WWE Vengeance 2011 Results: Why This Was the Best Pay-Per-View All Year

WWE Vengeance is complete, meaning it is safe to pick up your jaws now.

It was shocking to many fans to have eight matches on the card announced prior to Vengeance, but that build may have actually helped the card as a whole. My apologies go out to those who were really fond of WrestleMania, Money in the Bank or any of the other 10 previous pay-per-views this year. Vengeance was the 11th event in 2011 and stands alone as the best pay-per-view this year.

Right from the opening contest and straight through the main event, WWE made sure to make every match count and not have any one match be thrown away. This was exactly the way to build a story in each match and even have one tie into another one. The first four matches took just about an hour to take place and not one of them felt rushed at all. The night a whole was perfectly paced and there was no real need for anything extra outside of the eight matches on the card.

The opening contest had to include Dolph Ziggler, since Ziggler was involved in two matches on the card. The tag team title match led off the show to showcase the high-flying champions known as Air Boom defeating Ziggler and Jack Swagger. Ziggler showed off an American flag-inspired singlet, but didn't have the straps around his shoulders. Regardless, Swagger and Ziggler looked like a real team as WWE showed that they actually care about the tag team division again.

Despite losing to Air Boom, Ziggler had literally no time to rest. His second match, which saw him defending his United States Championship against fan favorite Zack Ryder. Ryder had a bunch of momentum into the match and had just saw Ziggler get pinned minutes earlier. Regardless, Ziggler fought off Ryder's best chances to hold onto his United States Championship. Air Boom attempted to get involved, which could have been a DQ on the spot. In the end, Swagger assisted Ziggler into holding onto his title and salvaging his night.

Ziggler could finally take a break backstage and watch the Divas Championship match. Champion Beth Phoenix had a match against Eve Torres, who debuted yet another awful version of her entrance music. What wasn't awful was this match, which would often be chalked up to a "bathroom break" match a few months ago. Eve showed off her moves in a way that she has rarely done at any point in her career. She even whipped out an unexpected submission move, which had some questioning if Eve was going to win this match. The universe righted itself as a Glam Slam and three seconds would give Phoenix a win.

WWE had already given a title shot to the one guy the fans wanted to see and gave good matches to the two divisions in the most trouble. For their next trick, Vengeance gave us a match fans had constantly seen and made it something different. Christian and Sheamus have been feuding for months and have fought on pay-per-view recently, but this match wasn't the same old thing. Even as fans predicted a Christian victory to make up for his loss at Hell In A Cell, Sheamus won clean once again, likely giving The Celtic Warrior a claim to a World Heavyweight Championship match. Don't worry, Christian fans. He'll likely whine his way to one also.

Halfway through the night, it was time to move into the upper part of the card. Triple H and CM Punk teamed up to face Awesome Truth. Fans were supposed to buy two men, who main evented Night of Champions by facing one another, could team together against two recently rehired men who were a thorn in both of their sides. Punk and Triple H weren't impressive tag team partners, but weren't imploding like some thought they would. They even seemed likely to win when Kevin Nash came in to spoil the party. Nash's attacks were focused on Triple H, while Punk was pinned for the fourth straight pay-per-view.

A basic grudge match was up next before the world title matches. Cody Rhodes, who was not defending his Intercontinental Championship, faced Randy Orton in a throwback to their student-teacher relationship back in the days of The Legacy. The fact that Rhodes wasn't putting his title on the line should have been a red flag for Orton to win the match and get himself back on track.

The first complaint about this match is that Orton didn't get Rhodes over, but does Cody Rhodes really need anyone to get over anymore? Simply on his performance alone in this match with one of the best of this generation, Rhodes proved he can be a main event player. The top of the card is too crowded right now, but Rhodes showed he is ready in the background. More domination in the mid-card will make Rhodes even stronger. That's how you make a star.

The main events started with Big Show and Mark Henry for the World Heavyweight Championship. Henry and Big Show were moving better than they ever seemed to be and this wasn't your classic slow-paced, uneventful snoozefest that most giant vs. giant matches turn out to be. This one definitely got interesting as the two tried moves they don't normally do. The superplex that ruined the ring was a clear throwback to the Lesnar/Big Show match years earlier with the same result. It was a no contest to wet the whistle for fans come Survivor Series. Even though we saw history repeat itself, it was still very cool. They hooked all of us.

Finally, there was the Last Man Standing match. It was the first match to ever begin in a destroyed ring and it took a standard Cena match and turned it on its side. There was no bouncing off the ropes into shoulder blocks. The Five Knuckle Shuffle looked more standard. There was no way Cena would do a leg drop from the top rope.

This was the straight brawl Alberto Del Rio always needed. Weapons were used very well and, despite it being a typical "SuperCena" effort, was one of the better matches Cena has ever had on pay-per-view, even if it isn't the best one even this year. Awesome Truth's involvement kept the title on Del Rio and merges multiple feuds into one, something Survivor Series does well. It's uncanny that it is the next pay-per-view.

Every piece of the puzzle fit well and every cog in the machine was oiled well enough. Not one match dragged too long and there were no real terrible parts of the night, short of the commentary situation. For anyone who muted their presentation of Vengeance, it was a night that couldn't have gone much better. For a pay-per-view which had five title matches and no title changes, it didn't feel cheap at all. Every result had a reason and every match told the story. Survivor Series is intended to be an epic night of all goes to the plan of WWE, so why not make the event prior to it the best it could be? Vengeance is back with a vengeance as Sunday night's event was, up to this point, the best overall pay-per-view so far in 2011.