Greatest Raw Match Ever

[TheImpactPlayer]

In light of the recent CM Punk VS John Cena match on Raw, I believe that match may now be the greatest match in the history of Raw. I think up until this point Cena VS HBK in London may have been the best, but I think the Punk match was just a little better. What do you guys think?

 

[AhSpicyDrop]

I enjoyed Cena/Punk and it was certainly a damn good match...

But for me as far as suspense Mr. Perfect vs. Ric Flair in a Loser Leaves Town Match on RAW in 1993.

To me the whole false finish thing is way overdone, and that's a lot of what Cena/Punk was about. As I said, it was a good match, and definitely ten steps ahead of a typical television match. But people saying that was a Wrestlemania quality main event just shows you how far the actual wrestling product has fallen in the past 10 years.

 

[Sephyxia]

Gotta agree. Was decent match but only thing that made it decent was the near pinfalls. Why don't all main events or feud endings end this way? Outside the nearfalls, Was nothing special. And as far as my opinion of best raw match ever....Dx and radicals vs rock/mankind and too cool. The match was great. No stupid nearfall BS. Just a great match the crowd was hot for, Quick tags, Great reversals, Great ending.

 

[ilapierre]

I was thinking the exact same thing after I watched that match. I too think the RAW match between Cena and Punk could have been the best one ever. It definitely was one of John Cena's best. It may also have been Punks! One poster earlier made a good point about the Flair/Henning loser leaves town match. But I think this match has that one beat for no nonsense excellent wrestling. Plus the main event spot at Wrestlemania was on the line. It was one of those matches Ill always remember because I never saw a match of that quality coming. Definitely a good way to get the audience pumped about Wrestlemania.

 

[Pickle]

It's a really tough call.

HHH/Austin vs Benoit/Jericho might be my favourite. That match had everything. Technical wrestling, counter wrestling, brawling, great selling, great chemistry, great psychology, a great crowd, four of the best workers ever, a table, a sledgehammer, an underdog victory, a title change, storyline advancement. Action so fast and hard that HHH's thigh exploded. Everyone should go out of their way to see this match.

HHH/Jericho from 2000 when Jericho briefly won the title is noteworthy just for the energy. Every single person in the building wanted Jericho to take it, and the place exploded when he did.

Those are my two standouts, and then there are other noteworthy ones like Bulldog/Owen, Bret/123 Kid, Taker/Hardy, Benoit/HHH, Flair/Perfect, Cena/Michaels, Rock/Mankind or TLC 3.

 

[UltimoPhatty]

Gotta love the people stating their opinions as fact. If people want to consider Punk vs. Cena the greatest RAW match, then I think that's perfectly fair. It's not like they said Alicia Fox vs. Melina.

For me, the greatest RAW match is Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit vs. Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin (where HHH tore his quad for the first time). Something about that match resonates with me to this day.

 

[ADLegend21]

Yeah, Cena vs Punk is right up there with cena vs HBK in London and the Hardy vs Taker WWe championship Ladder Match. All of them had great build ups between two highly popular superstar and great finishes and Match lengths.

 

[TheHorndogSays]

My personal favorite has always been Mick Foley vs Terry Funk Falls Count Anywhere. Then again I'm biased because I was in attendance that night and there's a clear shot of me in the crowd when they battled through it. However if I had to pick between the above mentioned ones I'd give the nod to Cena/HBK because they kept the excitement up at a high level for such a long period of time while Punk/Cena seemed to pick up the majority of its momentum in the last few minutes. Funny how Cena is in the top 2 in most people's eyes when "Cena can't wrestle" according to most...

