Best Match of All Time

[IrishCanadian25]

Hart vs Smith, SummerSlam 1992

Vince McMahon took a risk putting this match on last with Savage vs Warrior for the WWF Title being the match with the Main Event implications. Well, Hart and Bulldog didn't disappoint. With 80,000+ of Bulldog's countrymen watching and wife / sister Diana in the crowd, Davey pinned Hart in one of the greatest matches ever.

Savage vs Steamboat, WrestleMania 3

It's been said - Hogan vs Andre drew the fans, but Savage vs Steamboat stole the show. The match itself was epic. They worked bodyparts, they sold like crazy, and the build up was insane. Steamboat getting revenge by winning the IC Title made it all worth it.

Hart vs Michaels, WrestleMania 12

This match is often criticized for being 40 minutes of rest holds and 20 minutes of wrestling, but these two men paced themselves and put out a risky hour-long WWF Title Match, where nobody truly knew who'd win.

Hart vs Hart, WrestleMania 10

The curtain jerker of the 10th Wrestling Gala stole the show off the bat - months of enmity came to a head as the Hart brothers put on a clinic, and ended with Owen LEAPING out of Bret's shadow with a victory role reversal and pinfall victory.

Ramon vs Michaels, WrestleMania 10

And two hours later, Michaels and Razor upped the ante with the first pay per view ladder match, featuring two IC Belts and two VERY creative superstars. They used the ladder and the ring to their advantage, and gave us a struggle we won't soon forget.

Hogan vs Warrior, WrestleMania 6

Another risk, the two top babyfaces headlining WrestleMania in a champion vs champion war. This match was so close, and between two powerhouses, with Warrior "getting the torch passed" to him as a top face in the WWF. Classic match.

Hart vs Austin, WrestleMania 13

Site of the infamous "double turn" in a classic submission match, Austin showed us he could wrestle and Hart showed us he could brawl - and the ending with Austin bleeding out of consciousness in the Sharpshooter is still among the most iconic moments ever.

Savage vs Flair, Wrestlemania 8

A personal favorite of mine, this match was for the WWF Title, for Savage's vindication, and for the honor of Miss Elizabeth. Savage was battling Flair and Mr. Perfect, and featured classic Heenan commentary and an emotional Elizabeth fighting her way to ringside to cheer on Randy, who won his 2nd title.

Austin vs Benoit, Smackdown 2001

The only televised match on this list, these two men engaged in a 30-minute clinic with REMINDED us what we learned at WM13 - Austin can damn sure mat wrestle. Paul Heyman booked this match and never got the credit he deserved. What a classic.

Edge and Christian vs The Hardyz, No Mercy 1999

These two teams held a ladder match that proved what great timing, creativity, and a total disregard for one's body could do in a match. The four men, at the end of a best-of-seven series, left it ALL in the ring in the first tag team ladder match, and laid the blueprint for TLCs and MITBs for years to come.

 

[HBK-aholic]

I'm still debating this one, so I'm not going to vote just yet.

And I'm going to start off with what I usually think of as one of the best of all time - WM 12 Hart Vs Michaels. It takes incredible skill to put on an hour long match. You need stamina to keep going for that long, as well as to be able to keep the audience entertained and stop them walking out. This was a classic - both men gave it their all. And with the amount of heat about the 2, it just made it better. Either man could have won deservedly.

But then I got remembering the Hart Vs Austin match from WM13. One of the most underrated matches of all time. I never expected these two to work well together, but they did. It just goes to show how versatile both these wrestlers were.

Finally, Michaels Vs Ramon WM 10. Another of my favourite matches of all time. Set the stage for all other ladder matches, and all those that stem from ladder matches, including TLCs and MITBs. It was a great match coming from a great storyline.

 

[Gelgarin]

This is one poll where I'm going to throw away my objective reasoning. Say 'who gives a fuck' to lasting significance and recommend that logic and rational can 'bite me'.
I'm going to vote for my favorite match, for no other reason than because it was cool.

