10 Most Underrated Moments In WWE Raw History

Every single wrestling website under the sun has listed their top 10 moments in WWE Raw history recently, including us! Read ours

- we called ours the 'Most Iconic Moments' because we're that kid at school who wore guyliner and never seemed to smile... We're alternative. How cool are we?

WWE themselves have even compiled their own list in the form of a Network special that was hosted by Corey Graves and Peter Rosenberg. Please, go and watch it. The list was great. Peter Rosenberg was not.

Of course, all of the classics were there but come the end of the show - and I'm sure I'm not alone here - I was sat there thinking to myself "why didn't X get a mention?" That's not saying WWE were wrong with their choices, because wrestling is one of those beautifully subjective forms of entertainment where there isn't really a wrong answer. It's all apples and oranges - unless you agree with Road Dogg who claims that wins and losses don't matter because what we're watching isn't

real

combat. That viewpoint is all kinds of wrong.

So with WWE's top 25 moments in mind, I've taken it upon myself to have a look at those unsung heroes who didn't quite make the cut but deserve all the same adulation.

10. Stone Cold Returns To Save WWF Against The Alliance

The return of "the old Stone Cold" was one of the few bright sparks of the invasion storyline - yes, I know, you thought it was

all

rubbish.

After

that

heel turn at WrestleMania X-Seven, Stone Cold and Kurt Angle cosied up to Vince McMahon - who, of course, had been the Texas Rattlesnake's biggest foe for the three years prior. During this time Steve went through a drastic character change, losing the arse kicking and beer drinking that had brought him so much success to that point in favour of hugging and guitar playing. With The Alliance kicking WWF's arse, McMahon was forced to plead with Austin to bring back his former self. Instead of doing so, Austin walked off looking dejected.

The next week, Steve was in a local bar while the rest of the WWF locker room came together to try and topple The Alliance in brawls all over the arena. Eventually, following an unbelievably rousing speech from a wheelchair-bound Freddie Blassie, Stone Cold smashed a pool cue and made his way back to the arena, laying out several Alliance members on his way through the backstage area to the ring.

The opening few snippets of Stone Cold fighting his way through the back were shot beautifully, hinting at the return of "the old Stone Cold," but not quite showing enough to confirm whether he had or not. Tantalizing stuff.

The glass shattering of Stone Cold's theme is the most impactful start to a song in the history of WWE, garnering the biggest pops on a consistent basis - this moment was no different. With the ring jampacked with Superstars, the roof was lifted off the arena and dropped somewhere in Morocco as Austin marched his way down to the ring, his mouth going like the clappers just like the old Stone Cold's would. Jim Ross' commentary also added to this moment tenfold. With the Bionic Redneck's music and the audience competing in a contest to see who could be louder, Jim's cadence when bellowing "and there he is. There's Stone Cold. Is it the old Stone Cold? Oh he's talking, he's (something inaudible due to the background noise)" was like he was talking directly to The Alliance saying 'ooooo you've done it now, boys. You're knackered!'

9. The Undertaker Vs. Jeff Hardy

Head back to 2002 and you'll hear The Undertaker talking about getting respect from his peers and making other people famous. In this instance, however, he was the one giving out respect and in the process, making Jeffrey Hardy a little bit more famous than he already was.

This was supposed to be the proverbial cakewalk for The Un-Deadman but proved to be anything but. While Hardy took an unholy beating during this match, a dramatic comeback at the end saw his fingertips literally touch the WWE Undisputed Championship before Taker was able to salvage a win.

This was the classic case of the dog laying under the underdog almost reaching heights they simply shouldn't be able to. The only thing Jeff had in his favour was the stipulation - a Ladder Match. "Climb the ladder, kid. Make yourself famous!" Once again, this was a match that produced Jim Ross at his goosebump-inducing best.

Plainly, this fantastic match and fitting tribute after the bell are lost in the annals of WWE history these days due to the fact that Undertaker isn't dead here. He's a biker with the worst nickname this side of The Great Khali's 'Punjabi Playboy' tag - Booger Red.

This was a coming out party of sorts for Jeff, with Taker's nod of approval after the final bell showing he had all the tools to be a main event player; potential he would fulfil years later.

8. Dolph Ziggler Cashes-In Money In The Bank

This was peak Raw after 'Mania bedlam. Thank goodness this was the Raw after 'Mania, however, because having a rowdier crowd than normal made this moment all the more special. I still can't work out how this moment didn't get a mention when nothing was off the table for the network special - CM Punk's Pipebomb promo was no. 2 on the list for crying out loud!