 

[theBusiness]

Don't get me wrong, I loved Cena and Punk's match but it is not the best Raw match ever. I feel it's just been so long since people have seen a great match on Raw that they're slightly overrating it. No disrespect, but a lot of you might be too young and have never seen top Raw matches from 10-15 years ago. I made a top 10 list of Raw matches this past summer around the Raw 1000 hype and here it is. And yes, I actually rewatched every single match on this list plus many more (this was before WWE went crazy on YouTube and took down pretty much all of these matches)

1. John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels (4/23/07) ****1/2
2. British Bulldog vs. Owen Hart (3/1/97) ****1/2
3. Austin & HHH vs. Jericho & Benoit (5/21/01) ****1/2
4. Shawn Michaels vs. Shelton Benjamin ****1/2
5. Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit (Cage) (6/11/01) ****1/4
6. Bret Hart vs. 1-2-3 Kid (7/11/94) ****1/4
7. Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H (12/29/03) ****1/4
8. Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Benoit (5/3/04) ****1/4
9. John Cena vs. CM Punk (2/25/13) ****1/4
10. Raw Roulette TLC Match (10/7/02) ****1/4

 

[Rabbid Wolverine]

HBK vs Shelton Benjamin in the gold rush tournament. The finish for the match is insane but Shelton benjamin proves that he could hang with a top dog in the ring...maybe just not on the mic.

 

[Kliq]

Honestly, Punk v. Cena was a decent match, but I can't see it being in the top RAW matches of all time. Best RAW match of the past couple years? Perhaps. I just think some people saw the pile driver and went, "Match of the decade!!!" It takes more than a couple nice spots to make a match truly mean something. The amount of near-falls made the match entertaining, but it honestly doesn't compare to the hour long Cena-HBK match.

 

[Headman]

For me it was more than the near falls. From the beginning it felt like a match too big for free tv, but then you add a live crowd who appreciated every second of it. You had a storied rivalry, two guys who work well against each other and a shot at Wrestlemania on the line. And IMO they delivered the goods. I don't think it was better than HBK vs Cena, but it had almost the same feel. Also add in the fact that it advances Cena's wrestlemania story which is that he's trying to exorcise his demons and you have compelling television. For me anyway.

 

[theHeadliner]

Shawn Michaels vs Razor Ramon- August 1994. It was Shawn's first televised match since WM10 and it tore the house down.

Bret Hart vs 123 Kid- Another great match from the New Generation Era.

 

[HBKperfect23]

Punk/Cena was the only raw match I went out of my way to see in the last few years. I put it top two ever on raw. I think it falls just short of Michaels/Cena.

 

[Mr. HD]

Cena/Punk was a great match, but it's not the greatest RAW match of all time. I personally feel like they overdid the near falls concept. There was one too many of those.

I'm a little torn between Benoit/Y2J vs HHH/Austin for the Tag Titles and Taker vs Jeff Hardy for the Undisputed title in 2002. Both those matches just hold a special place in my heart for some reason.

Especially, the Taker/Jeff Hardy match. I think it was Jeff's greatest match even though he didn't win the title, but really showed the people something.

The tag team match was so special. The match, the energy, the crowd, the commentary, and even HHH tearing his quad made it so special.

Tough call, but I may just have to go with Austin & HHH vs Benoit & Jericho for the tag team titles.

 

[Dynamitekid2012]

The two that come to mind for me are...

Jannety and HBK for the IC title back in 93.

And

The 30 minute iron-man match between shawn and kurt angle. AWESOME match!

 

[hb367]

I would go with Cena vs HBK in i believe o7 the night after mania

 

[theBusiness]

Cena/Punk was a great match, but it's not the greatest RAW match of all time. I personally feel like they overdid the near falls concept. There was one too many of those.

I absolutely agree with this. Still a great match, but if there were more psychology involved then maybe I'd buy into the "best Raw match ever" hype. Maybe something like Punk trying to get Cena disqualified or taunting him by bringing up the fact that he'd never beaten him. So many near falls isn't bad by any means, but I feel it shouldn't be what "makes" a great match (taker and Triple H's matches at WrestleMania had a lot as well, but the difference is there was SO much psychology and storytelling in both those matches, especially the HIAC match)

 

[the_vipers_enigma]

I'll start by saying that it's funny how many people put Cena in the top RAW matches despite the fact that many people claim that he can't wrestle. Know to the toppic Cena/ Punk was a very good match despite the ammount of near falls. But it wasn't the greatest Raw match. The greatest Raw match in a couple of years yes, but not overal. For me personaly there are few matches that are worthy. Jericho vs HHH for the WWE title was an abo****e classic in my eyes and I get chills every time I hear the crowd go wild when Jericho pins HHH. HBK vs Cena from 07 is another great match. For some reason that match reminded me of HBK/Hart at mania. And there is Taker vs Hardy in a ladder match. The best Jeff Hardy match I have ever seen.

