The Top Ten 2.13.07: No Way Out Matches

10) Steve Austin, Cactus Jack, Terry Funk & Owen Hart vs. Triple H, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg & Savio Vega (1998)
This was the no DQ main event for the first ever No Way Out and despite the lackluster surprise of Savio Vega replacing an injured Shawn Michaels, this match was still supremely entertaining. This match was just an all out brawl that contained action all over the arena with all 8 men and once the action got in the ring, the brutality didn’t settle down. Some of the action featured in the match included Terry Funk getting powerbombed through two set up chairs, Billy Gunn getting a trash can LAUNCHED into his face by Stone Cold, and Cactus Jack taking one of the sickest chairshots I’ve ever seen when Savio Vega smacked Jack’s skull with the chair WHILE it was covered in barbed wire. Austin won the match for his team after a stunner to Road Dogg and the crowd was absolutely rabid for Stone Cold. Austin would go on to win his first WWE title the next month, but this was a fun little forgotten match that built up his momentum to Wrestlemania.

9) Chris Jericho vs. Chris Benoit vs. X-Pac vs. Eddie Guerrero (2001)
This was a fatal four way match for Jericho’s Intercontinental title and considering the talent in this match, would you expect anything less than a classic match? And yes, X-Pac was talented. When he wasn’t coked up out of his mind. Anyhow, this match featured an unbelievable amount of action as there was never a slow moment. I can’t even recall a rest hold in this match. The match was so closely contested that all four men (yes, even X-Pac) seemed close to victory at some point in the match. The match ended when Jericho rolled up X-Pac to pick up the victory. This was a cracking match that met the expectations that everyone had for it.

8) Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero (2004)
Everyone remembers the 2004 version of No Way Out for being the one where Eddie Guerrero finally won the WWE championship. In lieu of that great moment, people tend to forget about another great match that was on the card that night. This match was for the Cruiserweight title that Rey held and Chavo wanted due to Rey’s interference in his feud with his uncle, Eddie. This was an excellent cruiserweight match that combined high flying and technical wrestling for a fantastic encounter. The match ended when Chavo Classic (dammit, I miss Chavo Classic, that’s what Chavo needs right now) shoved Rey off the top rope which allowed Chavo Jr to roll him up (while grabbing the tights, of course). This was a fantastic match that would have stole the show on any other PPV, but on this night nothing could trump Eddie’s title victory.

7) Kurt Angle vs. Chris Jericho (2000)
This was a battle between two future World Champions and this match was a testimony to how great these two would become. Coming into this match, Kurt was already the European Champion and Jericho was the IC Champ and his belt was on the line. This was a great back and forth affair that saw Kurt try to work over Jericho’s arm and Jericho try to out-quick the Olympic Hero. The ending saw Jericho go for the Lionsault, but getting hit in the face with the title belt on his way down. It made Kurt the first Euro-Continental Champ (well except for D-Lo Brown, but he doesn’t really count) and gave us a glimpse of the bright future ahead for both men.

6) Kurt Angle vs. John Cena (2005)
This was a match to determine who would face the WWE champion at Wrestlemania 21 and this was John Cena’s best match up to that point. This was an intense battle that featured Angle going after Cena’s ankle relentlessly and Cena fighting through the pain to comeback. Angles unsuccessful attempts to make Cena submit frustrated him and it ultimately cost him the match as he threw his submission expertise to the wayside to try to win illegally with a steel chain and Cena caught him off guard with an FU to pick up the win. This was a fantastic match that showed Cena’s potential and displayed the awesomeness that is Kurt
Angle.

5) Kurt Angle vs. The Rock (2001)
This was a rematch for the WWE title that was held by Kurt Angle months after he had beaten The Rock for it at No Mercy. This match featured some off the charts intensity (By Gawd!!) as both men felt it was their destiny to go into Wrestlemania as the WWE champion. Kurt Angle showed glimpses of the future badass he would be including holding The Rock in an anklelock while screaming, “Tap out or I’ll break your fucking ankle, you son-of-a-bitch!” The Rock was able to put away Angle after two Rock Bottoms (even though Kurt never kicked out of the first one, but the ref said his shoulders were up) and went on to face Stone Cold at WM17 in a classic match while Angle went on to have his own classic with Chris Benoit also at WM17. But before those two classic encounters, these two modern day legends gave us this great match which should be remembered for years to come.

