TNA Match of the Year 2011

[Papa Pillman]

Now that 2011 is fully in the rearview mirror it's time to weigh-in on the best match that TNA presented for the year...

I'm going to go with the Angle/Jarrett two out three falls match at Lockdown. I thought this was ultimately the best match of a fued that featured several high-quality outings. Even though a couple of the bigger spots were not pulled off flawlessly the match didn't seem to suffer. It was well-worked, had a good pace, made good use of the cage, and told a good story. Angle and JJ are consummate pros who outdid themselves back in April(as a side note: I may be slightly bias since I saw the event live).

Also the limitations of the poll forced some good matches to be omitted, so here are some Honorable Mentions; the Ultimate-X match from Victory Road, Sting/RVD from Sacrifice, Kaz/Kendrick from Impact 6/2, Evans/Neese/Sorenson from Impact 7/7, Roode/AJ from Turning Point.

Please leave your thoughts on your choice...

 

[RRPounder]

I would have to say Hulk Hulk Hogan vs Sting simply because of the response it got. However, Mickie vs Tara in a cage was pretty good too.

 

[BigDaddyKewl]

Sting vs Hogan really stands out for me. I might be a bit biased because Im a Hogan fan. But it was great seeing him wrestle one last time in his career. You could tell he was in pain when he took those back bumps.
The post match was great with him tearing his shirt off and helping Sting take out Immortal, Hulkamania lives!

 

[IHW]

I gotta say Angle vs. Roode at BFG.

It was the most anticipated and it was a GREAT match. The ending was a little screwed up, but i still gotta give this Match of the Year.

 

[Alex Lexington]

Sting Vs Jeff Hardy Victory Road.

Because it gave Jeff a massive wake up call thats why i will always like Jeff ever since i was a kid

 

[ABMorales787]

It's between Angle and Jarrett at Slammaversary or AJ and Ray also there. Angle and Jarrett's performance wasn't exactly match of the year so to say, but the story up to that point made the match have major importance going into it. For anyone who can understand just how deep their story was heading into that match, it gave it special meaning.

On the other hand, Bully Ray was able to outsmart the greatest wrestler of TNA's history in one amazing brawl. It was pure violence with AJ adding a pinch of elegance to it. His dive off the Tron was truly epic and despite the somewhat bitter flavor the ending left, seeing how both guys came off after that makes me think TNA made the right choices.

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

im gonna go with RVD vs Jerry Lynn in Full Metal Mayhem i loved that match and it was just insane! i almost picked the fatal 4 way match from destionation x but i prefered RVD vs Lynn a little bit more it was a great match....then again i love TLC matches so maybe thats why but either way that was my choice....btw i think mickie james vs tara from impact in a steel cage should have been on this list that was a GREAT womens match

 

[TheSDQQKidJoe]

Bully Ray vs AJ Styles took the cake for me. Especially because i utterly HATE Bully Ray up to that point. But after seeing that match, it shocked me that Bubba could still go. The feud with D-Von pretty much gave up on either of them, but this match solidified Bully Ray in the company.

 

[Paralyzer Z]

For me it was non-other that the X-division fatal 4 way contract match at Destination X.

Not only was it one of the funnest matches to watch all year long (in TNA), it was also built up very well. While not having a fully ledged one-on-one feud you could see that the crowd deeply cared for this match, most of them wanted ALL to be singed. Contrary to popular opinion the match did indeed tell a story, the story of 4 young stars all wanting to risk anything to get a TNA contract, which explains the sick spots. Out of all of them Ion and Aries were signed but the "sign them all" chant was priceless and showed that all of them deserved to be in TNA. I deeply hope they do this again next year because it was so entertaining to watch the tournament as well as the stories these guys had of wanting to be in TNA. Also consider that Austin Aries the best X-Division star at the moment was the output of this match for TNA, and he has been one of the most electrifying, and charismatic, and talented stars in the company since then.

