50. Royal Rumble '96 IC: Vader (w/Perfect) d. Shawn Michaels (switch) 4 ½
-Vader's WWF PPV debut, he busts Michaels over hardway and pins him after the Vaderbomb.
49. Summer Slam '96 IC: Vader (w/Perfect) d. Cactus Jack 4 ½
-Vader and Cactus picked up their old NWA rivalry here, potato-ing each other for 20 minutes; Vader kept his belt and postmatch powerbombed Jack off the apron.
48. Summer Slam '96 WWF Title: Shawn Michaels d. Owen Hart 4 ½
-This featured the rare pre-match brawl between Austin and Pillman; both Michaels and Owen were babyfaces and Shawn kept his belt from his longtime rival.
47. Survivor Series '05 IC/US/TV: Chris Benoit d. Kurt Angle (triple crown) 4 ½
This was an Eddy Guerrero tribute match as he died a couple of weeks prior to the show; Benoit beat Angle in the finals of a tournament for the vacant IC belt, the winner would also gain the Triple Crown. Benoit took this one (Angle never won the IC)
46. Survivor Series '96 IC: Cage: Cactus Jack d. Vader (switch) 4 ½
-Flaming barbed wire baseball bat in Madison Square Garden in 1996. Foley took Vader's belt. Vader's best WWF match.
45. WM32: IC: El Generico d. AJ Styles (switch) 4 ½
-AJ never beat Generico in WWF (through 2020) their first meeting was for AJ's IC title at WM32; Generico got the win, then took a brutal Bullet Club asskicking. AJ won the WWF Title in the Elimination Chamber at night's end.
44. Survivor Series: '96 WWF Title: Bret Hart (w/Anvil/Pillman) d. Shawn Michaels 4 ½ (switch)
-It's a Harts/Clique matchup; Bret was the heel in this one, he held onto the ropes as leverage during the pinfall, becoming the first man in WWF history to win the title 3 times. Postmatch saw a brawl between the two factions (Davey Boy and Owen were babyfaces but they still fought with Bret - when it came to Harts v Clique, blood was always thicker than water). Austin, of course, was also involved here because it was 1996.
43. WM 16: IC: Eddy Guerrero d. Chris Jericho 4 ½ (switch)
-Eddy and Jericho had a long NWA feud and they brought it right to WWF, Eddy taking Jericho's title in his Mania debut.
42. WM 17 Chris Jericho d. Eddy Guerrero (Guest referee-Hector Guerrero) 4 ½
-The blowoff, Jericho gets the liontamer submission and wins the girl (Stacy Keibler) at the end.
41. WM35: Bryan Danielson d. Samoa Joe 4 1/2
- -The blowoff to their long program; from ROH to Danielson's time as WWF Commissioner, to a 3 match series in WWF; each man staked his wrestling reputation on the outcome of this one and it was Danielson who came away victorious.
-
40. WM22: WWF/NWA/ECW: Rey Mysterio d. Chris Benoit 4 ½
The only singles match the two men would ever have (it's Benoit's last ever match) Rey kept his belt to cement his role as the ace of the promotion.
39. WM31: WWF Title No DQ: Brock Lesnar d. Claudio Castagnoli 4 ½
-Brock took Claudio's belt at the Rumble and kept it here; postmatch saw the debut of Prince Devitt, arriving at WWF as a Paul Heyman Guy.
38. Summer Slam '10 Bryan Danielson d. CM Punk 4 ½
-Danielson's WWF PPV debut, Punk became a crazy person following Edge's attack on Maria, he hospitalized Steamboat, leading to this match; Punk did a stretcher job here following a referee stoppage.
37. WM34: AJ Styles d. Bryan Danielson 4 ½
-Danielson's return to the ring after a 3 year retirement saw him fall short in an attempt to reclaim his "best wrestler in the world" moniker.
36. WM16: WWF Title: Chris Benoit d. Cactus Jack 4 ½ (switch)
-Benoit/Eddy/Malenko/Saturn arrived from NWA after the Rumble, they all won matches at WM 16 - with Benoit, the 3 time NWA Champion, getting the big one, taking Cactus's WWF Title. The four intruders victoriously taking control of the ring postmatch. Foley's best WWF match.
