from obscurity and planted right into the thick of it when he was taken directly from developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling, flown to Raw and put in an angle with Kane, which eventually developed into one of Raw's top storylines of 2004.

Before long, the man who proclaimed that it "wasn't his fault" was kicking baby dolls into the crowd and making the worst friends imaginable. It was a hell of a run for the big man and he got a single pay-per-view main event out of it, teaming up with Edge, Batista, and Triple H to take on Randy Orton, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, and Maven at Survivor Series 2004.

Maven is another unusual one to see in that lineup of enviable talent, but the first-ever Tough Enough winner didn't actually make it to the ring until halfway through the match, having been attacked by Snitsky and left a bloody mess earlier in the night.

His valiant return was bad news for Gene, as Maven accidentally cracked his orbital bone with an errant potato punch. Snitsky evidently thought Maven was, in fact, at fault, and provided a harsh receipt with a skull-crushing chair shot to the head.

9. Farooq

WWE

Ron Simmons is a legend in wrestling, a man's man who made history by becoming the first black World Champion in WCW history back in 1992.

By 1997, however, those days were long gone and Farooq was settled firmly in the midcard as the leader of the Nation of Domination stable.

The Nation were catching on, mind you, and Farooq was doing some strong work (particularly on the microphone) in the run-up to his WWE Title opportunity against backstage pal The Undertaker at King of the Ring.

It wasn't the strongest headliner in the world, with WWE likely thinking that the King of the Ring tournament itself was the main draw. With Bret Hart out injured and the best of the rest vying for the crown, Simmons was as good a choice as any, I suppose, even if this really does stick out as an out-of-place show closer.

The match itself was far from thrilling, unfortunately. The ending hinted at The Deadman next facing off with Ahmed Johnson at the following pay-per-view Canadian Stampede, but the Pearl River Powerhouse suffered an injury and it never happened.

8. The Spirit Squad

WWE

While The Spirit Squad initially achieved success in WWE, winning the World Tag Team Titles in April 2006, the gaggle of male cheerleaders soon began to suffer routine humiliation and harsh beatings from D-Generation X throughout the summer as part of Hunter and Shawn's feud with The McMahons.

This run did earn the faction a pay-per-view main event, though, and The Spirit Squad were booked against The Heartbreak Kid and Cerebral Assassin in a 5-on-2 handicap match at Vengeance 2006, a slightly strange show where the other top matches were Rob Van Dam defending the WWE Title against Edge, John Cena taking on Sabu in an Extreme Lumberjack Match, and Kane wrestling Imposter Kane.

Though the numerical odds were decidedly in the favour of Nicky, Kenny, Mikey, Mitch and Johnny, there was only one way this was ever going to go.

And so it came to be, as The Game and The Showstopper bounced them around like pinballs en route to victory, before inducting poor Mitch into the Triple H Kiss My Ass Club.

7. Brian Lee

WWE

'Prime Time' Brian Lee was a mainstay, huge star, world champion and perennial main-eventer for Jim Cornette's regional Smoky Mountain Wrestling territory in the early-to-mid 90s.

In WWE, though, Lee was the fake version of The Undertaker because of his approximate physical similarity to Mark Calaway and they were part of a bizarre feud which culminated in a singles match at SummerSlam.

In a fair and just world, the five-star classic Cage Match for the WWE Title between brothers Bret and Owen Hart would have been the final thing fans were treated to on the night, but this isn't a fair and just world and so we were 'treated' to a battle of The Undertakers.

The storyline surrounding the match wasn't great and the bout itself was clunky as all hell. Yes, the visual was initially intriguing and the actual Undertaker's return was pretty cool, but the truth is Lee wasn't ready for this sort of stage.

6. R-Truth

WWE

Ageless wonder R-Truth is a WWE institution these days, seemingly destined to be contracted until he's into his 80s. Truth has found his niche as the man for all things light-hearted and likely doesn't have any main event aspirations these days, but he did get a couple of cups of coffee as a headliner in 2011.

In the first, he challenged John Cena for the WWE Title at Capitol Punishment 2011. Truth had been entertaining as the perceived victim of a conspiracy theory in the build up to the bout and was involved in some memorable segments, such as when he threw water in the face of a young Cena fans father. The match itself was a total non-event, however.

Truth got his opportunity at redemption six months later, when he met Cena again at Survivor Series. This time, though, he teamed with The Miz to take on Big Match John and The Rock.

Given this was The Great One's first match in over seven years and being used to build to the eventual Cena/Rock match, Miz and Truth were, naturally, a complete afterthought.

5. Savio Vega

WWE

When WWE Champion Shawn Michaels went down with a serious back injury at the 1998 Royal Rumble and had to be taken out of a scheduled Eight-Man Tag Team Street Fight at the following month's No Way Out, WWE knew they were in a bind.

