Tagged under:
By @TrueGodImmortal
The year is basically over. With that being said, we wanted to look back at the matches that occurred this year and narrow them down to the absolute best of the best. So with that, it's time to crown the EOTR WWE Match Of The Year. Let's get into it.
Runner Ups
*Kota Ibushi vs Cedric Alexander
Cruiserweight Classic
2nd Round Match
-The coming of Cedric Alexander finally arrived in WWE and he showed up in a major way against Kota, becoming a star in the process. The 15 minute match was a top to bottom great contest and deserves a mention as one of the best matches of the year as Kota and Cedric put on quite a show.
*The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler
No Mercy
-I didn't expect much out of this match at first, but I was pleasantly surprised. With Ziggler putting his career on the line, it seemed as if he was going to retire and walk away from the company. What we got was a near classic match that saw Ziggler overcome Miz, Maryse, and some of the Spirit Squad to win the Intercontinental title to the biggest ovation he's received since cashing in MITB over 3 years ago. Great match.
*Sasha Banks vs Charlotte
Falls Count Anywhere
November 28, 2016
-The feud of the year spawned one of the best matches of the year. There's a trend in the feud: The matches that Charlotte wins tend to be lesser and have bad finishes, while the matches that Sasha wins tend to be much better. Their first big singles contest on RAW in July could be on this list as well, but hands down, this match was the best of the entire feud. From the opening bell to the inventive Bank Statement out in the crowd, this match was an amazing contest and one of my all time favorite women's matches. Sasha picking up the win and getting respect from Ric Flair was great. It's a shame WWE ruined it a few weeks later, but still.
*AJ Styles vs Dean Ambrose
WWE TLC
-This might surprise you. I like this match better than the Reigns vs Styles matches just a bit because it was crazy and had some really great spots and just all around good action. I could do without the James Ellsworth interference, but other than that, this match is damn near flawless and yet another testament to the legendary run of AJ Styles this year.
*Sami Zayn vs Kevin Owens
Battleground
-This is a great match, and was intended to end the Zayn vs Owens rivalry. That wasn't true obviously, but this was their best match against each other hands down on the WWE roster and it ended with Zayn finally getting a win over Owens. The action was fast paced throughout and the chemistry definitely was there. A classic.
*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Sami Zayn
NXT TakeOver Dallas
-This really would be no. 1 for me. It really would. I think this is my favorite match of the year and it was that moment in time where you realized Nakamura was finally in WWE that brings it higher in terms of rank. Nakamura and Zayn gave us a 20 plus minute battle which ended with Nakamura picking up a huge victory, but this is a landmark match in NXT and for WWE, as Nakamura finally staked his claim within the big league.
*John Cena vs AJ Styles
Summerslam
-This is the best main roster match of the year. It edges out Zayn vs Owens just a little bit. I would have chose this as the best, but there's one match that I think had everything I wanted to see and surpassed my expectations. This particular one lived up to my expectations and slightly surpassed it, with the fact that Styles got the victory over Cena cleanly adding to the greatness of the match. For nearly 25 minutes, two of the top stars of Smackdown went head to head in a classic bout. This is the 2nd best moment of Styles' WWE career so far next to winning the WWE Title
Winner:
The Revival vs Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa
NXT TakeOver Toronto
2 Out Of 3 Falls
-I watched this match back a few times before deciding. I was blown away by this match and it blew my expectations out of the water. Ciampa and Gargano took the Revival to the limit and each fall meant something in this match. The way the match ended was perfect and on my fourth watch of the match, I found myself absolutely captivated STILL. That's the mark of a great match and a true classic. This might be one of the best tag team matches in the history of wrestling and it's definitely one of the best tag matches I've seen in many years. Gargano and Ciampa winning the titles was the extra icing on the cake, which made the match that much sweeter. A classic indeed.
-True
Tagged under:
By @MeenHendrix
Before I start this article I want to give a brief introduction for #TagTeamTuesdays. So basically my teammates at Eyes on the Ring will work with me to get you guys an article every week about one of my all time favorite tag teams. I'm going across promotions so it won't be completely WWE guys, but honestly there will be more WWE teams than others. I will try to be open to suggestions as I go along, but I really wanna focus in on the guys I loved.
I want to start with one of the best tag teams I've ever had the pleasure of watching. John Morrison and The Miz were opposites but at the same time they were like mirror images of each other. With Morrison you have the pretty boy and athletic God. With Miz you have the loud mouth who can throw a couple stiff strikes.