35. WM31: Kenta d. Bryan Danielson 4 ½
-It sure seemed like the last match of Danielson's career when it happened; with Steamboat and Kobashi looking on from a luxury suite, Kenta hit the Go to Sleep to win the main event at Wrestlemania. Kenta's best WWF match.
34. WM29 WWF Title: Brock Lesnar (w/Heyman) d. Bryan Danielson (w/Steamboat and Punk) (Guest referee-Bruno Sammartino)(switch) 4 ½
-First ever meeting between Danielson and Lesnar; Heyman juiced Lesnar up for years about this guy named Bryan who everyone said was the best wrestler in the world - Lesnar came to WWF, mowed down Punk and set his eye on Danielson. The finish came when Punk (in Danielson's corner) threw in the towel as Bryan was locked in a submission hold.
33. WM16: Tags: TLC: Hardys (Lita) d. Dudleys (Spike), Edge/Christian (Guest referee-Bob Backlund) (switch) 4 ½
Crazy spotfest, you know how it goes, the Hardys took the belts from the Duds.
32. WM13 WWF Title Steve Austin (w/Pillman) d. Bret Hart (switch) 4 ½
-Austin aligned with Pillman and they set their sights on both the Harts and the Clique, Austin won with the Stunner.
31 Survivor Series 2019 IC Title: Ricochet d Adam Cole 4 3/4
-State of the art modern wrestling; two of the best wrestlers alive going full tilt.
30. Royal Rumble '98 WWF Title: Owen Hart d. Steve Austin 4 ¾
-You remember the iconic image; the blood flowing down Austin's face as he passes out in the Sharpshooter. Once Austin recovers he gives Owen the stunner postmatch.
29. Survivor Series '94 WWF Title: Shawn Michaels (w/Diesel) d. Owen Hart (w/Bulldog) 4 ¾ (switch)
-Shawn takes Owen's title in San Antonio after the superkick; postmatch Diesel jacknifed Michaels to the canvas and held the belt aloft.
28. Royal Rumble '03 TLC4: Hardys (w/Bischoff) d. Dudleys (w/Heyman) d. Edge/Christian (w/Trish) 4 ¾
-5 stretcher jobs postmatch; only Matt remained standing as this long feud came to an end. It's the best match of any configuration of this feud.
Steamboat, obviously a critical figure in modern WWF history, returned to the promotion and lost this all babyface match to IC Champ Bret, who also kept over Tenryu in this run.
26. Royal Rumble '14 WWF Championship: Montreal Match: Bryan Danielson d. CM Punk, Brock Lesnar, Jack Swagger 4 ¾
The third Montreal Match, that's a 4 way, one fall tornado submission match - loser leaves town. Owen beat Bret, Matt beat Jeff, and here, Danielson beat Punk. Danielson and Punk had been stablemates but this marked the full transition of GDI from Punk to Bryan (Lesnar had feuded with both of them, he and Swagger went into this one as stablemates but this match fractured that relationship). The best WWF match for Punk.
25. Survivor Series '97 WWF Title: Montreal Match: Owen Hart d. Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin 4 ¾
All these years later, wrestling fans worldwide still talk about Montreal. Bret and Shawn had a seven year rivalry heads of their respective stables whose feud served as the backbone of this period of WWF. Shawn and Owen were career long rivals, where one went, the other followed - Austin's mission was to destroy everyone on both sides - and Bret had turned on his brother and those two had been enemies, but had neared reconciliation. Owen submits Bret in the sharpshooter.
24. Summer Slam '00 IC: 2 of 3 Falls: Chris Jericho d. Eddy Guerrero 4 ¾ (switch)
-Babyface Jericho, heel Guerrero, in the middle of their hot feud - Jericho with the pinfall win; Malenko and Eddy had postmatch words which would lead to their only WWF meeting.
23. Summer Slam '94 WWF Title: Cage Match: Owen Hart d. Bret Hart 4 ¾
-Bret's the heel - Owen's the babyface; the Anvil (on Bret's side) and Davey Boy (on Owen's) both returned to the promotion in this one; Owen escaped the cage to keep his belt.
22. Summer Slam '92 WWF Title: Bret Hart d. Davey Boy Smith 4 ¾
-The one at Wembley; on the outside, Michaels dropped an elbow from the top buckle to send Owen through the announce table in the first table bump in promotion history. Davey submits to the Sharpshooter. Savage attacks Michaels after the table bump, Flair attacked Bret postmatch; Hennig saved Bret. Lot going on at Wembley. Davey's best ever match.
21. WM35: IC Ricochet d. Prince Devitt 4 3/4
-Ricochet's first WWF PPV match, he relinquished the Dark Ride belt in order to put a stop to the evil reign of the Bullet Club leader Devitt. He did in a high octane spotfest.
20. Summer Slam '04 WWF/NWA/ECW 2 of 3 Falls: Chris Benoit d. Kurt Angle 4 ¾
-Toronto providing a home Canadian crowd for babyface Benoit against heel Angle. Neither man had ever submitted and the third fall was submission only - Angle tapped to the crossface.
19. Summer Slam '05 WWF/NWA/ECW: 2 of 3 Falls: Rey Mysterio d. Eddy Guerrero (switch, triple crown) 4 ¾
-Eddy's last match. All babyface; Rey wins his first WWF Title and the triple crown. Mysterio's best WWF match.
18. WM21 WWF/NWA/ECW: Iron Man: Eddy Guerrero d. Chris Benoit (switch) (Guest referee- Dean Malenko) 4 ¾
-They went over an hour; there were judges, Eddy got the frogsplash pinfall and WM 21 ended the way WM20 ended - with Benoit, Eddy and Dean standing in the ring.
17. Royal Rumble '17 Tags: Kevin Steen/El Generico d. Trash (Claudio/Neville) (switch) 4 ¾
-Steen and Generico became the 100th WWF tag champs, taking the belts from their former GDI stablemates.
16. Survivor Series '00 WWF Title: Chris Benoit d. Steve Austin 4 ¾
-Benoit's the heel champion; Austin's been gone a year with injury, Benoit hits him with 10 consecutive germans and taps him out with the crossface. The best match of Austin's career.
15. WM33 Tags: Ladder Wars: Trash (Neville/Claudio) d. El Generico/Kevin Steen (switch) 4 ¾
-Full carnage; the four former GDI stablemates doing all the terrible things four men could do to each other with a mess of ladders. Trash took the belts and then immediately lost them to the returning Hardys. The best tag match in WWF history.
14. WM2 WWF Title: Dynamite Kid d. Ricky Steamboat (switch) 4 3/4
-Steamboat's held the belt since taking it from Hogan prior to the first Mania; he drops it here to the head of the Hart Foundation - the other 3 members of which hit the ring postmatch; Wrestlemania 2 ends with Dynamite, Davey Boy, Bret and the Anvil all standing on turnbuckles holding their title belts. The best WWF match for either man.
13. WM19 Eddy Guerrero (w/Horsemen) d. Chris Benoit 4 ¾
-Benoit broke away from the Horsemen (Flair, Leviathan Batista, Eddy, sort of Chavo) and Eddy set his sights on him; Chavo aids in the finish (Eddy wanted to fight Benoit alone) angering his uncle. Its Eddys best WWF match.
Here come the 5 star Matches.
12. Royal Rumble '93 IC: Iron Man: Shawn Michaels d. Owen Hart (switch) 5
-RAW debuted here; in the first match, Shawn beat Owen, making them 2-2 in their career singles battles. This was a 30 minute Iron Man match; Michaels won 2 falls to 1. This was Shawn's second IC title; postmatch he superkicked Owen cold and danced up the aisle.
11. Royal Rumble '97 WWF Title: Lumberjack: Bret Hart d. Shawn Michaels (Guest referee-Brian Pillman) 5
Shawn was a babyface in '97; the rest of the Clique (Hunter and the Outlaws) heels, but they stood together here. Bret and the Anvil were heels and the rest of the Harts (Owen/DBS) faces, but they stook together here. This one's in San Antonio and Bret kept the belt. It's a half hour match; the lumberjacks in almost constant battle with the other side. Postmatch Pillman leveled both Hart and Michaels with the title belt, then aligned with Austin to lay out everyone on both sides of the feud.
10. Royal Rumble '01 WWF Title: Chris Benoit d. Chris Jericho 5
- Jericho's best ever match. This is where Benoit extended the lineage of the Hart Foundation; Jericho positioned he and Benoit as the heirs to that proud legacy. The match is filled with references to past Hart Matches, Dynamite spots, Bret spots, Owen spots - Benoit gets the fall and keeps the belt.
-Harts v Clique is the feud that never ends; Bret was the heel, but Owen and DBS both made it clear they would pull for him. Shawn was the babyface, but the rest of the Clique, all heels, were firmly on his side. Bret regains the belt with the sharpshooter.
8. WMX IC: Ladder Razor Ramon d. Shawn Michaels (w/Diesel/Waltman) 5 (switch)
Razor was the babyface in this one, on the opposite side of the rest of his stablemates; he wins his first title belt here in a match you probably remember most of.
7. Summer Slam '13 WWF Title: Cage: Bryan Danielson d. Brock Lesnar
(w/Heyman/Swagger) 5 (switch)
-Danielson regains the strap in a bloody cage brawl, then is attacked postmatch by Punk with the WWF fork.
6. Royal Rumble '96 WWF Title: Bret Hart d. Owen Hart 5
-Heel Bret keeps his title here in another classic between the two brothers; postmatch Owen inadvertantly hit Davey Boy.
5. WMX WWF Title: Owen Hart d. Bret Hart (Guest referee-Hennig) 5 (switch)
-Bret didn't want to face his little brother, but Owen said he couldn't stay in Bret's shadow any longer and needed one night to see who the better man was. Bret came in as two year long babyface champion and ended it as a heel who lost the strap to his baby brother. Postmatch saw a handshake between bitter rivals Hennig and Savage. The best match of either man's career.
4. WM17 WWF Title: Kurt Angle d. Chris Benoit (switch) 5
-Angle was undefeated, Benoit was undefeated in the WWF - Kurt took the belt and started the longest WWF title run in the Mania era.
3. WM 20 WWF/NWA/ECW: Chris Benoit d. Kurt Angle (switch) 5
-3 years after their initial meeting the roles had flipped, Angle was the leader of a heel stable; Benoit firmly ensconced as the heir to the Hart lineage - Benoit/Eddy/Malenko had an all babyface celebration postmatch. The best match for either man.
2. WM30 WWF Title: Claudio Castagnoli d. Bryan Danielson (switch) 5
The height of the "hey movement" - Danielson was the champ, the leader of GDI, the best wrestler in the world - but there had been momentum behind one of his stablemates, Castagnoli - and it led to this; what seemed like the entire city of New Orleans chanting "Hey, Hey, Hey" in favor of the new WWF Champion.
1. Survivor Series '10 Bryan Danielson d. Low Ki 5
Nearly a decade later - Black is WWF Champion; and when we return next month we'll see the build to his first title defense, where he'll be taking on Kingston.
30. Royal Rumble '98 WWF Title: Owen Hart d. Steve Austin 4 ¾
-You remember the iconic image; the blood flowing down Austin's face as he passes out in the Sharpshooter. Once Austin recovers he gives Owen the stunner postmatch.
29. Survivor Series '94 WWF Title: Shawn Michaels (w/Diesel) d. Owen Hart (w/Bulldog) 4 ¾ (switch)
-Shawn takes Owen's title in San Antonio after the superkick; postmatch Diesel jacknifed Michaels to the canvas and held the belt aloft.
28. Royal Rumble '03 TLC4: Hardys (w/Bischoff) d. Dudleys (w/Heyman) d. Edge/Christian (w/Trish) 4 ¾
-5 stretcher jobs postmatch; only Matt remained standing as this long feud came to an end. It's the best match of any configuration of this feud.
-
27. Summer Slam '91 IC: Bret Hart d. Ricky Steamboat
4 ¾Steamboat, obviously a critical figure in modern WWF history, returned to the promotion and lost this all babyface match to IC Champ Bret, who also kept over Tenryu in this run.
26. Royal Rumble '14 WWF Championship: Montreal Match: Bryan Danielson d. CM Punk, Brock Lesnar, Jack Swagger 4 ¾
The third Montreal Match, that's a 4 way, one fall tornado submission match - loser leaves town. Owen beat Bret, Matt beat Jeff, and here, Danielson beat Punk. Danielson and Punk had been stablemates but this marked the full transition of GDI from Punk to Bryan (Lesnar had feuded with both of them, he and Swagger went into this one as stablemates but this match fractured that relationship). The best WWF match for Punk.
