Was HHH Taker III the best match in the WM Streak History?

[pepentorresHHH]

Im rewatching HHH taker III since I got the DVD (and I was at sun life stadium!).... and it got me thinking

I know it was a great match, I was there and people came out saying it was the best match of the card, when i read the forums the day after, most people agreed it was a great match and match of the night....

but the question is....

out of the 20 matches on the WM streak... was this match the best match? if not in what place would you rank it?

I may be biased since I was there live but that match surpassed all my expectations, people were at the edge of their seat and just stood up for the last 15 minutes of the match and the ending with the 3 hugging at the top of the stage was a perfect ending to this story.... so yes I do believe this was the #1 match of all 20. what about you?

Discuss.....

 

[Diet Soda]

Quite possibly. It's certainly the one match where the importance of the Undertaker's streak was emphasised the most.

You've got to remember that "the streak" wasn't really pushed until a few years ago; until then it would just be mentioned off the cuff that 'Taker was undefeated at Wrestlemania.

But, in terms of the Undertaker's best Wrestlemania matches overall, I can't really commit to a best, so here are my top 5 in no particular order...

28 vs. Triple H, for the fantastic finish to the story.

14 vs. Kane, the culmination of a huge feud between the two brothers. Also, dat entrance.

18 vs. Ric Flair, overlooked because of Rock and Hogan, but the only time (I believe) Taker was a heel at a Wrestlemania, and still a great, bloody match between two legends.

26 vs. Shawn Michaels, for basically the same reason as this year's match - a beautiful way for HBK to go out.

24 vs. Edge, though I was tempted to put vs. Batista from the preceding year, since it was 'Taker's first world title win in 5 years, but Edge was hot as hell going into this match and looked like he could credibly pull off the upset win.

 

[rexbox82]

Nah not for me , don,t get me wrong it was a great match and it stole the show but for me undertaker was involved in two better matches at wrestlemania . The best being against shawn michaels at wrestlemania 25 and the match against edge at wrestlemania 24

 

[ProWrestlingFan]

HHH / Taker at Wrestlemania 17 was the best. HBK/ Taker at Wrestlemania 25 and Randy Orton vs Undertaker at Wrestlemania 21 comes next. Wrestlemania 28 match was overhyped and wasn't that great. The Hell in a Cell wasn't even used.

 

[LegendKiller123]

the best surely has to be :
Undertaker v hbk wm 26 seeing the greatest superstar ever retire from wrestling at that moment when he lost to undertaker was amazing and a greattt match 2nd will have to wm 28 hhh v taker 3rd undertaker v hbk wm 25 and 4th probally randy orton vs undertaker at wm 21 or hhh v undertaker at wm 27

 

[Yrrab]

I'm gonna say no. The match is definitely my favorite, though. But the best in their series, I gotta say it was II, and heres why.

Triple H virtually dominated this match, and it got to the point where I KNEW Triple H was going over. As soon as he grabbed the sledge hammer, the Hell's Gate submission didn't even cross my mind. I was pissed that Taker was about to lose is streak, and was damn close to just walking out of the room and getting drunk.

And then, Hell's Gate out of nowhere. The biggest act of desparation in Pro Wrestling history that I can recall, and it paid off! Taker won the match. It was just, surreal. Absolutely insane.

The third match in their series was great, very back and forth. Taker's new look seemed normal after the first 3 minutes, and made him look like a lunatic at times. It was a fantastic story, brutal, grueling, and a great showcase, but ultimately I think the second match of their three was superior.

EDIT - Forgot to mention that I also think this is his best streak match, even better than the HBK series.

 

[zigzag4ziggler]

you say that you were there and that taker hhh was match of the night. For me it was rock n cena. Taker n hhh was undoubtedly a classic but it was just chairshot after chairshot on top of finishers from my perspective. No use of the cell, was bloody pointless...just good eye candy in an outdoor stadium. Rock n cena started off slow as did taker n hhh but it was good old fashioned wrestling. No weapons...just wrestling. On a side note, how was the pop when rock pinned cena 1, 2, 3? I just wanted to know how it came off live in the stadium. I was watching it with 23 other people on a projector and we all fu*king erupted. Rock - G.O.A.T
Furthermore, their wm 28 match doesn't even compare to Taker n HBK. Hbk @ wm 25 was the greatest wrestling match I've ever witnessed

