History Of Cyber Sunday/Tuesday

View the 2006 Cyber Sunday Pay Per View page here.

WWE Taboo Tuesday was a professional wrestling pay-per-view held by World Wrestling Entertainment, as part of their WWE RAW brand held in 2004 and 2005. In November 2006, it will be replaced by Cyber Sunday.

Although the inaugural event was held in October 2004, the 2005 event was pushed back to early November so as to prevent possible competition by a Major League Baseball playoff game. Taboo Tuesday was the first pay-per-view held by WWE on a Tuesday since Tuesday in Texas in 1991. Because of the pay-per-view being on a Tuesday, the night when SmackDown! shows are taped, the SmackDown! show that week has been either taped on Sunday nights or shown live.

The distinctive feature of Taboo Tuesday was the ability for fans to vote online through WWE's website on certain aspects of the show. The voting typically began in the middle of a RAW show one week/one day beforehand and ended during the pay-per-view, often moments before the match is slated to begin. Each match on the Taboo Tuesday card had one aspect up for voting, which may range from the opponents a certain wrestler may partner up with or go against, or may involve some of the match's stipulations. Because of this, Taboo Tuesday was generally billed as an "interactive pay-per view," although limited interaction is involved.

Taboo Tuesday card introduced the Fulfill Your Fantasy Battle Royal, in which several of WWE's divas compete while dressed in some type of outfit, the outfits being chosen from three choices by the fans. The 2004 and 2005 events had fans choose between three wrestlers for the main event championship match, with the two runner-up candidates being teamed together to challenge for the World Tag Team Championship.

2004 Cyber Tuesday

Brand: RAW
Date: October 19, 2004
Venue: Bradley Center
City: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Attendance: 3,500

The voting for this event started during the October 18, 2004 edition of RAW and finished during the event.

* Dark match: Sgt. Slaughter defeated Muhammad Hassan (w/Daivari)
o Hassan was disqualified. Hassan was selected over 2 local jobbers.
* Shelton Benjamin defeated Chris Jericho to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship(10:55)
o Benjamin pinned Jericho after a T-Bone Suplex.
o Voting: Shelton Benjamin 37.48%, Batista 20.11%, Jonathan Coachman 7.01%, Christian 6.69%, Rhyno 5.77%, Maven 4.23%, William Regal 3.81%, The Hurricane 3.77%, Tyson Tomko 2.49%, Tajiri 2.36%, Steven Richards 2.24%, Val Venis 1.69%, Rosey 1.10%, Chuck Palumbo 0.68%, Rodney Mack 0.58%
* Trish Stratus defeated Molly Holly, Gail Kim, Jazz, Stacy Keibler, Nidia and Victoria in a Fulfill Your Fantasy Battle Royal to retain the WWE Women's Championship(5:30)
o Stratus last eliminated Holly to win.
o Voting: School Girl 53.10%, French maid 30.03%, Nurse 16.87%
* Gene Snitsky defeated Kane (w/Lita) in a Weapon of Choice match(14:17)
o Snitsky pinned Kane after coming off of the second rope onto the steel chair that was wrapped around Kane's neck.
o Voting: Chain 40.84%, Steel Chair 29.93%, Lead Pipe 29.24 %
* Eugene defeated Eric Bischoff in a "Choose The Loser's Fate" match(2:01)
o Eugene pinned Bischoff after a Leg drop.
o After the match Vince McMahon forced Bischoff to be shaved bald by Eugene and Jonathan Coachman to strip down to his underwear and wear a dress. Coach was forced to wear the dress for the remainder of the event.
o Voting: Hair vs. Hair match 58.73%, Loser Wears a Dress 20.77%, Loser is Winners Servant 20.50%
* Chris Benoit and Edge defeated La Résistance (Sylvain Grenier and Robért Conway) to win the World Tag Team Championship(16:15)
o Benoit forced Conway to submit with the Crippler Crossface.
o The opponents of La Résistance were the two wrestlers not selected to face Triple H.
* Christy Hemme defeated Carmella DeCesare in a Lingerie Pillow Fight(1:48)
o Hemme pinned DeCesare after attacking her with a feather pillow.
o Voting: Lingerie Pillow Fight 56.48%, Evening Gown Match 33.22%, Aerobics Challenge 10.30% * Triple H defeated Shawn Michaels to retain the World Heavyweight Championship(14:05)
o Triple H pinned Michaels after a Spear from Edge.
o Voting: Shawn Michaels 38.72%, Edge 33.42%, Chris Benoit 27.86%
* Randy Orton defeated Ric Flair in a Steel cage match(10:35)
o Orton pinned Flair after a RKO.
+ Voting: Steel cage match 68%, Falls Count Anywhere 20%, Submission Match 12%.

After the 2004 PPV went off the air, Vince McMahon paid tribute to long time employee Pat Patterson who was working his last night for the company. Vince McMahon, Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon came to ringside and they had Patterson sing My Way by Frank Sinatra, which he was known to do in karaoke bars while on tour.