Edge and Christian vs The Hardyz may have been a spot fest. It may have had no psychology. It may have looked ridiculous in comparison to a lot of wrestling those days, but it was still bloody amazing. It's probably also the best example in history of a group of under card guys with not much of a feud going on going out and totally stealing the show.

Historically it has some significance. but that the end of a day, I'm voting for it because it had guys I like jumping off of ladders.

 

[klunderbunker]

Now this is the hardest one yet. As is my custom, let's break this down.

Hart vs. Smith- Classic in every sense of the word, but one thing stops this for me: it's for the IC title, and it's in the main event. The World Title goes on last, every show.

Savage vs. Steamboat- Possibly the greatest wrestling match in the history of American wrestling, for one simple reason, among many: no one knew who was going to win. That is what makes a match a classic to me. If you're watching a squash, it's dull, because you can fast forward to the ending. This match you coudln't miss a second. The early leader.

Hart vs. Michaels- Except for a few moments in between, the only good part is the last 5 minutes and Overtime.

Hart vs. Hart- Love it, but just doesn't feel like a big match. It opened the show. That just kind of kills it, especially when Bret won the world title later in the ngiht after losing cleanly.

Ladder Match- Savage and Steamboat have competition. Anyone that says Shawn did this by himself is wrong. Razor was a big guy and he was right there with Shawn every step of the way. This was a classic, and ladder matches that are better are hard to come by, but I'd take HHH/Rock just by a hair. This one's out.

Hogan/Warrior- As a lifelong Hulkamaniac, I refuse to acknowledge that this match ever happened.

Hart vs. Austin- Now we have a possible new leader. This match singlehandedly made Steve Austin a star. Bret Hart was the absolutely perfect opponent here, and I don't think this match would have gone better. Throw in a great submission guy as a referee that actually didn't suck, and this might have overtaken WM 3.

Savage and Flair- This should have been Hogan and Flair, but for a variety of reasons it wasn't. Good match, but honestly I've never viewed it as a classic.

Austin and Benoit- I fell asleep as the intros to this match were happening, and have never actually seen it.

Ladder Match 2- Been done, and been done better.

So we have two contenders, in two kinds of matches. If you want storyline and violence, go WM 13. If you want wrestling, go WM 3. In an odd bit, I'm taking 13, because JR is at his all time best in this match, shouting over Vince who for once took a backseat. FOr a match to be that good, it has to be the best ever.

 

[jmt225]

I went with Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin from Wrestlemania 13. While it's not my favorite match to take place in the WWF, it's still my favorite one on the list and I truly believe it is the best match to take place in a WWE ring (to get that straight, to me there's a big difference between "favorite" and "best").

Everything about the match was perfect. The build-up to it was fantastic. Ken Shamrock as special guest ref was a great idea. Everything about it was special.

Those two just told a great, believable story that night, that elevated not just themselves, but the entire business.

In all my years as a wrestling fan, I don't think there has ever been a more iconic moment then Austin in the Sharpshooter with blood flowing down his face, refusing to give up. And JR's commentary during that couldn't have been better, either.

Just a truly epic match. That word "epic" has become popular over the internet for whatever reason and gets thrown around a lot, but Austin/Hart from 'Mania 13 in the one match in WWF history that you could use that word for and have it truly be justified.

 

[Mighty NorCal]

IC, you sicken me. The best match of all time isnt even a choice.

Bret Hart Vs Mr.Perfect at SummerSlam for the IC title is an absolute masterpeice. A match that is just perfect, in every way. Selling, back and forth, no bothces, near falls, great phsycology. The best match of all time.

