10 things from early 2000's WWE that we rarely see now

#5 Hardcore matches

Various Hardcore Champions between 1998 and 2002

The concept of hardcore rules can be traced back decades in professional wrestling. Mick Foley looks back fondly on his time competing in the King of the Deathmatch tournament in 1995, a prelude before his time in ECW.

The fascination with hardcore wrestling reached a fever pitch in the late 90’s and early 2000’s with the creation of the WWE Hardcore Championship. During the 2000’s, the championship was defended under 24/7 rules, meaning all you needed was a referee to challenge for the championship. It could be defended anywhere, anytime, and everything was legal.

These stipulations led to some of the most outlandish and savage matches and segments in WWE history. The championship was contested in the streets, on the banks of rivers, and bars just to name a few. Everything from mounted animal heads, to frying pans, were used as weapons during these contests.

While stipulation matches still exist such as No DQ, Falls County Anywhere, none of the outcomes are as outlandish as the contests over the Hardcore Championship in the early 2000’s.