By the end of each year, we receive the Match of the Year on WWE’s official website and this year is no exception. For the entire part of WWE’s PPV programming and the weekly televised shows, we are used to seeing some big-time main event matches which steal the show. The nominees become more in number with the NXT roster delivering some worth the watch matches, as well.
This year, WWE declared that John Cena vs. AJ Styles at the Royal Rumble PPV was the “match of the year”. This was a dream bout for the WWE fans ever since the Phenomenal One entered the WWE scene in 2016. So, WWE arranged not one but three singles match for them. Styles picked up the victories in the first two affairs at Money in the Bank and Summerslam 2016, respectively.
But, the outcome was different at Royal Rumble as John Cena returned to claim a WWE championship opportunity by the end of last year and received it. At the first PPV of the year, he reclaimed the most prestigious title present in the sports entertainment to tie Ric Flair’s record of 16 world title reigns.
Speaking of the historic match at the Rumble event, AJ Styles quoted the following:
“That rivalry was something people wanted to see and thought would never happen. People knew what they were in store for: Two guys who bring out the best in each other. If you saw me before this match, you’d see a smile on my face because I knew something great was about to happen.”
Meanwhile, here are the entire list the 25 top matches selected by WWE for the year 2017:
1. AJ Styles vs. John Cena — WWE Championship Match (Royal Rumble)
2. Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns vs. Samoa Joe vs. Braun Strowman — Fatal 4-Way Universal Championship Match (SummerSlam)
3. Tyler Bate vs. Pete Dunne — WWE United Kingdom Championship Match (NXT TakeOver: Chicago)
4. The New Day vs. The Usos — SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match (SummerSlam Kickoff)
5. Brock Lesnar vs. AJ Styles — Champion vs. Champion Match (Survivor Series)
6. Asuka vs. Ember Moon — NXT Women’s Championship Match (NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn)
7. “The Demon” Finn Bálor vs. AJ Styles (WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders, and Chairs)
8. The Authors of Pain vs. #DIY vs. The Revival — Triple Threat NXT Tag Team Championship Match (NXT TakeOver: Orlando)
9. Big Show vs. Braun Strowman (Raw, Feb. 20)
10. Finn Bálor vs. Seth Rollins vs. The Miz — Triple Threat Match (Raw, May 1)
11. The Usos vs. The New Day — SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match (WWE Battleground)
12. Shane McMahon vs. AJ Styles (WrestleMania 33)
13. Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins vs. Cesaro & Sheamus — Raw Tag Team Championship Match (WWE No Mercy)
14. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins (Raw, May 29)
15. Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar — Universal Championship Match (WrestleMania)
16. Aleister Black vs. The Velveteen Dream (NXT TakeOver: WarGames)
17. Finn Bálor vs. Roman Reigns vs. Samoa Joe vs. Seth Rollins vs. Bray Wyatt — Fatal 5-Way Match (Extreme Rules)
18. Sanity vs. The Undisputed ERA vs. The Authors of Pain & Roderick Strong — WarGames Match (NXT TakeOver: WarGames)
19. Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns — Universal Championship Match (Royal Rumble)
20. Gentleman Jack Gallagher vs. TJP vs. Cedric Alexander vs. Mustafa Ali vs. Noam Dar — Fatal 5-Way Elimination Match (205 Live, Feb. 7)
21. Charlotte Flair vs. Bayley — Raw Women’s Championship Match (Raw, Feb. 13)
22. John Cena vs. AJ Styles vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Dean Ambrose vs. The Miz vs. Baron Corbin — WWE Championship Elimination Chamber Match (Elimination Chamber)
23. Bobby Roode vs. Shinsuke Nakamura — NXT Championship Match (NXT TakeOver: Orlando)
24. Kevin Owens vs. AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho — Triple Threat United States Championship Match (SmackDown LIVE, July 25)
25. Roman Reigns vs. Cesaro — Intercontinental Championship Match (Raw, Dec. 11)