5 Stipulation Matches WWE Should Bring Back

Over the years, we have seen the WWE and other companies put on just about every kind of theme match you could imagine.

Some matches, like cage and ladder matches, stand the test of time. Others, like lumberjack and "blank" on a pole matches, are used sparingly.

Meanwhile, some match concepts have been abandoned altogether, or used so rarely that people forget they were once a big part of the business.

In this slideshow, I will look at five match concepts the WWE should bring back into rotation, which have either died or not been seen in a long time.

Battle Royals for Cash Prizes

In the past, we often saw Battle Royals that weren't fought over title shots, but over cold, hard cash.

Money is the driving force behind nearly everything in the world, which is why it should come as no surprise that there were once kayfabe cash prizes for Battle Royal winners.

The WWE only really uses Battle Royals for title shots these days. Therefore, having the occasional contest over some cash might make things more interesting.

Ladder matches have been used in a similar manner in the past, with a sack of money above the ring instead of a title.

For example, this is how The Hardys won $100,000 and the managerial services of Terri Runnels.

Titles do not have to be the only thing people strive for in the ring. Throwing money into the mix can create some drama in a feud that was falling flat to begin with.

King of the Ring Actually Meaning Something

The King of the Ring tournament is one concept that never seemed to get as much attention as it deserved, which is probably why it is no longer part of the pay-per-view schedule.

There have only been six wrestlers crowned King of the Ring in the last 12 years. This is because the WWE does not hold the concept in as much regard as they used to.

The idea of someone defeating three other superstars in one night should garner more acclaim than any midcard title, and it was a jumping point for many superstars.

Stone Cold Steve Austin, Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Triple H and Edge are just a few of the superstars who won the tournament and went on to have great careers.

More recent winners, such as William Regal and Sheamus, did not seem to get as much out of it, since the WWE no longer treated it as a big deal.

While basing an entire PPV around this tournament may no longer be feasible, having one episode of Raw in a year hold the tournament as the centerpiece would still be viable.

WarGames

This has been mentioned many times in the past, so I won't bore you with too many details.

For those who are unfamiliar, WarGames was an NWA/WCW concept in which two rings were enclosed inside a steel cage. Two teams of superstars fought, with one member of each team joining the match at various intervals until everyone was inside the cage.

The Four Horseman made this concept their own by competing in the most WarGames matches as a team, but they never won any of the 13 they participated in.

This event was brought back a few times in later years, but it never had the same draw it did when it was first put into play.

In today's repetitive wrestling scene, this could be just what the WWE needs to shake things up at a B-level PPV like Over the Limit, where the company typically draw lower numbers.

World War 3

What's better than two rings?

Three, of course.

World War 3 was an event which took place in WCW on four occasions. Each time, it was an entertaining match that saw a lot of action.

The three rings were set up in a triangle formation, with 60 wrestlers evenly spread between them when the bell rang.

As rings were cleared of competitors, wrestlers would move to another ring until one man was left standing at the end of the match.

The four winners were Randy Savage, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash and The Giant. Ironically, all of these men were major members of the NWO at one point or another, but not necessarily when they won the match.

This would be something the WWE could do in July, when the Royal Rumble is half a year away, to keep them as separate as possible.

Furthermore, to make the Royal Rumble seem no less important, this three-ring match would have to have a different prize than a title shot.

Having a match with 60 men in it would give nearly every member of the roster some screen time. It would also give the WWE a chance to throw some rookies into the action to see how they do.

Iron Man Match

It has been far too long since we have seen an Iron Man match in the WWE, and the time seems right to bring it back into the mix.

Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels made history in the WWE's first real Iron Man match, and ever since then, we have been waiting to see something else come close to it.

We have seen some other Iron Man matches in the WWE, but none of them have been able to thrill fans the way Shawn and Bret did.

The WWE currently has several wrestlers who cut their teeth on the Indy scene, including CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, who have been known to have long matches in their Indy days.

CM Punk has wrestled numerous matches over 60 and 90 minutes, while Daniel Bryan is more than capable of doing the same.

Putting these two in an Iron Man match might finally give Hart and Michaels a run for their money. It would also introduce the match to the younger fans who have never seen one.

Thanks for reading. You can follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor.