But while the story was simple, the match was complex, as the two Hart brothers - both graduates of their father Stu Hart's famous basement "dungeon" - put on a pro wrestling clinic. Mick Foley described the bout best when he told WWE.com that his clash with Austin was, "The kind of match you could show to someone and say, 'This is why Im a wrestling fan.' In many ways, the opening chapter of the legendary Steamboat-Flair trilogy played out like the first movement of a symphony. Since the latest livestream, we know 62 ratings of the full 200 wrestlers on the roster. Moments later, Hart locked on The Sharpshooter to capture the title, launching one of the most prolific careers in WWE history. Mr. Money in the Bank, Randy Orton, entered the arena with a knowing grin. Every minute is momentous. Plus, get every WWE Premium Live Event, your favorite shows, new movies, live sports, and more. 'Taker finally granted Michaels his wish, but for a price HBK's career. But something funny happened. It made me feel like we had seen the last of Shawn Michaels, and it was very sad. The warrior known as "Dangan" (Japanese for bullet) endured some ferocious chair strikes including one off the top rope and still roared back with a powerbomb over the top rope that drilled the 6-foot-6, 295-pound beast through a table. Top Superstar ranks as the highest-rated in WWE video game franchise history. "Believe me, even as the referee was making the three-count, even as I was surrounded by the potpourri of burnt hair, charred flesh and blood, as I was losing, I realized I was having that defining WrestleMania moment." Both duos represented four of WCWs most popular stars at the time, making this a unique and rarely seen battle of fan favorites. Still, no matter what Austin did on this night, Steamboat was one step ahead. The Foundations triumph is palpable no matter with whom you sided in one of Harts finest showdowns with his Texas Rattlesnake rival. And WWE's younger fanbase, who grew up with WWE's larger-than-life giants, was underwhelmed by the 43-year old claiming to be "the real champ." BRAD "HITMAN" HART vs STONE GOLD STEVE AUSTIN. And the reunion at the end was amazing. It was something I'll always remember and cherish, working with one of the greatest masked wrestlers ever in our industry. PETER ROSENBERG, AS TOLD TO ZACH LINDER. 49. "The best thing was, after the match, walking into a locker room with a bunch of guys who'd been in the business for many years and were big stars, standing up and giving this guy a standing ovation. In a match that can be considered one of the finest displays of technical wrestling ever, Perfect worked over Hart and thought he had retained his title, only for the "Hit Man" to kick out of the Perfect Plex. Watch every Premium Live Event and enjoy some of your favorite WWE content on Shahid. Watching these two work at that level for 60-plus minutes is an impressive display today, and was practically unheard of (in the WWE) then. But that wasnt all. There was a sudden respect because he had just gone through years of learning in one night. A lot of people loved Christian and had been waiting for him to have that moment in the main event, and he turned out to physically be the perfect match for Randy Orton. We havent seen every single match ever. And Shawn Michaels and I clicked from the first 30 seconds of that match. Then by order of WWE Commissioner Gorilla Monsoon they were forced to take it even further. Its somewhat difficult to watch the match back as a weary Undertaker fights like a man possessed to hold off the inevitable. Steamboat vs. Savage was way ahead of its time and for fans of pure pro wrestling still holds up to this day. No ulterior motives, no chicanery, just four legendary competitors squaring off to find out which tag team was the best. Thats what new wrestlers are learning today. Well, one veteran, as technically Kurt Angle had debuted only five years earlier, but by then had already established himself as one of the best ever. If the match would still be a classic with the sound off, it makes the cut. However, it was their third clash at Starrcade 1992 that truly defined their rivalry. And after battling in enough five-star classics, they knew each others moves like the backs of their hands. Both men were in full command of their craft and characters, telling a story of a hero trying to win the right way and a vicious psycho who'd do anything to win. The match was grueling, with Race targeting Flairs injured neck and Flair battling back valiantly. While WrestleMania III is one of the greatest WrestleManias ever, it relies largely on pure pageantry and feels very much from its era (there was even a six-man tag match featuring Hillbilly Jim and four little people). First of all, I didnt know if Shawn would ever come back. 1 post 0. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. Flair even went so far as to provide altered photos to WWE Magazine long before the advent of Photoshop or TMZ. It's a matter of my physical prowess against his technical and high-flying ability. And the most special part is after the match, The Rock sits over Austin and they have a long conversation just the two of them. Hasan abimizle 1,2,3 saniye iinde takmlar alp, efsane ma yaptk, izleyelim. used it to his advantage, forcing Blanchard to quit and reclaiming the U.S. The brawl fit in broken pool cues, crashed merchandise tables and a shovel, and was way more dangerous than anything else happening at the time. Summerslam 2002 4. Two generational stars. The high spots (and there are many) aren't just there to pop the crowd. Michaels refusing to tap to the Sharpshooter as the clock ticked down is still suspenseful, while his out-of-nowhere Sweet Chin Music and post-match celebration always makes the historical highlight reels. BOBBY MELOK. And you couldn't ask for a better opponent than Angle. It was wild and it was extreme. One of the reasons was his match at WrestleMania XIX against another G.O.A.T. Third, there must be a conclusive winner(s), so Shawn Michaels vs. Mankind from Mind Games 1996 and Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle from SummerSlam 2001 are out. Top three matches of 2021: SmackDown vs. Roman Reigns; Dynamite "Grand Slam" vs. Kenny Omega; Dynamite "Winter is Coming" vs. "Hangman" Adam Page Bryan Danielson put together one of the most. The loathed "Nature Boy" earned both the ire and respect (begrudgingly) of WWE fans as he entered the 30-man clash at No. Both competitors were battered and bloodied as they unloaded from their diverse arsenal of moves, with Lynn delivering perhaps the biggest highlight of the night: a sunset flip powerbomb that drove RVD through a table on the outside floor. The gimmick was clever, a Three Stages of Hell match, a modified 2 out of 3 Falls match. Sadly, Owen's life would end in tragedy just a few years later, while Bret's historic first WWE run would end in controversy. Since we are based in Europe, we are forced to bother you with this information. Look no further than the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship Match that stole the show at SuperBrawl II. The inaugural ladder-wrecking melee was chock-full of daring and innovative maneuvers, many of which were executed by the uber-agile Shelton Benjamin. This match, though. This, just four weeks after Punks most trusted advisor cut him down at the knees right when it appeared he was poised to win the WWE Championship contract at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. Its one of those things you share with each other." Title. One had the flash and showmanship, the other was pure grit and desire. Things don't always go according to plan in pro wrestling. If you want glorious, Attitude-Era chaos in the PG Era, check out this match, which featured some inspired steel chair work and a wince-inducing tumble through three tables by Seth Rollins en route to a Shield victory from which The Hounds of Justice never looked back. Throughout the 2010s, the HIAC went from being a battleground where only blood feuds ended to "just another match" where any feud began. I left it out there that night. The most brutal brawl of all. I was really intrigued by his style and was looking forward to getting in the ring with him. It also set the pair on a collision course that would culminate in the infamous incident in Montreal the following year at Survivor Series. With an opportunity to challenge The Rock for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 29 on the line, Cena and Punk dug deep into their arsenals to create an instant classic on Raw. Funk offered Flair a chance to quit before this match even started. It's one of those magic things where its hard to point out why it worked so well. Near triple the number of fans tuned into see The Rock successfully defend his WWE title inside a steel cage vs Shane O Mac. The perfect mix of technical mastery and main event-level appeal, Michaels and Jericho traded kip-ups and Superkicks in a fast-paced affair that saw HBK walk away with a big Show of Shows victory. Although Hell in a Cell brought out the very best, and the very worst, in The Cerebral Assassin, The Undertaker ultimately sealed the victory with a Tombstone Piledriver as a weary HBK made the three-count that ended an era. Everyone seems to remember the bookend moments of their instant-classic rivalry, such as Punks hot-fire pipe bomb where he took Cena to task for his perceived dominance and trashed WWE itself for imposing a glass ceiling over underappreciated mid-carders, and of course, The Second City Saints kiss-off goodbye to Mr. McMahon with the title in hand. The match told a simple but compelling story about two driven men competing to be the best. The match didn't lie to fans Guerrero couldn't beat Lesnar. He wasn't aware of the stories