 

[sdelfin]

For reasons I won't get into here, I did not enjoy the HHH/Taker match from this year. I wanted to like it. My expectations were, perhaps, unrealistic as in the days leading up to Wrestlemania 28, I decided to watch the Shawn/Taker matches from WMs 25 and 26 which were simply superlative matches. Best match from Undertaker's streak, of the ones I've seen, I would have to say his match with Shawn from Wrestlemania 25. Their match at 26 was amazing too, but I pick 25 for several reasons. That match was longer, paced better with a slow build and big man/little man psychology. They really manipulated the crowd so well in that match. And finally, that match had Jim Ross on commentary. So, WM 25 is my pick.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

It was a good match (as were all three of their encounters) but not the best. There match at WM 27 to me was better because as it was progressing I truly thought Trips was going to win. The ending was great too with Taker winning but Trips walking out and Taker getting carried out.

When I think of this years match there are two things that stand out. The 1st is the SCM into the pedigree. That was such a cool spot and the only time it looked like Taker would lose in this match. Then I think of all the chair shots to the back (that's not a good thing though).

 

[SFC]

For me, it was right up there with both HBK matches. But here's why you could make the argument it was the best.

Wrestling, when all is said and done, is about story telling. This perhaps utilized every single aspect perfectly, and not by a stretch, to tell this story. It was one of personal struggle between best friends in HBK and HHH. One of redemption from Taker. One of desperation from HHH on Taker. Etc.

You could feel the passion and precision put into each spot. The Hell In A Cell was used as the perfect backdrop, to showcase a structure that both men has a synonymous past with.

Not to mention, for as many believable moments HHH/Taker II had (including the HHH tombstone), there has perhaps been no greater spot in all of Taker's WM matches that made you think he would lose as the Sweet Chin Music/Pedigree spot did. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0U3ILg0bNU Shawn's reaction emphasizes the story telling.

Overall, tough to say, but it's definitely up there.

 

[aaronoafc]

I would probably have to say their match at Wrestlemania 25 was better. In my eyes the order of the three goes wm 25 wm 26 then probably wm28.

WM 25 in my eyes was the best of the streak and possibly my favourite match ever! It was unbelievable! JR was going ape shit for the entire bout, furthermore the match wasn't hyped nowhere NEAR the matches recently. People were expecting a great match considering the two athletes involved however NOBODY expected it to be as good as it was. I have re watched the match a few times and still some of the kick outs have me surprised. Simply Amazing

 

[Skinsley]

The first HBK match was the best match to watch.

But as far as epic moments go....the match at this years mania was the best emotionally.

 

[FMAJR164]

HHH Taker did not fight at 25 or 26. Their bouts were at WM 17, 27 and 28. 27 was in mind the best physical match that they had, but if you are looking for the story, there is no debate that the way they told the story at 28 was head and shoulders above their other fights.

 

[RATED R CHAMPION]

THE BEST MATCH IN THE STREAK'S HISTORY WAS WM 25, AND POSSIBLY THE BEST MATCH EVER AT WRESTLEMANIA, but this year guys wm 28 was the most dramatic and psychological match ever on the streak, what a match, MATCH OF THE YEAR 2012

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Sometimes it got to be a bit excessive though. I didn't need to see so much agony on Shawn's face with what seemed like 50 zoom in's on Shawn or what also seemed to be the same amount of times you could here Shawn telling Trips to stop and Trips telling Shawn to end it or I will.

 

[OneTooManyPunts]

Personally, I think it's one of the best WM Streak matches, but not the best. To me, the first Taker/HBK match still takes that honor.

However, I will say that the Triple H/Taker WM 28 match did have the best pay off from a storyline standpoint. The culmination of the Undertaker, Triple H, and HBK's intertwining WM storylines was executed to perfection, and it ended with probably the most satisfying finish to any program in recent WWE history.

 

[Pedigree1]

No but its up there

WM25 vs SM!! The absolute best match of the streak IMO those two put magic together in the ring and i actually felt that untertaker was gonna lose that one. One mistake cost SM and taker put him away.

WM24 vs Edge! What a battle and a war. They gave everything they had that night and the hells gate sealed the deal. But edge damn there pullled it off what an upset that would have been.