When they first started off in 2007, they were opponents. They were fighting to become the ECW Champion. They both lost out to CM Punk and were just randomly thrown in a tag team together. Their first night together they won the WWE Tag Team Championship from MVP and Matt Hardy. Now honestly I believe WWE had mistakenly discovered a gem. They were using Miz and Morrison to further Hardy and MVP's feud by having them drop the titles and MVP turn his back on Hardy. However, they had just created one of the best tag teams of the modern era.
The Dynamic Duo began to run through both the Smackdown and ECW roster's tag teams, getting the best of much inferior teams such as Shannon Moore and Jimmy Wang Yang, Jesse and Festus, Tommy Dreamer and Colin Delaney, and even the beloved Hardys. They dropped the titles to Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder in a Fatal 4 Way Tag Team Match at The Great American Bash. They didn't have any real noteworthy feuds as a team besides mocking DX and their Dirt Sheet vs Word Up internet feud with Cryme Tyme, which they went on to win. They did later go on to capture the World Tag Team Championship, but their reign did nothing except help the Colóns unify the Tag Team Titles from both brands.
Why I Love This Team
-Miz and Morrison were the absolute perfect combination. They worked together seamlessly. Watching them made it feel like they had been working together for years. They were also entertaining as hell when mocking other teams on their Slammy Award winning web show The Dirt Sheet or at ringside distracting opponents for each other as singles stars. They were both self centered and arrogant so it made for nothing but comedy. However the thing I absolutely loved the most is it took two guys wandering aimlessly, searching for direction and launched them on a path to stardom. When they broke up and Miz turned on his best friend, he soon became the United States Champion which took him to the Raw Money In The Bank Briefcase and eventually the WWE Championship. Morrison didn't acchieve that main event level success he was always seeking, but he did become one of the company's most beloved superstars before he left. We also got two great matches at Bragging Rights (2009) in an Intercontinetal Champion vs United States Champion match and a Falls Count Anywhere Match for the WWE Championship in January of 2011. This is definitely one of the better tag teams of the modern era.
-Ameen
Tagged under:
By @TrueGodImmortal
The Cruiserweight Division returned this year to WWE in a major way. The WWE hasn't necessarily done what they should have with the division, but nonetheless, we've seen the biggest indie names finally arrive in WWE and get an opportunity that many of us didn't expect them to get. Now, with that said, how have the Cruiserweights fared? Well, today our task is to look at the best matches of the year from the division and crown a winner. Are all the matches from the Cruiserweight Classic? Mostly, but there might be one choice that surprises you. Curious on what that might be? Well, let's get into it.
Runner Ups
*Gran Metalik vs TJ Perkins
Cruiserweight Classic Final
-This match was amazing from top to bottom and I think it was a great Finals match to determine the first ever Cruiserweight Classic winner and the Cruiserweight champion. TJP and Gran were going at it for about 18 minutes and the action was nonstop and back and forth between the two until TJP managed to get the upper hand and walk away with the victory and the title of the champion and the tournament trophy. This was easily one of the best matches in the tournament.
*Johnny Gargano vs Tommaso Ciampa
Cruiserweight Classic
-This first round match only went slightly less than 11 minutes, but if anything, this showed how well the stars can work in such a limited window in WWE. Gargano and Ciampa were always great competitors in the indies and they have carried that over well into the WWE and have adjusted perfectly and this match was the best showcase of them as solo competitors. Gargano and Ciampa took each other to the limit in this match, but Gargano walked out with the victory and a much earned advancement to the next round of the tournament.
*Rich Swann vs Brian Kendrick
205 Live Debut Episode
-I think this match is the best main roster match from the Cruiserweights and that's mostly because the RAW matches have been so short and lackluster. That could change now with the inclusion of 205 Live, but they have to be more aware of building up the matches and the talent. This match had a slight big fight feel to it and I was pulling for Rich all the way and I was pleasantly shocked to see him walk away with the victory. Swann is a deserving champion and he is one of the better guys in the division, and he and Kendrick put on a damn good match, one of the best in the division since it started back up. Swann getting the victory was a great moment and SHOULD BE a turning point for the division.
*TJ Perkins vs Kota Ibushi
Cruiserweight Classic Semifinal
-This was the 2nd best match of the entire Cruiserweight Classic and it featured two of the best in the world in ring wise today. There was something about the chemistry between these two in the Semifinals and I swore that Kota would win and go on to be Cruiserweight champion. However, TJP had his number here and managed to pull out a surprise victory in a great 15 minute match, setting the tone for the Finals, which we mentioned a little earlier.