behind the characters. If you tear the frickin' house down, that'll usually take care of it." And one of the most famous examples from this era wasn't a highspot or a 2.75-second nearfall, but a simple staredown between two of the most famous factions ever, The Shield and The Wyatt Family on "Monday Night Raw." WrestleMania 17 (stylized as WrestleMania X-Seven) was the 17th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). Yeah, it was pretty metal. Its a cool relationship, it really is. The Rock is one of the greatest feuds in WWE history because it featured one-half of the proverbial "Mount Rushmore of Pro Wrestling." What if we had gotten a bigger platform? In the end, the man who would one day become "Stone Cold" used the ropes to steal a win and extinguish "The Dragon," temporarily. TOM HERRERA. Really love wrestling? I think it helped people see Randy in a different way. It was a great Vengeance in July 2002 and an unbelievable Triple Threat main event that saw WWE Undisputed Champion Undertaker, The Rock and Kurt Angle strike down upon each other with furious anger and with one anothers signature moves, including a Rock-charged chokeslam, an Angle-executed Rock Bottom and an Undertaker-driven Angle Slam. It was a shocking sight that reminded the WWE Universe that The Phenom was most certainly mortal. Thats the tell-tale sign of two guys who know what theyre doing. CM Punk, Those words provided the backdrop of betrayal that framed the match billed as "The Best vs. Despite the fact that both Superstars were (and are) better known for their explosive, OMG-inducing acrobatics, the match quickly turned into a gritty battle of wills, wherein Zayn seemed to correct, one by one, the mistakes that had previously kept him from the title. It was a pitch-perfect old-school championship bout, a match that felt big not because of the effects or the stage, but because everybody in the arena so fully believed that this was the most important match ever. "The biggest challenge for me was to take the things in my head that seem so vibrant and real and make them happen in the ring. ", Savage abused everyone caught in his crosshairs, piledriving referee Mark Curtis and slapping announcer Dave Penzer, while DDP the hardest-working man in WCW earnestly fought the good fight. "The greatest thing about that rivalry is that each week it changed, because there was no destination in sight, and one of the things that got added to it as the rivalry was progressing was Chris getting white-hot and winning the World Championship. Hart had come back from an extended absence to work with who he felt was the WWE's best wrestler, before regaining his title from Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 13 (yeah, so much for that). They told me, 'Dustin, shut up. "But then you think, 'Hes been away for four years. So what makes their bout at WrestleMania 25 the greatest? Steve Austin. The competitors wore dog collars that connected them by a long metal chain. TOM HERRERA. ANTHONY BENIGNO. By the end, both men were busted open (There is literally nothing better than the overhead camera looking down on that red-stained, baby-blue ring mat) and their exhaustion was tangible and harrowing. It's easy to forget, but Austin was once one of the world's best workers. Royal rumble 2001 7. Instead, it turned into a brutal, "No DQ" brawl between two technical wrestlers putting on a violent, bloody masterpiece. He's one in a million." GREG ADKINS. We were not about to go out there and have a crash-and-burn Ladder Match under any circumstances, so it benefited us that the [rivalry] didnt call for that. Royal Rumble (2000) The 2000 Royal Rumble gets off to a fantastic start with Taz making his WWE pay-per-view debut against Kurt Angle. He can do all the pro wrestling stuff you want, but can also do the other stuff, and thats what was so much fun for him and I mixing and matching the two. To a luchador, a mask isnt just part of a costume. and he said, 'He's halfway to 18. 6. Sometimes, the long way is the best. @JOEYSTYLES, In front of more than 70,000 fans in the Georgia Dome, two Superstars who defined an era clashed in an epic No Holds Barred Match. It has been said a great wrestler can make a broomstick look good. AEW star Keith Lee recently appeared on The Masked Man Show for an interview covering all things pro wrestling. Shawn Michaels was the cowardly heel who had managed to escape Undertaker's clutches. MIKE McAVENNIE, "The wild-eyed Southern Boys of [Steve] Armstrong & [Tracy] Smothers faced off against the Stan Lane & Bobby Eaton version of The Midnight Express. There's more, but that's the beauty of this match. The crowd was red hot for this feud. But some of the best moments in pro wrestling history involve a third party, and theres no match that balanced three separate sets of motivations better than this one.

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