25. Survivor Series '97 WWF Title: Montreal Match: Owen Hart d. Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin 4 ¾
All these years later, wrestling fans worldwide still talk about Montreal. Bret and Shawn had a seven year rivalry heads of their respective stables whose feud served as the backbone of this period of WWF. Shawn and Owen were career long rivals, where one went, the other followed - Austin's mission was to destroy everyone on both sides - and Bret had turned on his brother and those two had been enemies, but had neared reconciliation. Owen submits Bret in the sharpshooter.
24. Summer Slam '00 IC: 2 of 3 Falls: Chris Jericho d. Eddy Guerrero 4 ¾ (switch)
-Babyface Jericho, heel Guerrero, in the middle of their hot feud - Jericho with the pinfall win; Malenko and Eddy had postmatch words which would lead to their only WWF meeting.
23. Summer Slam '94 WWF Title: Cage Match: Owen Hart d. Bret Hart 4 ¾
-Bret's the heel - Owen's the babyface; the Anvil (on Bret's side) and Davey Boy (on Owen's) both returned to the promotion in this one; Owen escaped the cage to keep his belt.
22. Summer Slam '92 WWF Title: Bret Hart d. Davey Boy Smith 4 ¾
-The one at Wembley; on the outside, Michaels dropped an elbow from the top buckle to send Owen through the announce table in the first table bump in promotion history. Davey submits to the Sharpshooter. Savage attacks Michaels after the table bump, Flair attacked Bret postmatch; Hennig saved Bret. Lot going on at Wembley. Davey's best ever match.
21. WM35: IC Ricochet d. Prince Devitt 4 3/4
-Ricochet's first WWF PPV match, he relinquished the Dark Ride belt in order to put a stop to the evil reign of the Bullet Club leader Devitt. He did in a high octane spotfest.
20. Summer Slam '04 WWF/NWA/ECW 2 of 3 Falls: Chris Benoit d. Kurt Angle 4 ¾
-Toronto providing a home Canadian crowd for babyface Benoit against heel Angle. Neither man had ever submitted and the third fall was submission only - Angle tapped to the crossface.
19. Summer Slam '05 WWF/NWA/ECW: 2 of 3 Falls: Rey Mysterio d. Eddy Guerrero (switch, triple crown) 4 ¾
-Eddy's last match. All babyface; Rey wins his first WWF Title and the triple crown. Mysterio's best WWF match.
18. WM21 WWF/NWA/ECW: Iron Man: Eddy Guerrero d. Chris Benoit (switch) (Guest referee- Dean Malenko) 4 ¾
-They went over an hour; there were judges, Eddy got the frogsplash pinfall and WM 21 ended the way WM20 ended - with Benoit, Eddy and Dean standing in the ring.
17. Royal Rumble '17 Tags: Kevin Steen/El Generico d. Trash (Claudio/Neville) (switch) 4 ¾
-Steen and Generico became the 100th WWF tag champs, taking the belts from their former GDI stablemates.
16. Survivor Series '00 WWF Title: Chris Benoit d. Steve Austin 4 ¾
-Benoit's the heel champion; Austin's been gone a year with injury, Benoit hits him with 10 consecutive germans and taps him out with the crossface. The best match of Austin's career.
15. WM33 Tags: Ladder Wars: Trash (Neville/Claudio) d. El Generico/Kevin Steen (switch) 4 ¾
-Full carnage; the four former GDI stablemates doing all the terrible things four men could do to each other with a mess of ladders. Trash took the belts and then immediately lost them to the returning Hardys. The best tag match in WWF history.
14. WM2 WWF Title: Dynamite Kid d. Ricky Steamboat (switch) 4 3/4
-Steamboat's held the belt since taking it from Hogan prior to the first Mania; he drops it here to the head of the Hart Foundation - the other 3 members of which hit the ring postmatch; Wrestlemania 2 ends with Dynamite, Davey Boy, Bret and the Anvil all standing on turnbuckles holding their title belts. The best WWF match for either man.