Winner: Cedric Alexander vs Kota Ibushi
Cruiserweight Classic
-This is a Match of The Year candidate and probably a top five match or top ten match on the entire year for the WWE. Some might say TJP vs Ibushi was better, but I disagree. This match was miles ahead of anything else in the division this year and one of the most memorable matches for me because I watched Cedric do the same thing in WWE that he had been doing in the indies the last few years. Ibushi is known as a force in the company and he's definitely one of the better ones that took part in the tournament, and he brought his best without a doubt here in the match, but Cedric was a star here and he would walk away with a loss, but the crowd on his side and chanting "Please Sign Cedric", promoting Triple H to come out and show support to Cedric, which was a huge moment for sure in the career of Cedric and my favorite moment of the tournament. The match itself is a masterpiece over 15 minutes and one of the best matches of the year. Nothing else deserved this honor.
-True
Tagged under:
By @TrueGodImmortal
The New Day are the best tag team on the main roster of the WWE. Sure, you could argue that they haven't been booked as strongly as we'd like them to be lately, but the facts speak for themselves. The New Day, comprised of three singles wrestlers who struggled in the WWE for a while, found their footing by teaming up together and finding magic. It hasn't been an easy road for the group at all, and as they make history by taking their place as the longest reigning tag team champions of all time, it's a special moment in many ways, some of which we might even see the effect of just yet. For one, the trio of Xavier Woods, Kofi Kingston, and Big E are the most unlikely group of guys to make it this far and that's not a shot at their talent at all, but rather the way minority superstars, black ones to be exact, have been treated on WWE TV.
Now, I'm NOT going to get all "Black Lives Matter", "Oppressed Superstars", or anything like that, but facts are facts. While legendary names like Ron Simmons and Booker T have had success, there's always been an aura surrounding black wrestlers that they weren't good enough or not relatable. I mean, the stereotypical storyline or character has always plagued the black wrestler from the days of Junkyard Dog to the bird befriending style of KoKo B. Ware to the pop locking, hip hopping but really really embarrassing run of R-Truth (the cringeworthy raps and the dancing are horrid) all the way to the stereotypical disrespectful "gangsta" gimmick of Cryme Tyme, black wrestlers just weren't taken seriously in the WWE. Merchandise didn't move for them and they usually didn't connect with the crowd as much as their white counterparts. The same could be said for current black wrestlers in WWE like Darren Young, Titus O'Neil, Apollo Crews, and others that are on the roster.
This was not the case for the New Day.
Why? To be honest, at first, the New Day seemed doomed. They started out like they were going to be the second coming of the Nation of Domination, but that was quickly nixed. After this idea was nixed, we saw vignettes of the trio with a church choir, once again walking that line of stereotypes. However, soon after they arrived to WWE TV, the New Day took a different approach and just became more insulting, turning the power of positivity into something more annoying (and funny) and they worked their way into being very great heels. They weren't making big money or earning any merchandise dollars JUST YET, but they were starting to become likable and entertaining, and you could see they had something as it developed. After gaining traction with the audience, The New Day won the belts for the first time at the Extreme Rules PPV in 2015. At this time, you could hear the crowd begin to cheer more and more for them. It was almost as if the WWE tried as much as they could to make them heels, but they were just becoming too damn good. What made them so damn good during this early inception of the trio?
I think the originality was the first thing, as they didn't stick to being stereotypical wrestlers completely, and though they would dance and make jokes, it was done with more references to pop culture and infusing jokes from the internet, something we hadn't seen really tapped into by the rest of the roster. The New Day were in touch with sections of the audience and began starting a wave throughout the WWE, and their popularity started growing. After dropping the titles briefly to a reunited Prime Time Players tag team, they would recapture the belts at Summerslam 2015 in a Fatal Four Way match that featured teams such as Los Matadores, the Prime Time Players, and the Lucha Dragons. This would begin their second tag title run, and start them on the path to making history. This would also be the turning point for the group as a whole, as they were still heels, but somehow more likable and funnier than the faces. They began having their own merchandise and soon, you would see the crowd pop up with more New Day merch and you'd hear the cheers grow more and more. After the New Day successfully retained the titles over the newly returned Dudley Boyz, they would cross paths with other teams like the Usos and the Lucha Dragons, leading to one of the highlights of their title reign, the triple threat tag team Ladder match against both teams, which was match of the night at the TLC 2015 PPV.
