WWE Over The Limit 2010 - A Terrible, Injury-Riddled PPV

Being such a physical sport, injuries are common in professional wrestling, however it is incredibly rare for there to be multiple injuries on the same night, never mind a show that saw five different wrestlers suffer very distinct, very notable injuries.

That's exactly what happened on one occasion, though, as between freak occurrences and some heightened risks, Over The Limit 2010 was anything but a normal day at the office. 

A Bizarre Month

WWE in May 2010 was very much in a state of "business as usual", between WrestleMania grudges still playing out and the general navigation expected during the lulled nadir between big four pay-per-views, but there were some odd moments in particular as WWE were stuck between WrestleMania XXVI and SummerSlam. 

For a start, there was Bret Hart becoming United States Champion on the May 17 episode of Monday Night Raw after defeating The Miz in Toronto. This was the same Bret Hart who was largely inactive due to his career-ending concussion in 1999 and a stroke he suffered in the early 2000s, yet he managed to hold gold once again in the same year as Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker for the first time since 1996. 

This was also the same time that WWE’s post-Mania touring schedule was disrupted by the eruption of an Icelandic volcano, which caused a mad dash across Europe for much of the roster in an attempt to get back to the United States. 

There was also the first season of the game show version of NXT in 2010, in which a winless Daniel Bryan was among the first wrestlers to be eliminated. Bryan would go on to become a five-time world champion, adding to his resume as one of the best of all time, while the rest of the competitors wouldn't win a single world title. 

Then there was respected astronaut and second man on the moon Buzz Aldrin hosting Monday Night Raw to only add to a bizarre build to the first ever Over The Limit pay-per-view on Sunday, May 23 in Detroit, Michigan. 

Over The Limit was not unlike WWE’s post-WrestleMania offerings of the past, as there were some WrestleMania blow-offs, some minor stories to fill the time, and a few one-off bouts to fill out the undercard. By no means was it a blow-off card, but it wasn’t exactly a weak line-up on paper, either.

In the main event, WWE Champion John Cena was set to square off with Batista for the fourth time in as many consecutive pay-per-views. After dropping his freshly won gold to Batista in an impromptu match at Elimination Chamber, Cena regained the title from Batista in a criminally underrated match at WrestleMania 26. Though he defeated Batista in a Last Man Standing rematch at April's Extreme Rules, Batista earned another shot by winning a number one contender’s match on the May 3 episode of Raw. Cena earned the right to pick the stipulation, and chose to make the title bout an "I Quit" match.

Also in WrestleMania rematches, CM Punk was matched up with Rey Mysterio for the third straight pay-per-view. Mysterio won out at WrestleMania 26 in a match where he would have to pledge to the Straight Edge Society if he lost. In a rematch where Punk would have to have his head shaved if he lost, the SES leader eked out the victory. But at Over the Limit, the two wagers were efficiently combined for one convenient match – pledge vs. hair.

Other matches announced for Over the Limit included World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger facing The Big Show, while long-time frenemies Edge and Randy Orton were set for singles competition.

Divas Champion Eve Torres was also matched up against Maryse, while long-reigning Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre was booked against Kofi Kingston.

WWE Tag Team Champions The Hart Dynasty, meanwhile, defended their titles against the thrown-together duo of ex-Big Show partners Chris Jericho and The Miz, and R-Truth went one-on-one with Million Dollar Champion Ted DiBiase Jr., seconded to the ring by Virgil. 

A take-it-or-leave-it card, but this would be no ordinary middle-of-the-road WWE pay-per-view

The Early Card Of Over The Limit 

Following an opening contest which saw Kofi Kingston defeat Drew McIntyre to become Intercontinental Champion in just six minutes, fans were presented with R-Truth vs. Ted DiBiase.

Very early on in their match, DiBiase angrily slapped Truth, prompting Ron Killings to return serve with a smack of his own. The slap itself didn't seem especially brutal, but DiBiase was instantly rocked, losing his balance and stumbling towards the turnbuckle, with it being evident soon after that DiBiase had been knocked loopy by the strike from R-Truth. 

