Vengeance 2003: SmackDown's First Solo PPV Becomes a Forgotten Ruthless Aggression Classic

Guerrero and Benoit open the pay-per-view with the kind of serious championship match that immediately raises the event's ceiling. The vacant United States Championship gives the bout real stakes, and both wrestlers work with enough familiarity to move quickly between counters, submissions and high-impact offense without wasting time establishing basic chemistry. Benoit's intensity makes every Crossface attempt feel dangerous, while Guerrero keeps finding ways to turn momentum through timing and opportunism rather than simply matching him hold for hold. Rhyno's late interference keeps the finish from being completely clean, but the Frog Splash still gives Guerrero a memorable championship victory. It is an excellent opener and one of the strongest matches on the entire card.

Noble and Gunn are saddled with a stipulation built around Torrie Wilson that dates the match far more aggressively than the wrestling itself. The bout is short and structurally simple, with Gunn bringing the power advantage while Noble survives through opportunism, distraction and the tension surrounding Nidia and Torrie at ringside. The final sequence becomes less about competitive escalation and more about the stipulation, with Noble using the confusion to steal the pin. Nothing is catastrophically executed, but the match feels like an angle stretched onto pay-per-view and the story has aged poorly. It is easily one of the weakest parts of an otherwise strong event.

The Bar Room Brawl is a deliberately chaotic change of pace rather than a traditional wrestling match, and its success depends almost entirely on whether the viewer enjoys broad ensemble comedy and rapid-fire weapon spots. The crowded field includes regular roster members, novelty characters and developmental names, so the bout functions as a visual gag as much as a contest. Pool cues, tables, mirrors and bar furniture give the segment enough activity to avoid becoming static, and Bradshaw winning after eliminating Brother Love provides a simple payoff. The match is not technically impressive, but it is brief, lively and distinct from everything around it. As a novelty attraction, it works better than its reputation might suggest.

Haas and Benjamin against Mysterio and Kidman gives Vengeance its second elite match by combining crisp tag-team structure with the kind of athletic exchanges that defined SmackDown's best in-ring identity in 2003. Mysterio and Kidman create the explosive bursts, while the champions control the match through isolation, quick tags and the ability to cut off momentum before the challengers can fully accelerate. The closing stretch is especially strong because the near-falls feel earned and the champions survive without needing a cheap finish. A powerbomb-and-diving-lariat combination finally ends the challenge and keeps the titles on Haas and Benjamin. It is fast, coherent and one of the event's clearest arguments for how strong the SmackDown roster had become.

Sable and Stephanie McMahon are working almost entirely from television storyline heat, and the match never develops enough wrestling substance to justify its pay-per-view placement. Stephanie provides most of the aggression while Sable works around character presentation and opportunism, but the pace remains awkward and the stipulation adds very little beyond allowing the brawl to spill outside. The finish depends on A-Train attacking Stephanie while the referee is distracted by Sable's torn top, giving Sable the pin through interference. That advances the story, yet it also reinforces how little of the match stands on its own. The segment is memorable for the angle and almost nothing about the wrestling.

Undertaker and Cena produce one of the most historically interesting matches on the card because the future franchise star is still a rising heel trying to prove that his confidence belongs at the top of SmackDown. Cena attacks the midsection, uses the chain and survives enough of Undertaker's signature offense to look dangerous without being positioned as the veteran's equal. The false finish after the FU matters because Undertaker kicking out preserves his aura while still giving Cena a moment where the upset feels possible. The Last Ride eventually ends the match cleanly, giving Undertaker the victory without erasing Cena's progress. It is a strong veteran-versus-rising-star match that has become more interesting with hindsight.

McMahon and Gowen exceed the obvious limitations of the pairing by building the match around sympathy, cruelty and the spectacle of Gowen surviving punishment that the crowd desperately wants him to overcome. McMahon targets the amputated leg and controls long stretches, which makes the match uncomfortable by design but also gives Gowen's comebacks genuine emotional force. The chair counter that leaves McMahon bloodied creates the bout's strongest reversal, and Gowen's missed Corkscrew Moonsault gives the finish a believable opening rather than making the loss feel arbitrary. McMahon wins, but the post-match standing ovation makes Gowen the emotional winner of the segment. It is much better than the premise suggests and one of the night's most effective pieces of storytelling.

Lesnar, Angle and Big Show close Vengeance with a main event that succeeds because each wrestler has a clear role and the triple-threat structure never becomes an excuse for long stretches of inactivity. Big Show supplies the overwhelming size, Lesnar brings explosive power and Angle provides the most technical versatility, allowing the match to shift styles whenever the action begins to settle. The chair shots, simultaneous chokeslam attempts and Angle Slam through the announce table create escalation without making the championship feel secondary to the spectacle. Angle ultimately hits an Angle Slam on Big Show and then another on Lesnar to win the title cleanly enough and end the show with a major championship change. It is an excellent main event and one of the strongest WWE triple threats of the era.