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WWE's No Mercy 2016 lasted for 2 hours 37 minutes and 40 seconds (2h 37m 40s). Here is a breakdown of the timing for every single second of the show, in chronological order.
The matches are in bold. The "pre-match" segments include video packages, entrances, ring introductions, and any verbal promos that occur right before a match officially begins. The "post-match" segments include any celebrations, replays, angles, attacks, or promos that occur right after a match is finished.
Start | End | Description | Duration |
0m 00s | 0m 21s | Now Then Forever | 0m 21s |
0m 21s | 2m 31s | Video hyping No Mercy 2016 | 2m 10s |
2m 31s | 3m 24s | Opening pyro; Ranallo welcomes you | 0m 53s |
3m 24s | 12m 26s | Pre-match for Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena | 9m 02s |
12m 26s | 34m 05s | Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena | 21m 39s |
34m 05s | 36m 00s | Post-match for Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena | 1m 55s |
36m 00s | 36m 31s | Commercial for Hell in a Cell 2016 | 0m 31s |
36m 31s | 36m 49s | Filler commentary | 0m 18s |
36m 49s | 39m 36s | Videop hyping Orton versus Wyatt | 2m 47s |
39m 36s | 42m 17s | Pre-match for Nikki Bella vs Carmella | 2m 41s |
42m 17s | 50m 23s | Nikki Bella vs Carmella | 8m 06s |
50m 23s | 51m 26s | Post-match for Nikki Bella vs Carmella | 1m 03s |
51m 26s | 53m 14s | Backstage with Miz and Bryan | 1m 48s |
53m 14s | 54m 31s | Ad for Komen Foundation | 1m 17s |
54m 31s | 57m 23s | Pre-match for Rhyno and Slater vs Usos | 2m 52s |
57m 23s | 1h 07m 41s | Rhyno and Slater vs Usos | 10m 18s |
1h 07m 41s | 1h 08m 44s | Post-match for Rhyno and Slater vs Usos | 1m 03s |
1h 08m 44s | 1h 09m 46s | Commercial for WWE 2K17 | 1m 02s |
1h 09m 46s |
1h 11m 07s | Backstage with Bray Wyatt | 1m 21s |
1h 11m 07s |
1h 14m 36s | Pre-match for Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin | 3m 29s |
1h 14m 36s |
1h 22m 05s | Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin | 7m 29s |
1h 22m 05s |
1h 23m 05s | Post-match for Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin | 1m 00s |
1h 23m 05s |
1h 23m 36s | Commercial for 3-Count Crushers | 0m 31s |
1h 23m 36s |
1h 24m 07s | Commercial for Total Bellas | 0m 31s |
1h 24m 07s |
1h 24m 23s | Pre-match for The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler | 0m 16s |
1h 24m 23s |
1h 24m 39s | Plug for PPV theme song |
0m 16s |
1h 24m 39s |
1h 32m 43s | Pre-match for The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler | 8m 04s |
1h 32m 43s |
1h 52m 26s | The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler | 19m 43s |
1h 52m 26s |
1h 55m 29s | Post-match for The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler | 3m 03s |
1h 55m 29s |
1h 57m 18s | Commercial for WWE Network | 1m 49s |
1h 57m 18s |
1h 58m 15s | Backstage with Randy Orton | 0m 57s |
1h 58m 15s |
2h 00m 35s | Kickoff panel with recap of Hawkins debut | 2m 20s |
2h 00m 35s | 2h 01m 08s | Video recap of pre-show match | 0m 33s |
2h 01m 08s |
2h 04m 16s | Pre-match for Naomi vs Alexa Bliss | 3m 08s |
2h 04m 16s |
2h 09m 40s | Naomi vs Alexa Bliss | 5m 24s |
2h 09m 40s |
2h 10m 39s | Post-match for Naomi vs Alexa Bliss | 0m 59s |
2h 10m 39s |
2h 12m 22s | Hype for Hell in a Cell 2016 | 1m 43s |
2h 12m 22s |
2h 20m 13s | Pre-match for Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt | 7m 51s |
2h 20m 13s |
2h 35m 53s | Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt | 15m 40s |
2h 35m 53s |
2h 37m 40s | Post-match for Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt | 1m 47s |
Match Times
The 7 matches combined for a total time of 1h 28m 19s. This means that 56.0% of the show was devoted to bell-to-bell action. This is the 19th highest percentage in this category out of the 48 WWE pay-per-view (PPV) events in my data set, which begins with Royal Rumble 2013. Out of the 40 three-hour events in my data set, the total match time of 1h 28m 19s ranks 33rd highest.
Here is the sorted list of match times for No Mercy 2016. This also includes where each match time ranks out of all 345 matches in my data set.
- 21m 39s: Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena (51st longest out of 345 matches)
- 19m 43s: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler (71st)
- 15m 40s: Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt (108th)
- 10m 18s: Rhyno and Slater vs The Usos (208th)
- 8m 06s: Nikki Bella vs Carmella (255th)
- 7m 29s: Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin (273rd)
- 5m 24s: Naomi vs Alexa Bliss (319th)
The opening match was the longest bout of the night. This has now happened three times out of 48 events in my data set, with No Mercy 2016 joining Survivor Series 2013 and WrestleMania 30 as the only other events sharing this characteristic. Randy Orton wrestled in the main event match on all three of these cards.