WM26! Vs SM2! Not quite as good as the original but still what a match definiely the match of the night. For those people fans of the streak i highly recommend these matches im mentioning.

WM28! What a battle just icon vs icon. Damn they battled for what an hour or so close to an hour. That was quite a story they told in the ring that night!

 

[pepentorresHHH]

On a side note, how was the pop when rock pinned cena 1, 2, 3? I just wanted to know how it came off live in the stadium. I was watching it with 23 other people on a projector and we all fu*king erupted. Rock - G.O.A.T

HHH Taker was match of the night, people were standing up for the last 15 minutes and we couldnt get a breather after so many close finishes, specially after the super kick into pedigree combo.....

As far as the pinfall that was the biggest pop of the night! but thats why the match itself was overrated in the fact that people made the match better than it was..... different people with the same moves in the match and you would have given 7/10 to this match. Also the pop after taker pinned hhh was slightly smaller because we were exhausted after a 30 minute rollercoaster ride, in the rock cena match we had breathers when the match wasnt that exciting and it really picked up on the last 3 to 5 minutes.

 

[justin71]

Odd man out and I'm going to say H/Taker at WM 17 because you had two men at their respective peaks and furthermore it was Attitude at it's peak as well...

 

[Tyler44]

Well think of it like this. What makes a match good?

I believe people are not fully into a match until someone kicks out of another person's finisher when all eyes thinks it's over. That's the point where the match gets attention. All Undertaker-Mania matches have this. This is when the match gets memorable and exciting.

And now, I realize HHH/Taker this year had that. The ending was emotional to some. But honestly, before they started kicking out of each other's finishers, the match was sloppy, boring, and decent at best.

The first HBK/Taker match was excellent throughout. I had my attention stirred, and the close calls and kicking out of finishes was just a beautiful touch, not the reason why excitement was geared towards the match.

So no this year's match was not the best. HBK/Taker I was, in my opinion.

 

[TimeIsWasting]

I don't quite understand why everybody keeps going back to Taker and HBK. I mean seriously guys their matches were good, but it was nothing new. It was the same Taker and HBK. It was totally expected to be what it was, and it was nothing more than what was expected. The HHH and Taker matches were something nobody expected, both of the last two matches exceeded everyone's expectations. Did any of you really expect the Taker and HHH matches to be what they were and tell a story like they did. I will say in the last match having HBK there made it a lot more emotional and went over very well. I would say that both of the last two HHH and Taker matches were awesome. I lean more towards the second match over the third, because shawn really did help make the last match much more than we bargained for.

One more thing about HBK and Taker compared to HHH and Taker is that at no point did you think that HBK was going to win. Not at all, it wasn't going to happen. However, in the HHH and Taker matches there were moments where you just weren't sure if Taker was going to win. You need to be honest with yourselves because you know it's true. So, ultimately which matches really sold?

 

[RKOrob]

While not technically the best streak match, my personal favourite was Taker vs Orton, just because it's the only time I ever thought the streak would be broken

 

[Sephyxia]

As far as selling, It did great. As far as the best match. No. WM 25 with HBK was by far the best IMO. Hell in a Cell wasn't even the best match on the card. Punk vs Jericho was way better. Its not even top 5 HIAC match for me. Nothing but chair shots honestly. Cell was hardly utilized. I walked away from it very disappointed.

 

[willross]

It is certainly up there with the 2 HBK encounters. The best 5 are probably the 2 with HBK and the 3 with HHH in no particular order.

Then on the level below that is the Edge, Batista, and Flair matches.

For sure the matches against HHH and HBK stand on their own, personally I think 28 is the best one. I put 25 in at 2nd because it was a classic that I am not sure anyone expected. I put 27 in at 3rd because I legitimately thought the streak was going to end at many points in the match. 26 comes in next due to it being another great match but I knew that with the Retirement stipulation that HBK had no chance of winning so none of the falsies had the effect on me they could have. Then 17 completely based on that it had great story-telling but wasnt better than the last 4 WM matches.

 

[Y2J__Y2J]

For me it's tied..
HBK vs Taker at WM25 & HHH vs Taker III
they were both amazing matches
HBK/Taker at 26 and HHH/Taker II weren't as good as those matches, but were incredible matches with somewhat better storylines coming into the event