5 Best wrestling matches of 2012

#2 The Undertaker vs. Triple H - 'End Of An Era' Hell In A Cell Match - WrestleMania XXVIII

This match was symbolic and had

historical

gravitas to it...at least, until WWE Crown Jewel...

This match had so many great questions going into it. Would both Triple H and Undertaker retire after the match ended? Would Shawn Michaels call the match fairly? What would the Undertaker look like after videos showed him cutting off his trademark long hair? Luckily, those questions and more were answered in this drama-filled spectacle of a match.

This match was far more brutal than their encounter from the year prior, thanks to the addition of the Cell as a weapon.

They told a fantastic story of Shawn Michaels’ conscience playing a role in the match. He ordered HHH to stop hitting Undertaker with a chair, not because it wasn’t allowed (which it was), but because he wanted him to pin the Deadman instead. As the match progressed, Triple H’s brutality began to bother HBK more and more, to the point that he actually threw away HHH’s sledgehammer as he prepared to hit Undertaker with it. That dynamic of ‘friend or referee’ was executed perfectly and made the match so much better.

Then, after Undertaker had locked the Hell’s Gate on HBK himself, Michaels superkicked Undertaker, only for ‘Taker to once again kick out. The pained expression on Michaels’ face coupled with the thunderous roar of the crowd as they cheered is one of the greatest scenes in WWE history.

While it didn’t have the same in-ring action as the Undertaker-Michaels matches from earlier years, the drama and story told between these three men was marvellous. You could feel the genuine emotions from all three of them, and the near-falls were as dramatic as ever. This was easily the best thing to happen at that year’s WrestleMania.