Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Top 50 Matches Since 2000: 35-31

#35
WWF Tag Team Championship Triangle Ladder Match 
Edge and Christian vs The Hardy Boyz vs The Dudley Boyz
WrestleMania 2000
 Much like Rock/Austin in my previous post, this is my 2nd favorite of the series of three-team ladder/TLC matches between Edge and Christian, the Hardyz, and the Dudleyz. This one may lack the range of weapons that was included in TLC I and II, but being that this was the first match of this type, it was incredibly innovative. Every spot was something new, something that hadn't been seen before in a wrestling match. Therefore, simply for the level of innovation that was showcased in this match, I have to put it ahead of one of the TLC matches.

#34
The Rock vs "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan
WrestleMania 18
 Naturally, this wasn't some sort of technical masterpiece. It was, in fact, basically the bare minimum of a wrestling match. The moves were basic, mostly punches and kicks until the signature moves came into play, but the atmosphere surrounding it was what made it so special. It's not often that you get to see a real-life fantasy match take place right before your eyes. That's exactly what this was. Hogan wasn't necessarily in his "prime" here, but even in that prime he wasn't a great worker. This match was two of the best at working the crowd doing just that, they had the audience in Toronto eating right out of the palms of their hands, brother.

#33
TLC Match
The Shield vs Ryback and Team Hell No
TLC 2012
  There's nothing better to me than a well-executed brawl in wrestling. Not "brawl" in the Attitude Era sense, where it was nothing but punches and kicks as they worked their way through a crowd of people trying to cop a feel, elbowing their way past dudes in Austin 3:16 shirts and eventually making it back to the ring just to go back to ringside and continue throwing each other halfheartedly into the steel steps. This was chaos at its very best. Spears, chokeslams, submissions, weapons, a table bump off a ladder that nearly shoot kills Seth Rollins, Ryback is unstoppable, you know, the usual. For a first official match in WWE, this was a great way to introduce The Shield to the audience.

#32
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match
Brock Lesnar (c) vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins
WrestleMania 31  
 For whatever reason, there were a lot of people that thought the match between Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar would be awful. Those people are what I like to refer to as wrong. Reigns and Lesnar had the hoss fight to end all hoss fights for 25 minutes, only for that snarky, multi-colored hair having prick Seth Rollins to swoop in and win the title. This was one of the best post-cash in sequences of all time as well, as Lesnar's refusal to stay down off the Curb Stomp followed by Reigns' Spear being the move to ultimately take him down, but that Spear also leaving Reigns vulnerable to be Curb Stomped for the victory brought uncertainty to a cash-in that you'd typically think would be successful.

#31
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista (c) vs The Undertaker
WrestleMania 23
  On the subject of hoss fights... I mean, Jesus. There's nothing better in wrestling than two gigantic dudes just hitting each other repeatedly, picking each other up and dropping each other on their heads, maybe even smashing each other through stuff. That was a brief synopsis of this match. Batista and Undertaker, easily two of the three or four biggest stars in the WWE at the time, took their opportunity to have a WrestleMania World Championship match and, at least in my opinion, overshadowed John Cena and Shawn Michaels, which was also a great match, by the way.
 

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