Ending nine months of guesswork - and after a couple of teases that had the likes of Randy Orton sweating buckets - Dolph Ziggler provided arguably the biggest moment of 2013 when he cashed-in his Money In The Bank briefcase on World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio.

It's a moment few saw coming after Ziggler and his muscles, otherwise known as Big E, lost a Tag Team Championship match to Team Hell No the night before on the Grandest Stage of Them All. It was almost as if everyone had forgotten about Dolph following such a loss, making the pop and shock in the arena all the more tangible.

Even though he was a heel back then, The Showoff was very much a man the people favoured. At the time, there was a genuine feeling within the WWE Universe that he wasn't getting a fair chance, while still being appreciated by fans worldwide who recognised how great he was. Fifty minutes in the 2013 Royal Rumble and countless standout performances got him there, with this moment vindication for Dolph and his supporters alike.

7. The Rock Concert

Forget about the rest, the first-ever Rock Concert in a long and storied history of Rock Concerts is the absolute best. This is the one that took place in Sacramento, California, of course.

One week before The Great One was scheduled to take on Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIX, Raw had to pull something special out of the bag and they did just that with Rocky serenading the Sacramento people and the Texas Rattlesnake like only that Hollywood sh*t-eating face could. If you don't think Hollywood Rock was the best incarnation of Rocky btw, then please get out of my face. Luv U xoxo

Austin was stuck in a pickup truck surrounded by speakers while all of this was going on. He didn't appear to be having the best of times and I find this a hard idea to get my head around. I probably would have got out and started dancing before retiring to the hood of the car with a case of beer adjacent to my right hand... bliss.

It's just a really funny segment where all you can do is admire a performer in his element. Rocky was having a great time while being an absolute bastard

for days

and it was fantastic to watch.

It's also worth mentioning Jerry 'The King' Lawler's role in this segment too. The way he reacts to Rock's ridiculousness is absolutely priceless in my book. Top marks all around.

6. The World's Strongest Swerve

The promo legitimately made The Big Show cry. Big Show is an employee of WWE and presumably knew this retirement promo wasn't real, yet he still cried. I know Big Show is an emotional human being, but still, a promo he presumably knew was fake still made him cry - either that, or he was shedding a tear because it had dawned on him that he'll never be able to rock a salmon pink blazer like Big Mark... I'm starting to get a bit misty eyed too now. We're never going to look

that

good.

In an age where nobody likes to admit they got 'worked' by something that happens on a wrestling show, we all got worked as Mark Henry faked his retirement and it felt beautiful.

Everything fell into place as The World's Strongest Man hit all the right notes. He thanked the right people, he told us how hard life on the road was and he cried

real

tears. It couldn't have felt more real. John Cena, the WWE Champion at the time, played his part too in leading a huge ovation for the former Sexual Chocolate and even handing him his title as a sign of respect.

Then, with Mark finished working all us... erm... marks, Cena came back into the ring and then BAM! World's Strongest Slam, the salmon pink jacket went flying, Henry tells his foe that he's still got a lot left in the tank and getting past him wasn't going to be that easy, and an entire WWE Universe said "you magnificent bastard" in unison.

5. Triple H's 2002 Return

Lemmy tells us how it's all about The Game during Triple H's theme, but this moment was all about the pop for The Game brought on

by the sound

of his theme. The noise created by the Madison Square Garden crowd when that famous first note and line were heard can't have been matched too many times. Jim Ross claimed it was the "loudest roar I've ever heard in MSG," and if anybody knows about roars inside MSG it's him.

It was the first time any WWE crowd had heard that song played in eight long months following that gruesome injury to HHH's quad - yes it rolled right the way up to his hip and yes he somehow survived a Walls Of Jericho after it happened.

Even though he went away a heel, Triple H returned a mega babyface following the conclusion of The Invasion angle. When it comes to WWE Superstars and injuries, absence really does make the hearts of all fans worldwide grow fonder, but this return was almost like everyone was saying "thank God that car crash is over. HHH is a really big name who can help us forget about WWF taking on WCW's B-Team. Yay!"

The package WWE put together for the return - to the tune of U2's Beautiful Day - still remains one of the best ever produced. Even though he was an absolute bastard before the injury, the passion, dedication and sacrifice of Paul Levesque just to entertain us back then was conveyed so beautifully that you couldn't help but be on his side.

“Just in case you’ve forgotten, let me just tell you who the hell I am; I am The Game! And you can bet your ass I’m back," Said Hunter, who clearly didn't need to remind anyone who he was after that kind of reception.

4. Chris Jericho (Briefly) Wins The WWF Championship

Back in the spring of 2000, Chris Jericho was a pretender to the main event scene in WWF. While he would go on to become a bonafide star over the next 17 years - mostly as a heel, I should add - things weren't really clicking for babyface Y2J in his new home following

that

debut the previous summer - a debut that did make it onto WWE's top 25 moments in Raw history, by the way.

When I say it 'wasn't clicking' for Chris, I mean there was obviously some doubts from the higher-ups in WWF because from the fans' point of view, he was over like rover which is what made this moment so great, and bad, but great all the same.

Jericho kicked off the April 17 edition of Monday Night Raw by insulting Stephanie McMahon and swindling a WWF Championship shot against her husband, the defending Champion, Triple H.

Late in the match, The Ayatollah of Rock 'n' Rolla clocked The Game upside the head with Stephanie's WWF Women's Championship while referee Mike Chioda was knocked out. Senior Official Earl Hebner, who had been bullied by the McMahon-Helmsley regime for weeks, came out to fill the void. Triple H, displeased by Earl's presence, pushed the ref down to the mat which created the opening Jericho needed to nail a Spinning Heel Kick, before a Lionsault and a rapid three count saw him win the big one.

Pandemonium in the arena. Limbs were all over the shop.

The joy was short-lived, however, as HHH, Steph and Shane McMahon convinced Earl to reverse the decision by promising they'd never lay a hand on him again. Jericho was forced to relinquish the title. Everyone went home sad.

That pop though... PHWOAH!

3. The Rock's 2011 Return

Who was going to be revealed as the guest host for WrestleMania XXIX? This is the reason the entire WWE Universe were tuned into the Valentine's Day episode of Raw back in 2011 - not because us male wrestling fans have never talked to a girl before haha lol...

Anyway, SEVEN YEARS after his previous WWE appearance, The Rock came back and the roof was removed from yet another arena.

The promo The Great One cut was as brilliant as it was long. Nothing was off limits in a monologue that saw Raw go off the air at 11:20 pm, a little longer than the overrun we're accustomed to.

John Cena, Michael Cole and the Anonymous Raw GM all had their respective trousers pulled down by Rocky, who also promised that he'd never leave WWE again... that went well.

Forget about THE CRUSHING DISAPPOINTMENT of that minor detail though because returns are the best, which makes the prospect of Raw 25 so exciting. With The Rock not advertised for the event, what price would you get for a return to trump this one?

2. Jericho Sends Michaels Through The Jeritron

“A Lying, Cheating, Pathetic Little Worm of a Human Being!”

Chris Jericho is a magnificent bastard.

Chris Jericho is also a massive fan of Shawn Michaels, which is what makes this moment so special.

Being a relatively smaller guy in a bigger than big man's world, Shawn Michaels inspired Chris to pursue his dream and become a professional wrestler. The pair had already clashed once before at WrestleMania XIX, with this feud arguably better than that one which wasn't too shabby itself; nut-kicking and all.

When it comes to turns, Chris is better than those things you see carrying people and their hand luggage through airports... Y2J reeled everyone in here, heralding his hero before turning that screw ever so slightly.

What makes this promo stick out in my mind so much is the fact Jericho carried the narrative of being the honest man right to the end here, yet still emerged as the heel - yes he threw HBK's face through a TV screen, but that's testament to his abilities with mic in hand and the crowd manipulation he and a select few others can achieve. Everything he said was true, yet he was still booed. I'm clapping, as should you be.

This was the moment that sent arguably the best feud of the noughties to the very next level, and I love it.

1. Michaels Vs. Montreal

Shawn Michaels in Montreal is like Alan Shearer in Sunderland: Lost.

Even though the majority of his comeback run was spent as an UBER babyface, this heel promo is as good as it gets when it comes to post-back injury Shawn Michaels - bobby dazzling greatest match ever against The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXV aside, of course.

Montreal is a place that will never forgive ol' HBK for his part in the Montreal Screwjob of 1997, and goodness me did he use this to his advantage here. He sang the Canadian national anthem, asked the city who their daddy was - referring to himself, of course - then took things to unprecedented heights by teasing the return of Bret 'The Hitman' Hart - the victim of the Screwjob (depending whose side you're on), and a Canadian hero who hadn't been seen on WWE's weekly TV since his departure for WCW way back when.

"Got your hopes up just a little bit, didn't I?"

GLORIOUS, yet so tragically underrated in my book.

Match Merit

WWE/NXT

NXT pre-announced a handful of matches this week, in what turned out to be a six-match card.