 

[ztwhite]

Great ? Yes.

Best ever ? No.

There have been some damn good matches in the 20+ years of Raw. Punk / Cena on Monday night was certainly one of them. Hell, I watched it again immediately after it was over.

But the one match that will always stand out, at least to me, is Jeff Hardy and the Undertaker's Ladder Match for the strap. Take 20 minutes and go back and watch that match. It was the greatest match the two guys have ever had, and that includes all of Hardy's TLC matches and Taker's two WM matches with HBK.

The other match that comes to mind which a lot of people on these forums may not even know about is Bret Hart / Sean Waltman (known as the 1-2-3 Kid at the time). After a quick Google search, I figured out that it was from 1994. Hell, even I didn't realize it was that long ago. Even JR, while on commentary, called it "one of the greatest matches I have ever seen !"

The last one has to be Curt Henning (Mr. Perfect) / Ric Flair. Man, I didn't even realize that it happened on Raw's 3rd ever episode ! Damn, I'm old But seriously, Google this match, sit back and enjoy.

If you can watch all three of those matches and then still say that Monday's Punk / Cena match was the best match ever on Raw, you're fooling yourself.

 

[Raptor93]

Depends on how you view the match really. On one hand the wrestling was very good but I would say best of all time and not by a long shot, it was very good and while cena lifted his usual poor game thats to decent it was mostly punk and it takes two to tango. However through in the wm stipulation and the fact that it was quite likely ether man could have won and then the match becomes a hell of a lot more exciting. Then maybe although ive only been watching since 05 so I can say too far back. Story line not considered Cessaro Sheamus was just as good, TLC four way tag Kane vs Christian Y2J vs Dudleys vs Hardys , Jericho punk from a few weeks ago. The actually match wasnt a classic, it was the way the story was built so each man had an equal chance of winning and a high steak therefor huge suspense. So wether its a classic Or not depends on wether the match by itself is considered or the match and the story. Quite frankly classic didnt cross my mind till I started reading all these posts. Any of the above would be closer or just as close

 

[rokuma]

A lot of great suggestions. I think Cena/HBK gets the nod for me, but you could make a strong argument for Jannetty/HBK, HBK/Angle (Iron Man Match), Flair/Perfect, HBK/HHH in San Antonio for the title (just a fantastic match!), and a "lost classic" in my opinion: Flair/Edge for the title in like 2006, 2007 or something. It was a strong match and one of Flair's last great matches in my opinion. And just the fact that most of the suggestions across here have to do with HBK is a tribute to his talent, really. He ALWAYS brought it night in and night out.

 

[tom9422]

I think you guys complaining about 'nearfalls' being overdone just don't get it.

A 2 count after a clothesline is no different from a 2 count after a finisher, but it is an example of great storytelling in the ring when you can't tell what will happen next or if that will be the end. Add in some unique moves and a strange chemistry and it made for a great match.

There have been some pretty damn good matches on Raw lately. I remember Punk/Jericho and Bryan/Mysterio being superb.

Best match ever though? Not sure though, i haven't watched every Raw for the last 20 years.

 

[hoffman40]

Lots and lots of great matches being listed in this forum but being overlooked is

Kurt Angle v. HBK in a 30 minute Iron Man match. RAW 10/03/2005

and

HBK v. Marty Jannetty in 1993. Jannetty won the IC championship and the match was actually named PWI Match of the year. A match on cable tv with two mid card youngsters for the IC belt WON PWI match of the year and I believe also received a Meltzer 5 star match status

 

[KettleFace]

For me it's between the Cena/HBK match back in 2007 and the Taker/Jeff ladder match for the Undisputed title. If I had to choose one it'd be the latter, as it's a match that's really stuck with me, especially the image of Jeff reaching for the title.