2014 has been a year worth reviewing and weve already seen who the best superstars of the year were. Along with all those historic moments that were played host by the year, it also had some solid in ring action.WWE fans mightve had a lot to complain about the half-baked storylines and ridiculous twists that they were fed throughout the year, but when it came to the action between the ropes, there werent many complaints as most of the matches delivered to the core.It wasnt easy to filter out ten matches from a year that had plenty of excellent action (thats the reason for numerous honorable mentions by the way) and the list might raise some eyebrows us well. With that said, here is a look at the best matches that came out of WWE for the year 2014.
#13 Honorable mention: Cesaro vs. Sami Zayn (NXT Arrival)
On the heels of the epic two out of three falls match last year, Cesaro and Sami Zayn faced off in a regular match at this year’s NXT Arrival. The fans started chanting ‘match of the year’ even before it started and it sure deserve to be in this list.
After seeing this, many fans will be crying out to see Sami Zayn in the main roster or these two men having a match in one of those big pay-per-views.
#12 Honorable Mention: John Cena vs. Cesaro (Raw February 17)
Ever seen Cena actually deliver a brilliant match, well, if you haven’t do watch this one. Cesaro and Cena are sure shot money without any doubts but WWE hasn’t actually invested into this possibility.
When these two met at the February 17 episode of Raw, fans got to see a great match. Both men had a lot of to and fro action and the sheer power of Cesaro was there for the display. The WWE site marked this as the missed Pay-per-view opportunity and if they did that, you can imagine how awesome it was.
#11 Honorable Mention: Natalya vs. Charlotte (NXT Takeover)
Women’s wrestling did take backstage this year but there was this gem from NXT which broke the pattern. Charlotte and Natalya gave out a great match for the NXT Women’s championship at Takeover and it garnered praise from all over the world.
These two women went out there and showed how good women could be in between the ropes and it’s only sad to know that the WWE doesn’t give the spotlight that these girls deserve.
#10 Shield vs. Wyatt Family (Raw March 3)
The feud between Shield and Wyatt family had a lot of potential but for some reason or the other, WWE decided to keep it a short one. Both teams did get a pay-per-view stage to deliver at Elimination Chamber and the match was solid as well.
But one match between Shield and Wyatt Family that stood out was their clash at the March 3 edition of Monday Night Raw. it was more chaotic and action filled than their Elimination Chamber match and also had Seth Rollins walk out on his team mates.
The Wyatts came out winning the match but this was another example of WWE not making full use of the resources they have as Shield and the Wyatts could’ve had a lot more matches like this.
#9 Evolution vs. Shield (Extreme Rules)
When Evolution and Shield locked horns for a feud after the WrestleMania, the fans were drooling by the potential prospects. And no one was disappointed.
It was a clash between past and the future when these two stables went at it and from the two high profile matches they had, it was the encounter at Extreme Rules that stood out. it wasn’t as violent as the match at Payback but it was sheer quality all around.
Seth Rollins had his famous jump from the top while a clean win for Shield made the match look more impressive. There was also this feeling of seeing this for the first time and once it was wrapped up, the final product stood out pretty well.
#8 Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins (Raw August 18)
The match between Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins was probably ‘the feud of the year’. There were a lot of heat and emotions throughout their storyline and the hunger they had to make it to the top made things more intriguing.
They had a number of matches during the feud with the most notable ones being the Lumberjack match at SummerSlam and Hell in a Cell match at Hell in a Cell. However, the best outing of the duo came at the August 18 edition of Raw.
The fans voted for a Falls count anywhere match and it was one heck of a match to be frank. After tearing apart eachother, Rollins curb stomped Ambrose into the cinder blocks which gave him the win via knockout.
#7 Daniel Bryan vs. Bray Wyatt (Royal Rumble)
A monster that wants to conquer the world and a warrior that wanted to slay the monster. It was a perfect setting when WWE made Daniel Bryan face Bray Wyatt at Royal Rumble.
Both men were heading into the match on the heels of a greatly built up storyline but when these two got in between the ropes, all those buildup took a backseat. It was the in ring action that caught everyone’s eye.