4) Cactus Jack vs. HHH (2000)
This was the follow up to the classic Street Fight at the 2000 Royal Rumble and these two put on a match that matched their previous classic in sheer brutality. The match included ring steps being smacking Cactus’ skull, HHH getting planted with a double arm DDT on a steel chair, a chair assisted elbow drop off the second turnbuckle to a prone HHH, Cactus getting hit in the head with a 2×4 wrapped in barbed wire and falling off the cage through an announce table, HHH getting hit in the head with a 2×4 wrapped in barbed wire ON FIRE, and Cactus getting backdropped through the ceiling of the cell and crashing on the mat below. That’s just a few of the major spots as there was a lot more sick shit in the match that I didn’t even include here. This is definitely one of the best HIAC matches and was a fitting way for Mick Foley’s career to come to an end (well at least for a month).

3) Kurt Angle vs. The Undertaker (2006)
Ok, raise your hand if you thought this match was going to be as great as it was. Liars. I don’t think any of us expected a match this good from a beat down Kurt Angle and an aging Undertaker. Most of us were hoping that they would recapture the magic of the Smackdown match they had from a few years ago, but this match far succeeded that one. You had Undertaker, who was hell bent on capturing the World Title against Kurt Angle who refused to let anyone even dream about taking his title. It was just an awesome affair that saw Taker beating the crap out of Kurt, but Kurt would keep fighting back and everytime it seemed as though Taker was about to put Kurt away, Angle would find a way to counter it(including the AWESOME counter from the Tombstone into the Anklelock). This match proved why Kurt Angle is the best in the world and Undertaker is probably the best big man to ever set foot in the squared circle.

2) HHH vs. Steve Austin (2001)
This was the culmination of the HHH/Austin feud and was actually the last time these two men would ever face each other, which made it even more momentous. HHH had been the mastermind behind Stone Cold being run over by a car and Stone Cold had gotten his revenge at the Survivor Series by crushing a car with HHH in it (which honestly should have killed just about anybody). This was a 2/3 falls match with the first being a regular match, the second being a Street Fight, and the third being a cage match. Austin won the first fall with a Stunner and in the second fall, the two men beat the holy hell out of each other. The second fall included Austin getting planted in the head with a 2×4 wrapped in barbed wire, Austin wailing on HHH’s legs with various chairshots, and HHH backdropping Austin through an announce table. HHH was able to win the second fall after a sledgehammer shot and a Pedigree. The third fall featured both men totally beaten down trying their best to pull out the victory. Both men kicked out of each other’s finisher and the end came after they both hit each other with a foreign object (HHH with a sledgehammer and Austin with a barbed wire wrapped 2×4) and Trips had the good fortune of landing on top of Austin for the victory. This was an epic match that was a fitting end to one of the best rivalries ever in the WWE.

1) Eddie Guerrero vs. Brock Lesnar (2004)
This is what Eddie Guerrero had been training for since he was a little kid. This is what Eddie Guerrero fought off all his addictions for. A shot at the WWE title. Eddie was a tremendous underdog in this match as Brock Lesnar was an unstoppable beast. Brock constantly taunted Eddie and told him that he was nothing. Even the announcers stated that Eddie didn’t have a shot in hell of winning the title. Shame on them for doubting Latino Heat. Eddie was getting his ass thoroughly kicked in the beginning of the match and it seemed as though everytime he started making a comeback, Brock put an end to that. When it seemed as if though it was going to be a cakewalk for Lesnar, Eddie started to fight his way back. Eddie then caught a break after Lesnar smashed his knee on the top turnbuckle which enabled Eddie to work ferociously on Lesnar’s knee. It seemed as if Eddie might pull it off when Brock used his overwhelming power to counter Eddie. The match was at a standstill until Goldberg came in and speared the crap out of Lesnar which seemed to win the match for Eddie, but Lesnar kicked out. It seemed as if noting could stop Lesnar, but Eddie countered an F5 with a DDT and went up to the top to deliver a frog splash for the win and the crowd absolutely exploded. It was one of the best feel-good moments ever and you couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed with emotion seeing Eddie hold up the WWE title after all the ordeals he overcame in his life.

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