Asuka (c) vs. Ember Moon
NXT Women’s Championship Match
NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III
The best of all the WWE women’s matches we saw in 2017, Asuka and Ember Moon absolutely tore the house down at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
This was Asuka’s final bout in NXT and although she went out on top (one of the first yellow brand champions to do so), Ember proved that she could hang with the best in the division and was more than worthy of the title, which she went on to win later in the year.
Watch via WWE Network
Aleister Black vs. The Velveteen Dream
NXT TakeOver: WarGames
These two have excellent chemistry together and told a compelling story while having one hell of a match. Both Dream and Black are highly unique characters, but are total opposites of one another, making things even more interesting.
We already knew Black was a star and had a hunch The Velveteen Dream was going places, but this match removed any doubt of it.
Watch via WWE Network
WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Universal Champion Brock Lesnar
Non-Title Champion vs. Champion Match
Survivor Series
Brock Lesnar has a tendency to half-ass a lot of his matches, but if there was ever a time for him to get engaged, it was for this bout against The Phenomenal One. And he did not disappoint.
From start to finish, this was a high-speed, high-impact contest that had fans out of their seats with excitement. AJ displayed, once again, that he is a (if not the) top guy in WWE and Lesnar showed every bit of passion that this match called for, reminding the WWE Universe why he is the champ.
Watch via WWE Network
The Authors of Pain (c) vs. #DIY
NXT Tag Team Championship Ladder Match
NXT TakeOver: Chicago
These two teams threw everything they had into this epic final chapter of their feud. The match was extremely violent, but not nearly as brutal as what happened after The Authors of Pain left with their titles.
This was the day that Tommaso Ciampa savagely turned on his best friend and broke up #DIY. The well-executed heel turn took an already outstanding segment/story to new heights.
Watch via WWE Network
Kevin Owens (c) vs. Roman Reigns
WWE Championship Match
Royal Rumble
This was a fun, but vicious match including foreign objects, brawls through the crowd, and Chris Jericho in a shark cage.
In true bad guy fashion, Kevin Owens made use of every shenanigan in the book to take down The Big Dog, but what ultimately cost Reigns the match was the surprise interference from Braun Strowman.
Watch via WWE Network
SAnitY vs. The Undisputed Era vs. The Authors of Pain w/Roderick Strong
WarGames Match
NXT TakeOver: WarGames
This is how you do a multi-man cage match. WarGames was so violent and bloody, we felt like it was 2001 again.
Not that blood is needed to make a fantastic match, but when you have 9 men throwing each other around in a giant cage, a little color adds a lot. The Undisputed Era captured the victory, but all three teams came out of this bout looking tough as nails.
Watch via WWE Network
The Authors of Pain (c) vs. #DIY vs. The Revival
NXT Tag Team Championship Match
NXT TakeOver: Orlando
Hands down the match of the night on a great card, this triple threat for the NXT tag team championships was awesome. #DIY and The Revival basically teamed up against The Authors of Pain and were still unable to defeat them.
AOP have been improving steadily since their debut and this was a true display of power from the dominating duo.
Watch via WWE Network
Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Braun Strowman vs. Samoa Joe vs. Roman Reigns
Universal Championship Fatal 4-Way
SummerSlam
This fatal 4-way was exactly what you would expect from a Beast, a Monster, a Destroyer, and a Big Dog (…although that last one is not quite as intimidating a monicker as the rest).
It was a fierce battle between giants, each of them attempting to use their size and strength to best the others. Strowman overpowered Lesnar more than once, making him appear the strongest by far. He was not able to capture the championship, but don’t be surprised to see him hold it in the future.
Watch via WWE Network
John Cena vs. AJ Styles
WWE Championship Match
Royal Rumble
This match. was. amazing. There were some questionable moments during the Royal Rumble this year, but Styles and Cena quickly proved that this was not going to be one of them.
Two mega-stars went back and forth, throwing their best moves at each other with no clear prevailing force until the very end, and even then, Cena had to hit his finisher from the top rope twice before Styles would stay down.
Watch via WWE Network
Tyler Bate (c) vs. Pete Dunne
United Kingdom Championship Match
NXT TakeOver: Chicago
This match took place with over 6 months left in the year, but we had a strong feeling it was going to be one of the best WWE matches of 2017 the first time we saw it.
Both men have an astounding amount of skill, especially when you consider they are only 20 and 24 years old. They certainly have very bright futures ahead of them and we can’t wait to see them have even more incredible matches in the years to come.
Watch via WWE Network
What’s on your list of the best WWE matches of 2017? Did we miss any of your favorites? Let us know on Twitter, @TheRumbleRamble