It was also one of the earlier instances where the fans realized how capable Bray is as a wrestler. Rowan and Harper played the usual role of being creepy. The match lasted more than twenty grueling minutes after which Bray emerged as the winner.
#6 Adrian Neville vs. Tyson Kidd vs. Tyler Breeze vs. Sami Zayn (NXT Takeover)
We’ve already seen two matches from NXT in the list and the truth is, there are more matches worthy of making it. So when the company decided to put four of the best NXT superstars into a fatal four way match for the championship, it was a sure shot success.
There was chain wrestling, technical wrestling, flashiness, highflying and everything else that the fans would’ve loved to see. The number of near falls that was in the match was too damn high and the fans even thought that Neville lost the championship.
However, in the end, Neville came out winning with flying colors but the match wasn’t just about winning or losing as it was celebrated even after the final bell.
#5 John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt (Payback)
The feud between John Cena and Bray Wyatt would be categorized as a failure by the majority of WWE Universe but there were this gem buried beneath all those prejudice.
Cena faced off with Bray in a last man standing match at the Payback pay-per-view and this was one of the fine examples of Cena knowing how to wrestle. Bray was at his monstrous best. The rest of the Wyatt Family and the Usos provided much needed drama as well.
There were a lot of foreign objects that were used by both men throughout the match but the ending where Cena won made the fans frown. This also presented the fans with a classic ‘what if’ question as they were literally blown away with the chemistry that Cena and Bray had between the ropes.
#4 Seth Rollins vs. Jack Swagger vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Rob Van Dam (Money in the Bank)
The Money in the Bank pay-per-view this year had two ladder matches, one for the briefcase and one for the WWE championship. Though the latter was more star studded, it was the former that stole the show.
WWE did a great job of mixing up some hungry youngsters in with experience veterans and this combination delivered big time once the bell rang. Rollins and Ambrose in particular stood out with their spots while all the others were complementing.
Though the ending sequence involving Kane was a bit disappointing for everyone, the action that preceded and Rollins winning the briefcase covered for that. The Championship ladder match that followed had big shoes to fill in after this one and eventually failed as well.
#3 Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena (SummerSlam)
Many might see this as a one sided destruction of John Cena but it was more than that. Cena headed into SummerSlam as the reigning WWE champion while Lesnar came in fresh after ending the Undertaker’s streak at WrestleMania.
The last match these two had before SummerSlam ended with Cena winning and the fans came in expecting a similar outcome. Instead what they got was a completely unexpected match.
Lesnar ran through Cena as though the Cenation leader was some jobber. The beast was throwing in German Suplexes for fun while Cena was soaking in the punishment. There were some great chemistry between Lesnar and Cena as well.
The result of the match changed the WWE landscape forever and this would clearly go down in the history of SummerSlam as one of the best because of the story it told.
#2 Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Batista (WrestleMania)
Daniel Bryan’s struggle against the Authority to reach where he wanted was the biggest draw of WrestleMania. He had to wrestle two matches at the pay-per-view and the first came against Triple H, which he won.
A battered and injured Bryan would then go on to face Batista and Orton in the main event with the Authority factor just around the corner. It was a million dollar story to be frank.
Throughout the match, Bryan made his opponents look good while Batista and Orton delivered their best as well. In the end, the fairy tale story saw a happy ending as Bryan stood in the ring holding both the championships while the crowd cheered on.
#1 Team Authority vs. Team Cena (Survivor Series)
The lack of big matches and proper booking was costing Survivor Series big time in the recent years but the pay-per-view’s luck turned upside down thanks to this one match. Team Authority and Team Cena battled it out in a power struggle angle and it turned out to be something more.
Both teams were packed with stars as John Cena, Big Show, Erick Rowan, Dolph Ziggler and Ryback lined up for Team Cena and Seth Rollins, Kane, Luke Harper, Mark Henry and Rusev consisted of the Team Authority.
It was high octane action from the starting bell itself and the match had many twists and turns along the way. And in the end, it came down to Ziggler and three members of team Authority, setting the stage for another underdog story.
As a cherry on the top, the fans got to see the debut of Sting as well.
PS: The reason why the Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar match is not in the list is because it wasn’t the best outing for both men (admit it) even though the streak ending was a big moment.
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