We opened with former Women’s Tag Champs Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez defeating Io Shirai and Zoey Stark. I really enjoyed this match. Stark impresses me more with each passing week, and Io and Raquel always deliver. And even though I’m not a fan of Dakota Kai, I can’t deny that she’s a good wrestler. Raquel got the win here though, of course.

Match two saw Bronson Reed get the shock win over LA Knight. Decent match, but nothing special, I’m just glad Knight has been defeated, because the last thing NXT needs is another debuting star with an undefeated streak. Reed’s Tsunami splash is lovely though.

Karrion Kross defeated Oney Lorcan. It was good, if not inevitable. Then WALTER murdered Drake Maverick in about 30 seconds. I’m disappointed WALTER didn’t chop Maverick all the way back to Birmingham though. No disrespect intended Mr. Spud, but come on it would have been a spectacle.

The Women’s Tag Title match between Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon against Aliyah & Jessi Kamea was changed, with Mercedes Martinez taking the place of the injured Kamea. Still wasn’t good enough though, as the champs retained in three minutes.

And your main event saw Jordan Devlin defeat Kushida. The two complimented each other really well, and this was a fast paced affair. Devlin got the win due to distraction from Legado Del Fantasma, and Kushida went berserk. Too right he did.

———

Similarly, AEW promoted a six-match card with a handful of pre-announced matches.

We kicked off with AEW World Champion Kenny Omega taking on Matt Sydal. If Sydal won he’d get a title shot, but this is Kenny Omega we’re talking about, and The Cleaner got the win with One Winged Angel. Great opener.

Hangman Page made light work of Cezar Bononi, and it was nice to see Bononi on Dynamite again to be honest.

The Pinnacle defeated Varsity Blonds and Dante Martin in an entertaining six-man tag. The faces got far more offence than I thought they would, and I want a proper feud for The Blonds soon. Shawn Spears got the win with the C4, and it was good to see The Chairman get the deciding pinfall.

Sticking with six-man action, Lucha Bros and Laredo Kid defeated The Young Bucks and Brandon Cutler. Another good match, but it felt like an exhibition match really. Just lots of quick sequences and very little selling. Cutler looked good though, but took the pinfall because we all knew he would.

Surprise of the night (for me) was Tay Conti defeating Nyla Rose. Going into this I thought Rose would dominate, but Conti used her BJJ background to out manoeuvre the Native Beast. A really good showing for Conti, and with The Bunny attacking her post match, it looks like she’s got a feud too.

The main event was my match of the week; Darby Allin vs. John Silver. Not huge on the Darby Allin gimmick, but the guy is a hell of a wrestler who always delivers. This was the John Silver show though, and Meatman looked great tossing Darby about like an old toy.

Winner: AEW. Simply put, there was far more meat to AEW’s matches this week. NXT put on zero duds don’t get me wrong, but with a three minute tag title match, a WALTER squash, and the inevitable Karrion Kross victory, NXT’s in-ring action didn’t grip me as much as AEW's did.

Promo Performance

AEW

NO. SLEEP. ’TIL TAKEOVER. And with only a few weeks left until the big event, NXT pulled out all the stops.

Karrion Kross said Finn Bálor’s actions last week were cold and calculated… I mean if he would have watched it back he’d have seen it was an accident. Guess he doesn’t have DVR in his spooky Satan house. Finn came out to say Kross showed weakness last week, and is too emotional, before promising to exploit Kross’ weaknesses and drown him at TakeOver. More like it, starting to get more involved in this feud now. 

LA Knight had a quick moment on the mic to say “YEAH” and “UH HUH”, while Jordan Devlin said that he was the business. Kushida agreed, but said that he also was, in fact, the business. Pete Dunne looked moody somewhere and said very little, and Cameron Grimes tried to buy the Undisputed Era IP off of Roderick Strong, only to receive a slap to the mush.

Johnny Gargano booted William Regal’s office door in and complained about the upcoming 12 man battle royal, before the six man gauntlet, to be the one man to face Gargano for the North American Title. God I love this version of Gargano.

The big cheese though surrounded Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly signing on for an unsanctioned match at TakeOver. Cole said the Undisputed Era was never about friendship or brotherhood, it was about proving they were the best, and he realised he doesn’t need them anymore as he is already the best. Kyle said Cole was an ‘asshole’ and a ‘prick’ and other naughty words, and says he is the man who is going to beat Cole to a pulp.

