If you look back at the WWE pay per view schedule 2017, you’ll probably remember one thing above all else: it was absolute chaos. This was the first full year of the second "Brand Extension," which meant Monday Night Raw and SmackDown Live were essentially running their own separate businesses. It was a time when Jinder Mahal—a guy who was a literal jobber months prior—held the WWE Championship for most of the year. It was also the year Goldberg crushed Kevin Owens in 22 seconds and Roman Reigns "retired" The Undertaker. Sorta.
Honestly, it feels like a fever dream now.
WWE was aggressive in 2017. They weren't just doing one show a month. No, they were pumping out 16 different pay-per-views. If you were a fan trying to keep up, your Sundays were basically booked for the entire year. It was a grueling pace for the talent and, frankly, for the audience's attention span.
The Winter of Part-Time Legends
The year kicked off with the Royal Rumble at the Alamodome. This was a massive statement of intent. Randy Orton won the Rumble for the second time, which felt like a safe, if uninspired, choice at the time. But the real story was the build toward Elimination Chamber and Fastlane.
Elimination Chamber was a SmackDown-exclusive event in February, and it gave us Bray Wyatt’s first (and long-overdue) WWE Championship win. It felt like a new era was starting. Then, Raw hit back with Fastlane in March. This is where things got polarizing. Goldberg, at 50 years old, beat Kevin Owens for the Universal Championship. Fans were livid. It was the peak of the "part-timer" era, where established full-time stars were sacrificed to set up massive spectacle matches for WrestleMania.
WrestleMania 33 and the Brand Split Reality
When April 2nd rolled around, Orlando hosted WrestleMania 33. It’s often remembered as the "Ultimate Thrill Ride," but mostly it’s remembered for the Hardy Boyz making a shocking return and Roman Reigns defeating The Undertaker in the main event. At the time, we all thought Undertaker was done. He left his gear in the ring. He didn't come back for a while. Of course, we know how that ended later, but in the context of the WWE pay per view schedule 2017, this was the emotional peak of the spring.
The brand split was in full swing by this point. You had Raw shows like Payback in April and SmackDown shows like Backlash in May. Backlash 2017 is legendary for one reason: Jinder Mahal defeated Randy Orton to become the WWE Champion. It remains one of the most shocking title wins in history. WWE was trying to expand into the Indian market, and they went all-in on the "Modern Day Maharaja." Love it or hate it, it changed the trajectory of the entire SmackDown brand for the rest of the year.
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The Summer of Great Balls of Fire (Yes, Really)
June gave us Extreme Rules for Raw and Money in the Bank for SmackDown. The latter was historic because it featured the first-ever Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match. It was controversial, though, because James Ellsworth—a man—climbed the ladder and handed the briefcase to Carmella. WWE actually had to redo the match on a later episode of SmackDown because the backlash was so intense.
Then came July.
WWE debuted a new event name that became the butt of every joke on the internet: Great Balls of Fire. Despite the goofy name and the 1950s aesthetic, the show was actually incredible. Brock Lesnar defended the Universal Title against Samoa Joe in a match that felt like a legitimate car crash. Joe looked like a world-beater, even in defeat. Meanwhile, SmackDown was busy with Battleground, which featured the return of the Punjabi Prison match. If you’ve ever seen a Punjabi Prison match, you know they are... complicated. It was a weird contrast to the raw intensity of the Lesnar-Joe feud.
SummerSlam and the Four-Way War
SummerSlam 2017 was a four-hour marathon (not including the kickoff). The main event was a Fatal 4-Way for the Universal Championship between Lesnar, Roman Reigns, Braun Strowman, and Samoa Joe. It was absolute carnage. This was Braun Strowman at his absolute peak—flipping over announce tables and treating world champions like ragdolls.
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But the schedule didn't slow down. September brought No Mercy, which felt like a mini-WrestleMania. We got John Cena vs. Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman on the same card. WWE was burning through "dream matches" on B-level pay-per-views just to keep the WWE Network subscription numbers up. It was a bold strategy, but it meant that by the time we got to Hell in a Cell in October, some fans were feeling the burnout.
The Survivor Series Climax and the End of the Year
The fall was dominated by the "Brand Warfare" concept. TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs in October was supposed to feature a Shield reunion, but a viral infection sidelined Roman Reigns. In a wild twist, Kurt Angle stepped in to wrestle his first WWE match in over a decade. It was absurd, nostalgic, and perfectly encapsulated how unpredictable 2017 was.
Survivor Series in November was built entirely around Raw vs. SmackDown. The main event saw Triple H, Kurt Angle, Braun Strowman, Finn Bálor, and Samoa Joe take on Shane McMahon, John Cena, Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Bobby Roode. It was a star-studded mess. Triple H ended up being the focus, which frustrated fans who wanted to see the younger talent shine.
Finally, the year closed out with Clash of Champions in December. It was a SmackDown-exclusive show that solidified AJ Styles as the face of the blue brand after he took the title back from Jinder Mahal during a UK tour in November. Styles holding the belt felt like "order" had been restored to the universe.
The Full 2017 PPV Rundown
If you’re looking for the specific sequence, here is how the year actually flowed:
- Royal Rumble (Dual Brand) - January 29
- Elimination Chamber (SmackDown) - February 12
- Fastlane (Raw) - March 5
- WrestleMania 33 (Dual Brand) - April 2
- Payback (Raw) - April 30
- Backlash (SmackDown) - May 21
- Extreme Rules (Raw) - June 4
- Money in the Bank (SmackDown) - June 18
- Great Balls of Fire (Raw) - July 9
- Battleground (SmackDown) - July 23
- SummerSlam (Dual Brand) - August 20
- No Mercy (Raw) - September 24
- Hell in a Cell (SmackDown) - October 8
- TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs (Raw) - October 22
- Survivor Series (Dual Brand) - November 19
- Clash of Champions (SmackDown) - December 17
Why 2017 Was a Turning Point
This volume of content wasn't sustainable. WWE eventually realized that producing 16 pay-per-views a year was diluting the product. By 2018, they moved back to dual-branded shows for every event. But in 2017, the split allowed for some unique storytelling. We got to see guys like Kevin Owens, AJ Styles, and The Miz carry entire shows. We saw the "Women’s Revolution" move from a marketing slogan to a reality with the first-ever female MITB and Hell in a Cell matches.
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The WWE pay per view schedule 2017 was a massive experiment in content volume. It gave us the highest of highs (The Hardy Boyz' return) and the lowest of lows (The "House of Horrors" match—don't ask).
If you're looking to revisit this era, the best way to do it is chronologically. Don't just watch the big four. Watch the build-up. See how the Jinder Mahal experiment started. Watch the rise of "The Monster Among Men" Braun Strowman.
Actionable Insight for Fans:
If you have a Peacock or WWE Network subscription, I’d suggest watching the "Great Balls of Fire" main event and the SummerSlam 2017 Fatal 4-Way back-to-back. It is the best example of "Big Man" wrestling WWE has ever produced. Also, check out the New Day vs. The Usos rivalry from the 2017 SmackDown PPVs; it’s widely considered one of the best tag team feuds in the history of the company.