It was later revealed that DiBiase sustained a concussion from the open-hand slap and the reigning Million Dollar Champion was briefly knocked out from the strike. In a later interview, DiBiase remembered "waking up" to Truth throwing punches on him in the corner and, through his confused haze, asking Truth why he was punching him. Truth then picked up the win after seven minutes with the Lie Detector. 

Then it was time for the Pledge vs. Hair match between Rey Mysterio and CM Punk, which looked to be one of the more promising matches of the evening. Punk suffered a difficult evening during the match, however, as he was left bleeding from near his right eye after an errant strike early in the match, but he then sustained a more substantial gash to his forehead after Mysterio hit his opponent with a hurricanrana into the ringside barricade, with Punk’s head striking metal. 

Hardway blood from a gaping wound is bad enough on its own, but worse in the eyes of the attending fans in Detroit was the brief match stoppage to tend to the wound. Since it was now the PG era, and sponsors' comfort was of the highest priority, the match was briefly halted to try and stem the bleeding. Punk was visibly annoyed as Charles Robinson applied a towel to the cut, while Mysterio continued selling outside the ring to stall for time after being flung into a barber's chair.

Punk finished the match, lost to Mysterio, and then proceeded to get his head shaved while still caked in crimson.

An Impromptu Double Count-Out 

Two matches later, Edge battled Randy Orton after they had failed to agree to a Rated-RKO reunion leading up to the show. Both men were near the top of their games in 2010, but the match failed to live up to expectations after a routine move went wrong. 

Late in the match, as Orton took his familiar attacker's crouch, he began punching the canvas, the usual act before attempting the RKO. Unfortunately for Orton, whilst punching the mat, he actually injured his shoulder, with sources differing as to whether it was a dislocation or a separation, due to Orton suffering from hypermobility.

Left in obvious pain, Orton relayed the injury to Edge, and the two improvised a double count-out finish, where Edge took himself out trying to spear Orton through the barricade. An underwhelming finish, but they had little other choice, given the circumstances.

The Main Event

Heading into the John Cena vs. Batista main event, Over the Limit was looking like a cursed card akin to New Year’s Revolution 2005. In addition to some pretty uninspired title matches like The Big Show vs. Jack Swagger and Eve Torres vs. Maryse, three matches had been hindered by injury. It was up to Cena and Batista to try and end the night on a high note, yet they both sustained injuries of their own during the main event. 

Cena found himself busted open hardway after Batista delivered a running powerslam to the WWE Champion from the English announce table through the Spanish table, causing Cena to be cut above his eye and the match to be halted to tend to the wound. Cena also had a tooth knocked out at some point during the match and spent three hours at the dentist following the show. 

Batista was injured during the finish of the match, as after taking an Attitude Adjustment onto the hood of a car situated in the entrance set, Cena hoisted up Batista for one more, this time from the top of the car and off the stage. This led to Batista screaming “I quit” and handing Cena the successful title defence in the process.

In typical Cena fashion, though, WWE’s top babyface at the time celebrated his victory by performing the move anyway. Batista landed on a gimmicked part of the staging area, which he went through, ultimately landing on a crash pad. While the area was prepped for as safe a landing as possible, Batista ended up injuring his back and tailbone taking the elevated AA.

What Happened After WWE Over The Limit 2010? 

After sustaining his concussion, Ted DiBiase Jr. missed close to two weeks of action. He returned to the ring on a house show 12 nights later in South Carolina, losing to Mark Henry via disqualification.

Punk didn't miss any time as a result of his wound and, in fact, found a pretty handy cover for it in a mask meant to hide his sudden hair loss at the hands of Mysterio. The now-hooded Punk wrestled a 14-minute match at that week's SmackDown tapings, defeating Kane in a number one contender's qualifying match.

As for Orton and his shoulder issue, more than two weeks passed before he took to the ring again, and three weeks passed before he had a match that went beyond two minutes.

Cena continued his schedule unabated. Batista, meanwhile, stepped away from WWE, and Over The Limit was his last match for over three and a half years as he parted ways with WWE at the end of May. 

Morbid as it may be to say, the fact that five wrestlers sustained some sort of notable injury was the most noteworthy thing about the 2010 Over the Limit. History has relegated the show deep into the filing cabinet as "just another event", more bad than good on account of some pedestrian booking and unsatisfactory finishes.