13. WM19 Eddy Guerrero (w/Horsemen) d. Chris Benoit 4 ¾
-Benoit broke away from the Horsemen (Flair, Leviathan Batista, Eddy, sort of Chavo) and Eddy set his sights on him; Chavo aids in the finish (Eddy wanted to fight Benoit alone) angering his uncle. Its Eddys best WWF match.
Here come the 5 star Matches.
12. Royal Rumble '93 IC: Iron Man: Shawn Michaels d. Owen Hart (switch) 5
-RAW debuted here; in the first match, Shawn beat Owen, making them 2-2 in their career singles battles. This was a 30 minute Iron Man match; Michaels won 2 falls to 1. This was Shawn's second IC title; postmatch he superkicked Owen cold and danced up the aisle.
11. Royal Rumble '97 WWF Title: Lumberjack: Bret Hart d. Shawn Michaels (Guest referee-Brian Pillman) 5
Shawn was a babyface in '97; the rest of the Clique (Hunter and the Outlaws) heels, but they stood together here. Bret and the Anvil were heels and the rest of the Harts (Owen/DBS) faces, but they stook together here. This one's in San Antonio and Bret kept the belt. It's a half hour match; the lumberjacks in almost constant battle with the other side. Postmatch Pillman leveled both Hart and Michaels with the title belt, then aligned with Austin to lay out everyone on both sides of the feud.
10. Royal Rumble '01 WWF Title: Chris Benoit d. Chris Jericho 5
- Jericho's best ever match. This is where Benoit extended the lineage of the Hart Foundation; Jericho positioned he and Benoit as the heirs to that proud legacy. The match is filled with references to past Hart Matches, Dynamite spots, Bret spots, Owen spots - Benoit gets the fall and keeps the belt.
-Harts v Clique is the feud that never ends; Bret was the heel, but Owen and DBS both made it clear they would pull for him. Shawn was the babyface, but the rest of the Clique, all heels, were firmly on his side. Bret regains the belt with the sharpshooter.
8. WMX IC: Ladder Razor Ramon d. Shawn Michaels (w/Diesel/Waltman) 5 (switch)
Razor was the babyface in this one, on the opposite side of the rest of his stablemates; he wins his first title belt here in a match you probably remember most of.
7. Summer Slam '13 WWF Title: Cage: Bryan Danielson d. Brock Lesnar
(w/Heyman/Swagger) 5 (switch)
-Danielson regains the strap in a bloody cage brawl, then is attacked postmatch by Punk with the WWF fork.
6. Royal Rumble '96 WWF Title: Bret Hart d. Owen Hart 5
-Heel Bret keeps his title here in another classic between the two brothers; postmatch Owen inadvertantly hit Davey Boy.
5. WMX WWF Title: Owen Hart d. Bret Hart (Guest referee-Hennig) 5 (switch)
-Bret didn't want to face his little brother, but Owen said he couldn't stay in Bret's shadow any longer and needed one night to see who the better man was. Bret came in as two year long babyface champion and ended it as a heel who lost the strap to his baby brother. Postmatch saw a handshake between bitter rivals Hennig and Savage. The best match of either man's career.
4. WM17 WWF Title: Kurt Angle d. Chris Benoit (switch) 5
-Angle was undefeated, Benoit was undefeated in the WWF - Kurt took the belt and started the longest WWF title run in the Mania era.
3. WM 20 WWF/NWA/ECW: Chris Benoit d. Kurt Angle (switch) 5
-3 years after their initial meeting the roles had flipped, Angle was the leader of a heel stable; Benoit firmly ensconced as the heir to the Hart lineage - Benoit/Eddy/Malenko had an all babyface celebration postmatch. The best match for either man.
2. WM30 WWF Title: Claudio Castagnoli d. Bryan Danielson (switch) 5
The height of the "hey movement" - Danielson was the champ, the leader of GDI, the best wrestler in the world - but there had been momentum behind one of his stablemates, Castagnoli - and it led to this; what seemed like the entire city of New Orleans chanting "Hey, Hey, Hey" in favor of the new WWF Champion.
1. Survivor Series '10 Bryan Danielson d. Low Ki 5
Nearly a decade later - Black is WWF Champion; and when we return next month we'll see the build to his first title defense, where he'll be taking on Kingston.
1 comment
This, of course, begs the question: what are the best Counterfactual TV matches ever?
Post a Comment