Pre-match Segments
The pre-match segments combined for a total time of 37m 23s, which is 23.7% of the show. This is the 23rd highest percentage in this category out of the 48 events in my data set. Out of the 40 three-hour events in my data set, the total pre-match segment time of 37m 23s ranks 27th highest.
Here is the sorted list of pre-match segment time for all 7 matches. For some context, keep in mind that the median pre-match segment time in my data set is 5m 14s and the average time is 5m 50s.
- 9m 02s: Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena
- 8m 20s: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler
- 7m 51s: Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt
- 3m 29s: Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin
- 3m 08s: Naomi vs Alexa Bliss
- 2m 52s: Rhyno and Slater vs The Usos
- 2m 41s: Nikki Bella vs Carmella
3 matches received the special treatment of a dedicated video package right before the match began. The videos hyping Cena's match (3m 22s), Ziggler's match (2m 48s), and Orton's match (2m 21s), combined to take up 8m 31s of the pre-match segment time.
WWE almost never airs a dedicated video package for the opening match of the night, but No Mercy 2016 bucked that norm due to the special circumstance of opening the card with a WWE Championship match. These video packages normally air before superstar entrances; in this case WWE had all three wrestlers enter the ring before airing the dedicated video package, while all three wrestlers just waited in the ring.
Post-match Segments
The post-match segments combined for a total time of 10m 50s, which is 6.9% of the show. This is the 44th highest percentage in this category out of the 48 events in my data set. Out of the 40 three-hour events in my data set, the total post-match segment time of 10m 50s ranks 39th highest.
Here is the sorted list of the post-match segment time for all 7 matches. For some context, keep in mind that the median post-match segment time in my data set is 1m 57s and the average time is 2m 26s.
- 3m 03s: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler
- 1m 55s: Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena
- 1m 47s: Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt
- 1m 03s: Nikki Bella vs Carmella
- 1m 03s: Rhyno and Slater vs The Usos
- 1m 00s: Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin
- 0m 59s: Naomi vs Alexa Bliss
Ziggler's post-match segment was the only notable one among these matches, as it included his lengthy celebration of his championship victory.
The shortest four post-match segment times barely broke the one-minute mark. These four times all range from 310th to 316th longest out of the 345 total post-match segments in my data set.
Miscellaneous Segments
That leaves about 13.4% (21m 08s) of the show for everything else. This is the 20th highest percentage in this category out of the 48 events in my data set. Out of the 40 three-hour events in my data set, the total miscellaneous segment time of 21m 08s ranks 18th highest.
Most of these miscellaneous segments are crammed into the time after one post-match segment ends and before the next pre-match segment begins. No Mercy 2016 included 7 different blocks of miscellaneous segments. Here is how long each block lasted, in chronological order:
- Block 1: 3m 24s (Now Then Forever; Opening hype video and pyro)
- Block 2: 3m 36s (Ad for Hell in a Cell 2016; Hype for Orton vs Wyatt)
- Block 3: 3m 05s (Backstage with Miz and Bryan; plug for Komen)
- Block 4: 2m 23s (Ad for WWE 2K17; Backstage with Wyatt)
- Block 5: 1m 18s (Ad for 3-Count Crushers; Ad for Total Bellas)
- Block 6: 5m 39s (Hype for WWE Network; Backstage with Orton; Kickoff panel)
- Block 7: 1m 43s (Hype for Hell in a Cell 2016)
Summary
Here is a listing of how much total show time was allocated for each match when you add up all 3 components: pre-match time, match time, and post-match time. This list also includes where each total time ranks among the 345 entries in my data set.
- 32m 36s: Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena (63rd longest out of 345 entries)
- 31m 06s: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler (73rd)
- 25m 18s: Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt (112th)
- 14m 13s: Rhyno and Slater vs The Usos (246th)
- 11m 58s: Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin (283rd)
- 11m 50s: Nikki Bella vs Carmella (287th)
- 9m 31s: Naomi vs Alexa Bliss (321st)
Now here is a look at the "Match Time Percentage" for each match. For any given match, this percentage shows how the match time compares to the combined pre-match and post-match segment time. For some context, it's good to know that the median result here since 2013 is 62.7%.
(Here's an example calculation: an entry with a match time of 6m 00s, pre-match time of 3m 00s, and a post-match time of 1m 00s has a score of 60.0%, because the match time of 6m 00s is 60% of the total sum of 10m 00s for all three components.)
- 72.5%: Rhyno and Slater vs The Usos
- 68.5%: Nikki Bella vs Carmella
- 66.4%: Styles vs Ambrose vs Cena
- 63.4%: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler
- 62.5%: Jack Swagger vs Baron Corbin
- 61.9%: Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt
- 56.7%: Naomi vs Alexa Bliss
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Backlash 2016 had one of the shortest overall run times out of all WWE PPVs over the last 5 years, and this was followed up with a No Mercy 2016 event which was actually shorter by 12 seconds.
As far as the individual timing components go, all three PPVs since SummerSlam 2016 have had a match time percentage between 56.0 to 57.1 percent. No Mercy 2016 stands out for including one of the lowest post-match segment percentages in my data set.
Final Results for No Mercy 2016
Match - 56.0% - 1h 28m 19s
Pre-match - 23.7% - 37m 23s
Post-match - 6.9% - 10m 50s
Miscellaneous - 13.4% - 21m 08s