Every pro wrestling promoter has their preferences. this week's episode of WWE Raw.
The show opened with Sami Zayn returning after being on the receiving end of a Package Piledriver from Kevin Owens weeks prior, which Zayn believed was Owens attempting to end his in-ring career by breaking his neck. Zayn challenged Owens to a match at Elimination Chamber on March 1, only to be interrupted by general manager Adam Pearce. Pearce explained there was no way Zayn would be medically cleared in time for the Toronto event and that the company wouldn't allow it. But Zayn saw Pearce's warning as an opportunity.
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn Just Brought Back the Unsanctioned Match Stipulation
This Will Be the Ninth Unsanctioned Match in WWE History
Zayn refused to leave the ring without getting the match with Owens, forcing Pearce to declare that the pair would meet in an Unsanctioned Match. This is a stipulation rarely seen in WWE, which usually implies that a match will be so violent that the company refuses to be held legally responsible for what the competitors do to each other.
While the concept has been around for decades, WWE didn't utilize it until Shawn Michaels returned from his four-year retirement to challenge Triple H at SummerSlam 2002. The stipulation has since been invoked only eight times since Michaels vs. Triple H, most of which either directly involved "The Game" (including his WrestleMania 33 match with Seth Rollins) or took place when he served as the booker for one of the company's brands.
"We're Not Hiding What We Do": Triple H Explains WWE's Revolutionary Approach in the Netflix Era
Triple H took this opportunity to explain WWE's new approach by pulling back the curtain on some of the inner workings of pro wrestling.
That was on full display from his time directly overseeing NXT, which included Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa at NXT TakeOver: New Orleans and Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver. Both matches were the result of friendships ending thanks to bitter jealousy, forcing the company to announce they would not be responsible for the violent grudge match that would occur.
Why Triple H Loves Unsanctioned Matches
The Stipulation Offers the Small Storytelling Details "The Game" Appreciates
Longtime viewers of Triple H's work as both a wrestler and booker are familiar with his love for small storytelling details, which the Unsanctioned Match fits neatly into. WWE has plenty of "no rules" matches that all effectively mean the same thing - whether it be No Disqualification, Street Fight, No Holds Barred, or Extreme Rules. And while an Unsanctioned Match promises the same level of violence and weapon-based mayhem as the others, the idea that the company openly washes its hands of the match long before the bell rings gives it that extra storytelling wrinkle to elevate it above the rest.
And by invoking the stipulation, it breathes new life into a feud even if it's a matchup fans have seen over and over. Without even mentioning their many matches in Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, and the independent scene, Owens and Zayn have clashed inside a WWE ring one-on-one 18 times on either television or pay-per-view since 2015. But now, thanks to one of Triple H's secret weapons, the 19th match is a can't-miss encounter.
