I’m going to Newcastle for a few days so you will have to wait for the top 10…

15. Money In The Bank: CM Punk vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. John Morrison vs. Chris Jericho vs. MVP vs. Carlito)
(WrestleMania 24, 30/03)
This was one of those ‘spotfests’, but I tend to like that kind of stuff anyway, especially when it’s done well. This was, as it had the spectacular moves and the big stunts, but it also had a sense of structure, as well as some memorable moments, from Morrison’s incredible moonsault to the floor while holding the ladder to Jericho bringing back the Walls of Jericho atop a ladder, from Matt Hardy’s big return to Shelton taking an insane front flip bump off a ladder through another ladder! Of course, the most memorable of these moments was the finish, as I never saw CM Punk’s victory coming, and it really felt pretty special.

14. John Cena vs. Batista
(SummerSlam, 18/08)
This was good but I’ve got a feeling they’ve got a better match in them somewhere down the round. Regardless, it’s my 14th favourite match of 2008 so there’s plenty to enjoy. It had the feel of a big deal even if it had kind of been randomly announced out of the blue, and there was the usual back-and-forth action you’d expect from a match like this. They told the story of Cena’s heart and drive vs. Batista’s size and power and it worked pretty well. The bit near the end, where they traded punches on the top rope, Batista fell down and Cena went for the diving leg drop thing only for it to be reversed into a massive Batista Bomb, was awesome too.

13. The Undertaker vs. Big Show
(No Mercy, 05/10)
This was great, just two giant monsters beating the living shit out of each other until one of them could take no more. Nothing more, nothing less. Undertaker wasn’t the biggest man in the match for once so he got to use speed and skill, while Show just battered him. I really liked Show catching him in mid-air to reverse Old School into the chokeslam, and Taker later countering a second chokeslam into a big DDT. The match ending via referee stoppage after Big Show literally punches Taker’s head in is pretty fantastic. If ‘slobberknocker’ were a real word, this would be the definition.

12. Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho
(Judgment Day, 18/05)
Great match, the official start of the best feud in years, and totally different to their later matches. This was while Jericho was still a face, with the seeds of the heel turn planted, so the match was about competition and respect, and so was much more technical-based than the rest of their series. Some really good spots in here too, such as the now-common ‘Lionsault, opponent gets the knees up, but Jericho turns it into the Walls of Jericho anyway’, as well as a Codebreaker reversal of Sweet Chin Music, and an awesome superkick on the apron. Shawn winning with a cradle instead of more decisively added weight to Jericho ‘snapping’ later too. I should probably re-watch this someday.

11. Triple H vs. Jeff Hardy
(No Mercy, 05/10)
Really strong match and awesome for getting the viewer hooked, for drama, and at presenting Jeff as a guy who you really thought was finally going to get the title victory but just couldn’t do it this time, and HHH as the talented champion who was one second away from losing his belt. HHH played a great role in this match as an old school, slightly-heelish champ, and the crowd were going mental for every time it looked like Jeff had a possibility of winning. These two really have great chemistry against each other, and I really liked the finish, of Jeff actually connecting with the Twist of Fate and Swanton Bomb, only for HHH to surprise him with a roll up and steal the victory. Great finish which kept them both strong and furthered the storyline well.