As for the choices available, im going with against the smarky grain, and go with the REAL greatest match ever (from the list) that being Ultimate Warrior Vs Hulk Hogan. This match was absolutely epic, and a first for the golden era WWE. The crowd of over 60,000 was electric, split down the middle, and on the egd of their seats for the ENTIRE contest. I love Hart Vs Austin, but we didnt even get a clean decisive finish, and it had a somewhat overbearing reliance on weapons and brawling. Hogan Vs Warrior had ZERO of that, save for an epic body slam on the OH so damaging concrete floor. The crowd was in absolute froth over every punch, shoulder block, and chin lock. Just an amazing display.

 

[Shocky]

Of the choices available. I'm going with Hart vs. Austin at Mania 13, even though I don't think it's the best match.

This match was brutal, and was a great way to put over the double switch. Austin and Hart had a great match at Survivor Series in 1996, with Austin slowly starting to get over more on Hart.

It built, and built from there. The Rumble saw Hart eliminate Austin,b ut Austin comeback in while the refs weren't looking, and eliminate Hart, and then they ran into each other at In Your House the next month in the four way match.

It all led up to one of the greatest matches ever. Austin vs. Hart, and everyone knows the rest. Austin refusing to tap out, and simply passed out with blood gushing from his forehead. For people that say Austin can't wrestle, 1997 should be something everyone needs to watch. Austin's best year as a wrestler in my opinion was 1997, and it's not even close.

Now as far as the best match ever, Angle vs. Benoit, Royal rumble 2003.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

IC, you sicken me. The best match of all time isnt even a choice.

Your face sickens me.

Bret Hart Vs Mr.Perfect at SummerSlam for the IC title is an absolute masterpeice. A match that is just perfect, in every way. Selling, back and forth, no bothces, near falls, great phsycology. The best match of all time.

AH yes, I racked my brain for a solid ten minutes trying to make eliminations to get the nominations down to 10. And this match was - I promise you - #11. Sorry man. You could damn sure make the case. Hart / Perfect was AMAZING. But you could just as easilly make the case for the ten I did end up choosing. Sorry man.

As for the choices available, im going with against the smarky grain, and go with the REAL greatest match ever (from the list) that being Ultimate Warrior Vs Hulk Hogan. This match was absolutely epic, and a first for the golden era WWE. The crowd of over 60,000 was electric, split down the middle, and on the egd of their seats for the ENTIRE contest. I love Hart Vs Austin, but we didnt even get a clean decisive finish, and it had a somewhat overbearing reliance on weapons and brawling. Hogan Vs Warrior had ZERO of that, save for an epic body slam on the OH so damaging concrete floor. The crowd was in absolute froth over every punch, shoulder block, and chin lock. Just an amazing display.

If I remember right, Hogan / Warrior's finish wasn't decisive either. There was tremendous controversy among fans after that match, with people claiming that Hogan got his shoulder up JUST prior to three, whereas other say it was AT three. Either way, it was damn close, thought that's part of what made the match so great.

 

[Mighty NorCal]

Well I happen to have been 4 years old when the match happened, so I cant really remember the fall out with a ton of accuracy. I know when I watched the match some years after it happened, I found the finish to be just fine decisive. The reason for this being, Hogan accepted defeat, and acknowleged Warrior as the better man on that evening. Handed him the title, shook his hand, and bowed out of the ring. If thats not decisive, I dont know what is...

 

[FromTheSouth]

I voted Austin/Benoit.

I know Benoit is in hell, but just taking the match as a whole, this is the best match I have ever seen. Benoit hit ten consecutive german suplexes. Fuck three. He hit 10.

Austin and Benoit put on a mat wrestling clinic. There was no ladders. There were no gimmicks. There was no screwjob , no man gained a clear advantage, and the face rage was overcome by heel tactics. There were two men and 30 minutes of free TV wrestling.

I remember the match for the middle, not the end. I struggled to remember who won. Every move was signifigant, as it set up the next series. The reversals and false finishes were amazing.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Not sure why one of the worst matches of all time is a poll option. The Hart/HBK Iron Man match is sixty two minutes of shit. I don't like to hear all this crap about how they couldn't go all out for an hour. It's Wrestlemania, and both of them, collectively, went all out for about 10 minutes. Awful match.