Let's stop for a minute. The New Day at this point hadn't hit their peak yet, but something was happening. They were champions for a few months at this point, and they were clearly just out there having fun in the ring. Wearing the matching jumpsuits, the shirts, the crazy jokes, the call and response catchphrases, they were throwing whatever at the wall and seeing what sticks. That's the basis of the New Day. Just go out there and have fun. If it works, it works. If it doesn't, it doesn't. One thing that stuck out to me about the early part of the New Day and their tag team title reign was the praise they were receiving. How telling was it that CM Punk, a former WWE Champion who had completely turned against the business, said he loved The New Day and would only watch New Day segments on RAW after he left? That shows the appeal of the group right there and what made them so fun is that you really felt like you were just watching them go out there and be themselves. It didn't feel scripted, it didn't feel forced, it just felt like they went out and had fun. It worked. It always does in wrestling. Letting performers go out and do their thing without those heavy restrictions usually nets you great results and the New Day is the most recent embodiment of it. The New Day would end up having their segments on RAW be the most watched for a period of time and people were interested about the trio of wrestlers who were taking the show by storm. Who could imagine a company like WWE, with all their racist and stereotypical history, having the most popular and over group be three black wrestlers who weren't given fair chances to succeed solo wise? If anything, this in itself is something special and historic, even before their title reign hit that epic landmark. The moment the New Day turned the corner during late 2015, they changed the game forever and though many haters wouldn't want to give them that credit, it's evident now. As 2016 began, the group was breaking out beyond what we thought possible and it only continued from there.
It was the dawning of the new year that saw the popularity of The New Day hit the peak, as their knack for using the word "booty" as a catchphrase turned into something bigger. They would talk about making sure you eat your Booty-Os, which was just a silly metaphor to make the crowd more interested in the group and it worked. The turning point came for the group at Wrestlemania 32 when they walked out of a huge box of Booty-Os, instantly making the term a signature of the group and pushing it even further. Soon after, T-shirts with the three stars on them over a cartoon like "Booty-Os" label started popping up and the world was buying them all. Even the entrance of the New Day began getting over, as Big E taking the mic to tell the crowd to clap for the two time tag team champions inspired crowds to cheer along and clap along to the theme music as they would come out. They were still technically heels up until about February 2016, but they were the most over people on the roster for months before that. The boos were turning to all cheers, the merchandise sales were growing (they soon became the no. 1 selling gimmick in the WWE for an extended period of time), and everyone was trying to make sure they weren't "booty". There were Booty-Os shirts, New Day Rocks shirts (their main catchphrase), and everything seemed to be working perfectly for them. How could it get any bigger? Well there's two answers to that question.
The first answer? Pop culture domination. Now, the New Day had been running with the Booty-Os campaign, but on the surface it was just that: a campaign. They would bring out fake boxes of Booty-Os cereal and entertain the crowd, but there was always this wonder in most of the fans' minds like "what if they really made their own cereal", and that would eventually turn into a reality. Now, let me just say this: I've watched the runs of The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Randy Savage, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels and many of the greatest stars ever. To be honest, 80% of those names I just listed never sold as much merchandise as the New Day, or at least in the frequency which they did, as the New Day merch was flying off the shelf.
And if we're keeping it completely honest, none of those names listed had their own cereal made. Sure, there was the WWF Superstars cereal back in the late 80s to early 90s, but that was over 20 years ago. Since then, no other act in WWE had been able to turn their popularity into something like that, but the moment it became official that the New Day would actually have Booty-Os cereal distributed via FYE, it was apparent this was NOT your usual tag team run. No, no, this was different. This team had the tag team titles, the no. 1 merch sales, and their OWN CEREAL being released. This was monumental and the impact this will have on the industry and the business will not be known until years later. For a group in this era to be that popular that you cannot only sell tickets and T-shirts, but you can also sell cereal, it speaks to the fact that the New Day are the biggest act in the WWE over the last two years and it's not even remotely close. That's their popularity effect and how they've managed to permeate pop culture and the world over. How about their history making title reign? How about the 2nd half of this reign?
No one expected them to have such a title reign and as they turned face, we all suspected that the League of Nations (remember them???) would take the tag titles around Wrestlemania 32. Sure, the WWE knew the New Day was over and they were the most popular and entertaining act on the show, but it was realistic to expect a reign that started at Summerslam to end at Wrestlemania right? Well, the New Day didn't defend the titles at Mania, but the night after, and surprise surprise, they retained the titles anyway. Then, when the team of Enzo and Big Cass came up to the main roster, it seemed like only a matter of time that the team would drop the belts. You had the Usos, the Wyatt Family, Enzo and Cass, the new team of Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, along with The Vaudevillains so it was only a matter of time before the New Day dropped the belts, correct? Plus, the WWE universe doesn't have the attention span to deal with a long time champion or long term rivalry, so there's no chance the WWE gives them a year long reign. Maybe 9 or 10 months, maybe even 11 months, but the reign would come to an end at the very latest by Summerslam 2016. After New Day feuded with and fought all of those teams (and won), I remember thinking the WWE were going to make them lose the titles to Gallows and Anderson at Summerslam. When that didn't happen, I was shocked and wondered what would be next. It became apparent once the New Day started mentioning their title reign as the longest in the modern era that they were holding those belts so long for a reason. I remember reading that Demolition held the record for the tag titles with a reign over 477 days, but surely, the New Day wouldn't be able to beat that record, right?