After all, this was supposed to be a key moment in the build-up to the WrestleMania main event between Michaels and Stone Cold Steve Austin.

With such an integral talent being removed from the pay-per-view, WWE had to find a suitable replacement and hyped up a last-minute surprise. People were abuzz at the possibilities. Could it be a returning star like the Ultimate Warrior? Or perhaps a high-profile defection from rival WCW? Maybe an ECW wildcard?

It was ultimately none of those, though, and Savio Vega was revealed to be the mystery partner as the fans in attendance went mild. Vega ended up teaming up with Triple H and The New Age Outlaws in a losing effort to Stone Cold, Owen Hart, Cactus Jack, and Chainsaw Charlie.

4. The Nexus

WWE

It may have eventually (and quite spectacularly) went off the rails, but the Nexus invasion of WWE was initially very compelling television in the summer of 2010.

The band of gung-ho 'rookies' trying to make their name at the expense of legends, top stars and anyone else who got in their way were the hottest thing on WWE television and, truthfully, were good value to close the show at SummerSlam 2010 against a WWE team that featured such luminaries as John Cena, Edge, Chris Jericho, and Bret Hart.

The storyline and build was utterly compelling, yes, but it's still a surprise that WWE booked so many hopefuls - all of them competing in their first WWE pay-per-view match - to go on last in a high-pressure situation.

A couple from the Nexus side - Skip 'Ryback' Sheffield and, to a lesser extent, Wade Barrett - would be pushed into pay-per-view main event matches in the future, but they were very much an unknown quantity at the time, and the likes of Michael Tarver, David Otunga, Justin Gabriel and Darren Young wouldn't get so much as a sniff once Nexus had run its course.

3. Tatanka

WWE

The 1995 King of the Ring pay-per-view was a rotten night for WWE.

The matches were largely dreadful, the booking feeble and the Philadelphia crowd, by the end, were more interested in chanting for burgeoning local promotion ECW than cheering on the stars of the so-called New Generation.

The show is mostly remembered as being the night Mabel inexplicably became King, but it's worth remembering - or not remembering, actually - the pathetic main event.

In it, quickly sinking WWE Champion Diesel teamed with Bam Bam Bigelow to take on Sid and Tatanka.

Now, three-quarters of that lineup had requisite pay-per-view pedigree and, in fact, Sid and Bigelow had each headlined a WrestleMania at that point. The odd man out was Tatanka, whose long winning streak seemed like a distant memory as the Native American floundered while part of the Million Dollar Corporation.

Tatanka had been a popular star and was solid enough in his own right, but his inclusion in the top-billed bout on an order-only event said more about WWE's threadbare roster at the time than it did about the American War Eagle's credentials.

2. JBL

WWE

With Brock Lesnar taking a walk and both Kurt Angle and Big Show going down with injuries, the SmackDown roster in the wake of WrestleMania 20 looked thin.

WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero had no strong heel to work with going forward - I mean, they could have drafted someone, say, Triple H, over to the blue brand, but why do that when you can just tease it only to have Raw GM Eric Bischoff immediately trade both The Dudleys and Booker T to get The Game back?

Instead, WWE decided to just invent a new top heel instead, transforming career midcard babyface tag teamer Bradshaw into the nefarious JBL for a programme with Latino Heat.

It was a bold approach, to be honest, as the success of it all working seemed slim at the time.

To the tall Texan's credit, he did eventually grow into a proper main eventer and WWE Champion, but it was still a huge surprise that WWE went with him to begin with, considering he'd been battling the Basham Brothers just weeks before his makeover.

1. John Laurinaitis

WWE

John Laurinaitis may have been a derided Dynamic Dude in his homeland, but things were a different story in the far East, where Johnny Ace was one of the top foreign talents for All Japan Pro-Wrestling during some of their glory years.

Big Johnny called it a day in 2000 and then took office positions with first WCW and then WWE, working his way up to become Jim Ross' successor as head of the Talent Relations department. His injury history, corporate responsibilities and the fact that he'd never been much of a name in the US made it seem like his days in the ring were over.

But then Laurinaitis became a (rather effective) on-screen authority figure and, somehow, found himself standing opposite John Cena in the No Disqualification main event of 2012's Over the Limit with his job on the line.

Ace didn't exactly roll back the years like he was in there with Misawa and Kobashi, and he was very much treated as a joke. Despite all of that, he inexplicably won his main event match against Big Match John following one of The Big Show's many heel turns.

The champion of People Power would eventually get his comeuppance, with Cena defeating Big Show in a Steel Cage match only one month later at No Way Out. As a result, Laurinaitis was fired as an authority figure, with Vince McMahon screaming "You're fired!" at his real-life close confidante before John Cena put Johnny Ace through the announce table with an Attitude Adjustment.