Best? I'd probably go with the same one as Shocky. What's great about it is that it's not overhyped as the best match of all time. For a match so great it's almost been forgotten.

Favorite? Easily HBK vs. Mankind at Mind Games 1996. You won't find a better match with a DQ finish.

 

[Steamboat Ricky]

2003 Summerslam: Elimination Chamber


This is an absolutely underrated match, largely because of the IWC's reluctance to give any support to Goldberg. The match was epic. Goldberg comes in and absolutely rips everyone apart, the crowd is going nuts, spears Jericho through the freaking pod, proceeds to kick through another one....totally dominates the whole match...


...then Trips and Naitch screw him. MASSIVE heat going on there. Totally sucked out all of the positive energy that was going on there...and it doesn't get much better in terms of manipulating a crowd's reaction. Brilliant match.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

2003 Summerslam: Elimination Chamber


This is an absolutely underrated match, largely because of the IWC's reluctance to give any support to Goldberg. The match was epic. Goldberg comes in and absolutely rips everyone apart, the crowd is going nuts, spears Jericho through the freaking pod, proceeds to kick through another one....totally dominates the whole match...


...then Trips and Naitch screw him. MASSIVE heat going on there. Totally sucked out all of the positive energy that was going on there...and it doesn't get much better in terms of manipulating a crowd's reaction. Brilliant match.

Great match, easily the best Elimination Chamber of all time. But best match? Shouldn't a great match be at least solid the whole way through? For 5 minutes or so Kevin Nash was in that match slowing it down to his pace. And gimmick matches should always be good. It's much harder to hold somebody intrest when you're doing the usual touchy-feely wrestling stuff.

 

[Slyfox696]

I'm going to take this moment to bitch about the choices.

Hart vs. Michaels at WM 12 is not a great match. It's not even a good match.

Hart vs. Smith is very good match, but should not be ranked in the Top 10 all-time.

E&C vs. Hardyz...fun match, but considering some of the matches that were left out, this match is a sham.


NorCal already brought up the Perfect vs. Hart match. What about the Magnum vs. Blanchard Steel Cage "I Quit" match? Where's the Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat match from either Clash of the Champions or Wrestlewar? The Steiner Brothers vs. Sting and Luger? Brian Pillman vs. Jushin Liger? Ultimate Warrior vs. Randy Savage? Heck, I'd even take HBK vs. Cena from Raw over Austin vs. Benoit from Smackdown. That match was an hour as well, IC, why is it not on the list? It sure is a much better match than Hart vs. Michaels.


However, of these choices, my vote has to go to Steamboat vs. Savage. I'm a HUGE believer in Warrior vs. Hogan, but, in my opinion, Steamboat vs. Savage is an example of a PERFECT match. The near finishes, the fluidity of the match, the phenomenal workrate, the believability, and the sheer athleticism makes it a match for all to see and enjoy.

So, while I might complain about the choices, it probably wouldn't matter, as I still feel that Steamboat vs. Savage is the best match of all time.

 

[Steamboat Ricky]

Great match, easily the best Elimination Chamber of all time. But best match? Shouldn't a great match be at least solid the whole way through? For 5 minutes or so Kevin Nash was in that match slowing it down to his pace. And gimmick matches should always be good. It's much harder to hold somebody intrest when you're doing the usual touchy-feely wrestling stuff.

Yes, and you bring up valuable points. I fully expected to be ripped on this choice, but the tiebreaker for me comes on this point:

--If I was able to only watch one match for the rest of my days, this is the match that I would watch. Why? It's simply the most entertaining match I have ever seen. And that is even with taking into account the horrendousness that is Kevin Nash. But the worst thing that Nash brought to that match was his horrible hair. With his short hair, he looks like some kind of elongated, old version of Sonic the Hedgehog. So aesthetically horrifying.