 

[FitFinlay4Life]

The 30 minute Iron Match between Bobby and AJ at Final Resolution for me. This was storytelling at it's old school best, the babyface comes in with an injury that should theoretically meant he should be obliterated by the 100% fit heel World Champion. Roode goes after the knee from the outset and despite dogged good guy resilience from AJ, he has a 2-0 lead and looks like he is going to stroll out in a landslide and possibly put Styles out for a long time in the process. Then one mistake by the over confident and complacent champion results in a shoulder injury that the Phenomenal One could then target himself.

AJ grabs a 'win' back and then draws level and then goes ahead. The tease is there then, that the heroic guy is going to win. Perseverance, grit and determination will overcome selfishness, deceit and cowardice! Just when this is looking like a possibility, Roode gets a cheap pin.

The time runs out with a great ploy for building Roode as a legitimate headline character, rather than having a hot series of nearfall after nearfall for Styles as time runs out they have Bobby slide in and out of the ring with the hobbled AJ unable to catch up with building a 'retain at all costs' feeling that would have flattered the Nature Boy in his prime.


The XDivison Fourway was high octane at it's finest and the Bully Ray/ Styles Last Man Standing was breathtaking but, as the best PPVs always demonstrate, no gimmick is required when the story is solid and the characters carry it off perfectly.

 

[Defekt]

Aries vs. Lo Ki vs. Evans vs. Ion at Destination X was the best wrestling match of the year period.

I've never heard a crowd chanting "everybody" or "sign them all" before.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I'd probably go with Styles vs. Bully Ray. It was a great match and, quite honestly, it was far better than I expected it to be. It was just an all around entertaining match featuring two guys with very contrasting styles that they were able to mesh very well.

I thought about going with the X Division four way at Destination X. It was a great match as well but there was zero star power. It was nice to see the X Division put front & center but I wasn't overly familiar with most of the competitors in the match, didn't have any real sense of them or what they were about at the time. It was like going to a show put on by an indy promotion for the first time and not knowing jack about the guys there aside from all of them seem to be internet darlings.

I also thought about going with Roode vs. Styles in the 30 minute Iron Man Match. I enjoyed the match a lot overall, but I knew that Styles wasn't walking away with the title. There wasn't even the slightest hint of possibility really that TNA was putting the title back on Styles. That's not the wrestlers' fault, they did a great job, but it's still hard to really dig into this sort of match and this sort of setting in a feud in which you already know what's going to happen before either of them throws the first punch. And, truth be told, the ending of the match hurt it in my view. Or, I should say, the lack of an ending hurt the match. A no contest for an Iron Man Match is..well...it's not quite as stupid as the idea of a 15 minute Iron Man Match but it's pretty close. If you're going to go with a no contest ending to a World Championship match then do it on free television and use that to further hype an Iron Man Match for the ppv, which is supposed to be something special.

 

[He's Phenomenal]

Like other posters have mentioned, I can't believe you've forgot to list the Hogan/Sting match at BFG. That would be getting my vote as TNA's match of the year. It was definately their biggest match of the year. Everything about that match/feud just worked to perfection. You had two of the biggest stars the business has ever known. A great story and build, leading into the match, with the anticipation that the 'real' Hulk Hogan would stand up. The match itself had real and intense emotion throughout, something wrestling seriously lacks these days. You had what is probably the biggest 'pop' in TNA history when the Hulkster ripped his shirt off. And then to top it all off, Hogan joined forces with Sting and cleared the ring. If I was to decribe that match in one word, it would be...EPIC!

Out of the matches listed I'd vote for Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn at BFG. With Bully Ray vs. AJ Styles at Slammiversary getting an honourable mention. RVD vs. Jerry Lynn was a masterclass in making the most of a No DQ style stipulation. Their ability to use weapons effectively and with the correct timing is great to see. I really enjoyed this match even though some of the bumps were pretty hard to watch. When RVD smacked his head on the guard rail/ladder I held my breathe. They really put it all on the line at BFG and it was a true classic encounter between two great rivals.