2005 Cyber Tuesday

Brand: RAW
Date: November 1, 2005
Venue: iPayOne Center
City: San Diego, California
Attendance: 6,000

The voting for this event started on October 24, 2005 and ended during the event. The official theme song was Twisted Transistor by Korn.
* HEAT match: Kerwin White and Matt Striker defeated Shelton Benjamin and Val Venis(2:38)
o Striker pinned Benjamin.
* Rey Mysterio and Matt Hardy defeated Chris Masters and Snitsky(13:46)
o Mysterio pinned Masters after a Droppin' the Dime. SmackDown! referee Nick Patrick and RAW referee Mike Chioda officiated the match, disagreeing and interrupting each other throughout parts of the match. Christian quit WWE one day prior to the announcement of the match but would've wrestled his final live match for the company had he been voted in.
o Snitsky replaces Edge, who was injured.
o Voting: Matt Hardy 31%, Rey Mysterio 29%, John Bradshaw Layfield 17%, Christian 13%, Hardcore Holly 10% * Eugene and Jimmy Snuka defeated Rob Conway and Tyson Tomko(6:21)
o Snuka pinned Conway after a Superfly Splash.
o Conway was originally scheduled to compete in a handicap match before Tomko was added in.
o Voting: Jimmy Snuka 43%, Jim Duggan 40%, Kamala 17%
* Mankind defeated Carlito(7:22)
o Mankind made Carlito submit with a Mandible claw. The fans chose which gimmick Mick Foley wrestled as.
o Voting: Mankind 52%, Cactus Jack 35%, Dude Love 13%
* Kane and The Big Show defeated Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch to win the World Tag Team Championship(7:59)
o Kane and Big Show pinned Cade after a Double Chokeslam.
o The team facing Cade and Murdoch was comprised of the two wrestlers who were not selected to face John Cena and Kurt Angle.
* Batista defeated Jonathan Coachman (w/Vader and Goldust) in a Street Fight(4:22)
o Batista pinned Coach after a Batista Bomb.
o The match was originally Coach vs. Steve Austin before Austin pulled out the night before and was replaced by Batista.
o Voting results: Street Fight 91%, Verbal Debate 6%, Arm Wrestling Match 3%
* Trish Stratus defeated Ashley Massaro, Mickie James, Maria Kanellis, Candice Michelle and Victoria in a Fulfill Your Fantasy Battle Royal to retain the WWE Women's Championship(5:23)
o Stratus won when James eliminated herself and Victoria simultaneously.
o Competitors could also be eliminated by going through the ropes.
o Voting: Lingerie 43%, Leather and Lace 32%, Cheerleader Outfits 25%
* Ric Flair defeated Triple H in a Steel cage match to retain the WWE Intercontinental Championship (23:45)
o Flair won by escaping through the cage door.
o Voting: Steel cage match 83%, Submission Match 13%, Regular Match 4%
* John Cena defeated Kurt Angle and Shawn Michaels in a Triple Threat match to retain the WWE Championship(16:42)
o Cena pinned Michaels after a F-U.
o Voting: Shawn Michaels 46%, Kane 38%, The Big Show 16%

2006 Cyber Sunday

View the 2006 Cyber Sunday Pay Per View page here.

Criticism

Critics of the show's interactive component claim that WWE severely restricts their voting choices by having choices that are clearly preferred over others (for example, the choice of matches in a 2005 match between a verbal debate, an arm wrestling contest, or a street fight when the street fight would clearly prevail over the other two). Others criticize the way that WWE promotes its matches so that it introduces a bias to the voting process (an example of this was when Ric Flair, given the choice of match types in the 2005 show, demanded - and got - a steel cage match) - to the point that some accuse WWE of ballot-box stuffing. Many go as far as accusing the WWE of having employees vote without limit for which match type or wrestler the WWE wants to see in the match.

Still others criticize WWE for making relatively unpopular choices for fans to vote upon - for example, the most stunning (but logistically difficult in terms of setup) match types, such as the Elimination Chamber or the Hell in a Cell, are often not available despite their popularity. Thus, some believe that the voting process is flawed because the votes may not actually represent popular demand.

Also in the three way vote on who competes for the WWE Title, the WWE says the two losers will get a shot at the tag team titles. Then it schedules tag team matches involving two of the three competitors on the same side. For example at 2005 Taboo Tuesday Kane and Big Show fought for the Tag Team titles while Shawn Michaels fought for the WWE Title. In the previous weeks leading to Taboo Tuesday Kane and Big Show fought several tag team matches together, while Shawn Michaels fought singles matches.

In yet another criticism, some argue that some of the matches stand to blatantly show those working backstage who is the most over with the fans, yet bookers still ignore it. For example, Rey Mysterio is a wrestler always believed to be one of the most popular on the roster, and was heavily involved in the setup for the Smackdown vs. Raw match. However, Mysterio was still beaten out by Matt Hardy in terms of votes, even though Hardy had little to no interaction with Raw as the match was impending while others up for the vote like John Bradshaw Layfield featured heavily in the feud to try to ensure their involvement in the match instead. Some point this out as WWE blatantly ignoring what the fans want to see with Hardy not being given much of a push. Others, however, might argue that the main reason Matt Hardy was voted into this match with the largest percentage was because of his recent, and very popular, feud with Edge, who was slated to be one of the RAW contestants before he was pulled out of the match and replaced by Gene Snitsky.

Furthermore, many smarks feel that the entire voting process is rigged. This opinion became more mainstream in 2005 when Christian, who had just recently given his notice of leaving the company in favor of joining TNA Wrestling, was up for the vote to be included in a tag match. When he lost the vote (coming in fourth place out of five choices), however, during the match there were really clear "We Want Christian" chants.

Trivia

* Shawn Michaels has been in both the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship matches and lost.
* Ric Flair has competed in a cage match at both Taboo Tuesdays.
* Triple H competed in a title match at both Taboo Tuesdays.
* Trish Stratus has retained her Women's Title at both Taboo Tuesdays.
* The World Tag Team Championship changed hand at both Taboo Tuesdays.
* Eugene has had a win at both Taboo Tuedays.