But in terms of actual in-ring work, I think that Nash's "lackluster" performance was rather necessary. You need someone to come in and slow things down a bit so that the audience isn't going dizzy with constant fast pacednesss (at least, IMO). And obviously, you need someone to get eliminated before Goldberg comes in and clean house so it makes the rest of the guys somewhat credible defeats for Goldberg. So, I don't take Nash's presence as a negative thing. I take it as making everyone else look better.

 

[RVDgurl]

I can't believe I actually voted for Hogan and the Warrior. Beut yes, it has to be the best match in WWE history. Not because the wrestling was that great, but because of what that match represented. I can remember WM 6 was before my cable company even had PPV capabilities. I had to call that 900 number they offered after PPV's to get the results. I was in 5th grade and I had a white long sleeved WM6 tshirt with pics of the Warrior and Hogan on it. I mention this because it's crazy that I remember all that from when I was 11 or 12. That's how significant it was. It was the first time the WWE pitted two babyfaces against each other. That was groundbreaking for them. That was the night the torch was passed. If the Warrior hadn't turned out to be a psycho, right now he may be considered the greatest professional wrestler ever. He was groomed for it that night. That match was monumental and should be deemed as nothing less.

 

[Sparky]

Ramon and HBK has it for me. Out of every ladder match i have seen Its by far my favourite. I know its a gimmick match but it was simply perfect. it was the first "WWE Offical" Ladder match, had an awesome storyline too it and actually had meanings. Nowdays you get ladder matches all the time, but this one is the building block for (like becca said) every match involving a ladder ever since. There has never be (with the first TLC match coming close) or will be, a better ladder match then this one. and out of the choices IMO its the best match full stop.

 

[Uncle Sam]

Oh, people are talking about all these matches that aren't on the list and, well, just imagine that I'm nodding my head in an attempt to not look completely befuddled. Rest assured, next time I have absolutely nothing to do I'll give my lovely YouTube tab a nice workout.

Of course, my favourite match is a toss-up between Angle vs. Michaels at WM 21 and Angle vs. Taker at NWO '06. Yeah, I'm old school like that. Of course, neither of those are on the list. Not surprised that Angle/Taker didn't make it but Angle/Michaels has all the hype that Michaels' WrestleMania matches have surrounding them, except this one actually deserves it. Oh well.

From the list, I'd probably go for one with Randy Savage in it. Just to look cool, like. Yeah, Randy Savage. Which one does Sly like? I know he likes the Steamboat one. And I've seen that one and everything. Yeah, that's the best match ever. Undoubtedly.

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

My vote went to Austin vs. Hart. That is without a doubt my favorite match of all time, it had everything the only thing that was missing for me was that it wasnt a championship match or the main event so it lost some of its luster. But both of these guys psychology in this match were top notch as they did the classic double turn to perfection. Hart turning heel portrayed the classic cowardly cheap shot artist of a heel while Austin portrayed the hero that would never give up. This match had brawling, weapons and some technical wrestling all the while the crowd being hot which added to the match. It also produced one of the most famous shots of all time and that is the Austin bleeding while in the sharpshooter, that shot and image is shown over and over again on the WWE. One negative about the match though was probably the only time that I can remember Bret doing something that really looked sloppy or wrong and that was when he hit Austin with the ring bell. I didnt think that looked good at all. But outside of that I thought the match looked perfect and came across perfect. It didnt seem like it was too dragged on or had boring parts it was about 25 minutes or so which is what I think is the perfect time for a great match. I really dont like anything longer than that personally.

 

[OIL]

How is HBK vs Angle not on that list?! It was an unbelieveable match, fantastic. The technical ability of the two really showed in this match, and some of the wrestling was out of this world. The crowd were into it, and so were the wrestlers. Awesome match, perfect setting. This should easily be on the list.