By Graham "GSM" Matthews Here on SummerSlam Recall, I will be ranking my top 20 favorite matches in WWE SummerSlam history. A new installment will be posted every day leading up to SummerSlam 2016, culminating with my No. 1 favorite match on Saturday, August 20th. Each article will offer an in-depth look at each match and an analysis of why it is among my favorites. In my previous installment of SummerSlam Recall, I mentioned how 2002 was one of my favorite SummerSlam shows and arguably among the best of all-time, and SummerSlam 2011 leads that list for me as well. That entire summer was a blast for both Raw and SmackDown, culminating in a stacked show at SummerSlam. The main event matchups, CM Punk vs. John Cena and Christian vs. Randy Orton, were stellar, and I'll discus them at a later date, but today I want to focus on a match that doesn't tend to get the love it deserves. A late addition to the event, the bad blood between Daniel Bryan and Wade Barrett had been building for weeks, ever since Bryan cost Barrett the Money in the Bank briefcase at the pay-per-view of the same name in July. Days later on SmackDown, Bryan announced his intentions to cash in the contract at WrestleMania 28 before being interrupted by an envious Barrett, who he had history with dating back to their time in NXT Season 1 together as well as in The Nexus (albeit briefly).
0 Comments
By Graham "GSM" Matthews Here on SummerSlam Recall, I will be ranking my top 20 favorite matches in WWE SummerSlam history. A new installment will be posted every day leading up to SummerSlam 2016, culminating with my No. 1 favorite match on Saturday, August 20th. Each article will offer an in-depth look at each match and an analysis of why it is among my favorites. Whenever I'm asked what SummmerSlam shows are the greatest and/or my favorite of all-time, I would be remiss if I didn't include the 2002 installment. It is widely regarded by fans as one of the best pay-per-views period, and even though I wasn't a fan at the time it occurred, watching the event in its entirety for the first time back in 2014 was a treat to say the least. Thus, it shouldn't come as any surprise that you will see a handful of matches from that show on this elusive list. One of the main reasons why the event is remembered so fondly by fans is because of how the show started with Kurt Angle and Rey Mysterio opening the event on a high note. Needless to say, this SummerSlam is filled with extraordinary wrestling, but you can't get much better than Angle vs. Mysterio, a dream match for many upon Mysterio's arrival in WWE. He debuted on the SmackDown brand a mere month before this bout, so he had the opportunity of a lifetime when he faced Angle at the August extravaganza. By Graham "GSM" Matthews Here on SummerSlam Recall, I will be ranking my top 20 favorite matches in WWE SummerSlam history. A new installment will be posted every day leading up to SummerSlam 2016, culminating with my No. 1 favorite match on Saturday, August 20th. Each article will offer an in-depth look at each match and an analysis of why it is among my favorites. You didn't honestly expect me to neglect this match, did you? Especially after I included the two other matches in the tremendous trilogy in my WrestleMania Recall series? Putting this in the top 20 was a no-brainer for me, as it entertained me just as much as the 'Mania matches did. It's similar to The Undertaker vs. Randy Orton in that their meetings at WrestleMania are better remembered because of the big stage, but as the first ever official Tables, Ladders and Chairs match, this was nothing short of spectacular. When I discussed both bouts earlier this year, I mentioned how these three teams ushered in an all-new era for tag team wrestling with their stellar series of matchups throughout 2000 and 2001. They, along with everyone else at WWE, knew they made magic at WrestleMania 2000 (arguably the best thing to come out of that lackluster event), and to cut the momentum short there would have been asinine. So, why not do it all over again at SummmerSlam, but this time officially advertise it as a TLC match? By Graham "GSM" Matthews Here on SummerSlam Recall, I will be ranking my top 20 favorite matches in WWE SummerSlam history. A new installment will be posted every day leading up to SummerSlam 2016, culminating with my No. 1 favorite match on Saturday, August 20th. Each article will offer an in-depth look at each match and an analysis of why it is among my favorites. I apologize in advance for anyone who grew up during that time period, but I'm sorry, 1995 was an absolutely awful year for WWE, both from on-air standpoint and from a business standpoint. They were legitimately on the verge of closing shop until the boom of the Attitude Era a little over a year later, and of course, the rest is history. Thus, it shouldn't come as any surprise that I didn't feature a single match from WrestleMania 11 in my WrestleMania Recall series, and this match was the saving grace of SummerSlam that year. Long before I ever watched the event in its entirety last summer, I vividly remember seeing Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon from SumemrSlam 1995 for the first time in August 2008. I was about to leave for a picnic, but before taking off, I thought I'd enjoy some free classic wrestling matches courtesy of onDemand, and much to my surprise, this match was among them. I appreciated the classic contest even then, and grew to love it more once I realized the rest of the show was a total train wreck. |
Categories
All
Archives
May 2024
|