Predicting What a ‘Reimagined’ WWE PPV Schedule Looks Like Amid Rumors of Big Changes

WWE's pay-per-view schedule has long been in need of a serious shakeup.

From former stars returning to more emphasis on in-ring action to stronger storylines, Triple H has already made many positive changes to the weekly product since taking over for Vince McMahon in late July.

Reevaluating the current PPV lineup should be next on his list of priorities.

Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics.com broke the news Sunday that WWE Day 1, which was again scheduled for New Year's Day 2023, has been canceled and will not be rescheduled.

Bryan Alvarez of Figure Four Daily also reported significant changes are said to be coming to WWE's premium live events and that there will be less "gimmick shows" going forward.

The overall amount of PPVs WWE runs annually should decrease, starting with the cancellation of Hell in a Cell followed by Extreme Rules. This would add more of a must-see vibe to Raw and SmackDown in between major events and allow the company to run occasional TV specials in the same way NXT does.

This is what a reimagined PPV schedule for WWE could, and should, look like in 2023.

January: Royal Rumble

WWE Day 1 would have been an acceptable way to kick off 2023 prior to its cancellation, but something about Royal Rumble being the first PPV of the year just feels right.

The Road to WrestleMania has always started with the Rumble and that will never change. It's traditionally held at the end of January and that will again be the case come Saturday, 28 January.

The Rumble is viewed by many as one of WWE's most exciting events of the year. It has been around for nearly 35 years and has yet to lose its luster.

In addition to the usual unpredictability, seeds tend to be planted during the Rumbles for what WWE wants at WrestleMania. The show's spot is safe on the calendar, so fans don't have to worry about Triple H wanting to reinvent it in any way or scrapping it from the schedule all together.

This upcoming installment of the Rumble will be the first with The Game in creative control and who knows what surprises he'll have in store.

February: No Way Out

Truth be told, there has never been a need for a PPV between the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania.

The only worthwhile events to take place during that time were the early installments of No Way Out from 2000 to 2003. Most February PPVs in the years that followed didn't feature anything of note because WWE had already set in stone plans for The Show of Shows and no top titles were going to change hands before then.

No Way Out turned into Elimination Chamber in 2010 and has been a largely useless event. The idea that the world champions must survive the concept before making it to 'Mania would mean more if they didn't retain inside the demonic structure more often than not.

If WWE insists on doing an event in February and having it emanate from Saudi Arabia, rebranding it as No Way Out would make the most sense.

It shouldn't be built around Elimination Chamber unless absolutely necessary. Otherwise, it can be a Saudi supercard that serves as a small preview of what to expect at WrestleMania.

April: WrestleMania

WrestleMania will, of course, never be in jeopardy of being altered at all and will remain The Granddaddy of Them All.

The date is always up in the air, though, and that's usually dependent on potential holidays and other events taking place that weekend. No matter what, it has traditionally taken place at the beginning of April or the end of March.

Very rarely has 'Mania happened in the middle of March or April, and WrestleMania 39 will once again span over two nights: April 1 and April 2, 2023.

It will be interesting to see whether Triple H reverts The Show of Shows back to a one-night extravaganza eventually, but with the way the roster is nowadays and how successful the recent installments have been, it would questionable to do so.

Also let the record show that WWE's updated PPV schedule should see Money in the Bank scrapped as its own event, resulting in the high-stakes men's and women's ladder matches returning to The Show of Shows with one taking place each night.

June: King of the Ring

Backlash (or WrestleMania Backlash, whichever you prefer) is a logical show to have immediately following The Show of Shows to wrap up rivalries and do rematches. That said, rematches aren't always compelling when the entire card consists of them.

That was partially the problem with this year's installment, even though the rematches were better than the originals. It's a fine concept, but such repeated contests can be saved for separate episodes of Raw and SmackDown.

Thus, do away with a show in May and instead build toward the return of King of the Ring as its own PPV.

It's been two decades since this was a part of the PPV lineup. It was revived as a Raw and SmackDown ratings ploy in the later years, but the tournament isn't nearly as prestigious as it once was.

King of the Ring becoming a one-night event again wouldn't solve every issue fans have with it, though adding stakes (such as a title shot at SummerSlam) would be a nice boost.

Placing this in June between WrestleMania and The Biggest Party of the Summer would be ideal.

August: SummerSlam

The 2022 installment of SummerSlam was the only one since 1988 to take place in July (albeit at the tail end it). Beyond that, it has always been an August tradition and should stay that way.

Not doing any major events between King of the Ring in June and SummerSlam in August would improve the build to certain matches and allow feuds to heat up before they have a chance to culminate.

SummerSlam is commonly referred to by fans as "The Biggest Party of the Summer" and it never fails to live up to that lofty name. It is WWE's third-most celebrated show behind the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania and will forever hold that elite status.

The only additional thing Triple H should explore here is making it an international event again à la SummerSlam 1992 at Wembley Stadium in London.

Of course, we got that in the form of Clash at the Castle, but that should have served as a test run before it happens with SummerSlam, especially if the two Saudi Arabia shows remain intact.

October: No Mercy/Clash at the Castle

Since 2018, October and November have typically hosted WWE's obligatory second Saudi Arabia event of the year, Crown Jewel. Although the early installments were abysmal, last year's wound up being one of WWE's best PPVs in 2021.

Keeping the event alive would be perfectly acceptable, but renaming it would give the show the fresh coat of paint it desperately needs.

Cyber Sunday was a fun October staple in the late 2000s and bringing that back in Saudi Arabia would work. Doing Halloween Havoc as a stadium event would also be a blast, but making it something as simple as No Mercy might be the best route to take.

No Mercy had no fancy gimmick but was the perfect place for scores to be settled. It originally ran from 1999 to 2008 before being resurrected briefly in 2016 and 2017.

This spot can also be switched out for Clash at the Castle in Cardiff, Wales (or elsewhere in the United Kingdom) depending on WWE's Saudi Arabia deal and where those events fall on the calendar.

November: Survivor Series

As the fourth and final pillar of WWE's Big Four pay-per-views, Survivor Series should never be bumped from its usual spot during Thanksgiving week.

Needless to say, it hasn't been treated with any real importance for the better part of 15 years now, and it was almost junked by Vince McMahon in 2010 before he thought better of it.

Since 2016, Survivor Series has been touted as a battle for brand supremacy. The matches have typically been entertaining, but the theme holds no value considering we see Superstars swap shows and face off on a near-weekly basis.

That's why it's such a brilliant move on Triple H's part to introduce WarGames to the main roster audience to raise the stakes and switch things up. It adds more bad blood to personal feuds and gives viewers a real reason to want to invest in the storylines.

WWE last had the Tables, Ladders & Chairs PPV in December 2020. It wasn't used in 2021 or 2022, so it has been quietly dropped from the WWE calendar without explanation.

With the holidays and everything else going on so close to the end of the year, any event WWE does would be overshadowed and therefore it's not worth it. Doing an Armageddon-esque television special would be the way to go.

---

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.