It was at the Clash of The Champions that I really knew something was up. The brand split had taken away some competition and as I looked at the tag team roster, I figured that the only team strong enough to win the belts would be Enzo and Cass. Yet, Enzo and Cass had a lack of momentum to make a run for the titles. So, I looked to Gallows and Anderson as the possible guys to dethrone New Day, but the WWE booking team has failed Gallows and Anderson, and it doesn't seem like a quick fix to just give them belts and end a hugely important title reign, so when they lost at Clash of Champions rather quickly, I couldn't imagine those two getting another shot at the tag titles. They would get another shot, but soon after, we saw the WWE put together a team of really solid singles wrestlers that made no sense. Cesaro and Sheamus were big names and should have remained as singles wrestlers, but that good old WWE booking placed them together after a Best of 7 series. Surely I thought, the WWE would make this super team beat the New Day and take the tag titles. No such thing happened. Now, personally I didn't think Cesaro and Sheamus deserved to win the titles and if the New Day drop the belts, they should drop the belts to someone who actually are a true team, not two individuals thrown together.
Good thing for me, the WWE seemingly agreed, as Cesaro and Sheamus lost their title matches, and the New Day went into Survivor Series staring down the all time record by just a month or so. Surely, knowing the WWE, they would make the team drop the belts before they break the record right? After Gallows and Anderson earned a title shot yet again, the New Day defeated them and moved on to yet another match with Cesaro and Sheamus. After defeating Cesaro and Sheamus again, it seemed as if the WWE was just taking the New Day through the ringer as Roadblock approached. Admittedly, the last few months of the reign have been lackluster due to their weak booking and barely surviving their matches, but this led to the greatest night of their title reign, December 12, 2016, the day they broke the record officially. After beating both Sheamus and Cesaro, as well as beating Gallows and Anderson in separate matches, the New Day would have to maintain their titles in a triple threat tag team match to open up RAW. The match was a damn good contest, one of the best that New Day had been in recently and to ensure history would be made, the New Day walked away with a huge victory and a win against those two teams in that match. The match showed the cunning side of the New Day and their willingness to do what needs to be done to hold onto the WWE Tag Team Titles, something that elevated the importance of the titles (something the first half of their run didn't do as much). As impressive as that win would be, it would be absolutely nothing compared to what the New Day would have to endure later that night.
The New Day, after a brutal 15 minute match against the two teams they had previously beaten, were put into another Triple threat tag team match for the titles against four of the best wrestlers on the RAW roster, as Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns teamed up and Kevin Owens teamed up with Chris Jericho in a blockbuster match for the titles. The result? Probably one of the best if not the best match of the New Day's title reign and a successful title defense over the four top guys on the RAW roster. This was the crowning achievement in the New Day's historic reign, as they would defeat four teams in the same night and wrestle twice just to hold onto those titles and make history. 478 days and a new record is a reality. The New Day are officially your longest reign WWE Tag Team Champions in history.
Imagine going through all of that to maintain your titles and to break a record. Imagine the beginnings of each wrestler and how their paths looked grim for so long as singles wrestlers. Imagine how many of us wrote the New Day off as a joke in their first few months. Imagine how many of us had no idea that the WWE would even give the record to such a team like the New Day. Imagine that the New Day, a trio of black wrestlers, would induct the Freebirds, a very subtle and thinly veiled racist trio themselves, into the WWE Hall of Fame due to their growing popularity. Imagine that the longest reigning tag team champions are three black wrestlers who together make up one of the greatest trios in wrestling history. Imagine that same trio would spend months and months in the top 3 of the merchandise list, becoming the most successful act during their tenure. Imagine this same act would have their own cereal. None of these things seemed possible back in late 2014 when the group first debuted. 2 years later, as the dust has settled, their hype is slowing dying, and the record is now broken, the New Day stands as the longest reigning tag team champions and one of the biggest things to hit wrestling in the last 15 years. Who would have even thought? There's no telling how much longer they will hold the titles, but one thing is for sure: It has been one hell of a ride for your current and longest reign... W...W...E... TAG... TEAM... CHAMPIONS! As their reign moves on, remember that even the impossible can be possible, and most of all, remember these three words:
NEW DAY ROCKS!
-True