———

Shock of the week - AEW didn’t have Tony Schiavone interviewing Sting! Tony did talk to Britt Baker after last week’s amazing main event, with Baker angry at Thunder Rosa for saying she put AEW’s women’s division on the map “Why is everyone talking about me then?” A fair point. Glad to see they’re keeping Baker heel, and that her feud with Rosa isn’t over.

Team Taz had a quick word to say they’re all mates after last week, although Brian Cage looked like he was being kept against his massive muscly will. In a dilapidated warehouse somewhere Lance Archer said he respects Sting, but this is his time now, and I guess we’ll get a match between the former TNA lads at some point. 

Christian Cage and his loud tan gave some advice to the younglings before having friendly banter with Kaz - they’ll wrestle next week - while Kaz’s former SCU teammate Scorpio Sky continued telling us how he’s a nobhead now and proud of it.

Unexpectedly good interview with QT Marshall, who said he’s frustrated about working his arse off in the ring and backstage and being in Cody’s shadow. That’s understandable. Cody says they’re mates, and they’ll have an exhibition match next week. I guess this means it won’t count on win/loss records. Watch Cody still win though.

Eddie Kingston and Mox were backstage like a violent Statler and Waldorf. They still have beef with the Good Brothers, and Mox doesn’t like that he owes The Bucks for saving his hide last week.

We also heard from The Pinnacle, but more on that in a minute.

Winner: NXT. For that Cole/O’Reilly segment alone. I genuinely don’t know who is going to win their match and it’s exciting. A case could be made for either man, and they both made great points tonight.

Storyline Development

WWE/NXT

Did you not read the last segment? NO. SLEEP. ’TIL TAKEOVER.

NXT gave everything that needed meaning some meaning, and everything that already had meaning, a little extra spice.

Kross vs. Bálor finally feels personal rather than inevitable, even if Kross’s victory certainly does. While Io vs. Gonzalez ticked along nicely with a huge Baldo Bomb onto the announce table for the champion. Genuinely thought Raquel was going to turn on Dakota here, but maybe they’re saving that for the post-TakeOver edition of NXT.

Cole and O’Reilly looks like it could be feud of the year, while the announcement of WALTER vs. Tomasso Ciampa for the NXT UK Championship could be match of the year.

We also got Indi Hartwell and Candice LeRae challenging Shotzi and Ember for the tag straps, whilst MSK vs. GYV vs. LDF has been made official for the men’s tag titles. I’m hoping for a Grizzled Young Veterans win, let MSK have something to chase rather than just turn up, be undefeated and win everything.

As for Devlin vs. Escobar? More on that in a minute…

———

As always, AEW kept everything ticking over, with several elements in play.

No mention of Omega vs. Rich Swann at IMPACT Rebellion, but Omega isn’t done with The Young Bucks, with Nick and Matt turning their back on Kenny leaving him to be trounced by The Lucha Bros. Intrigued to see where this is going, I’m personally itching for a Young Bucks heel turn.

We have multiple feuds in the women’s division too! About damn time. Conti vs. Bunny. Rose vs. Shida. Baker vs. Rosa. Cargill vs. Velvet. Everything is finally falling into place.

Talking of The Bunny, Matt Hardy’s crew is now known as The Hardy Family Office, ad Hardy looks like he’s next in line to challenge Darby Allin.

The Pinnacle looked good in victory this week - alongside a theme that has a passing resemblance to The Four Horsemen theme (but nowhere near as good) - and called out The Inner Circle again. FTR vs. Proud and Powerful should be outstanding, just wish they were fighting over the Tag Titles.

Speaking of which, The Lucha Bros want the Tag Titles. They always deliver when against The Bucks, so go for it.

Winner: NXT. A close one this. AEW kept several feuds ticking over, and even started some new ones, but all roads lead to TakeOver, and NXT have found their groove leading up to the big show - TakeOver, not Captain Insano. 

Watercooler Talk

AEW

Most chatter coming out of NXT will be about Cole vs. O’Reilly, and only right that it should. Other chatter will be about WALTER vs. Ciampa, again, right that it should. But the biggest “oof” moment? Devlin vs. Escobar now has stakes, thanks to Shawn Michaels tossing a ladder into the ring à la WrestleMania X. What’s more, on his way to the back, HBK smirked at Adam Cole.

Let me repeat; Shawn Michaels. Smirked. At Adam Cole.

Imagine if they fought, it could be incredible.

———

Not a whole lot of talking points coming out of AEW to be honest.

All the storylines are interesting, and are bobbing along, but nothing massively noteworthy happened this week, in a month that saw the formation of The Pinnacle, the exploding barbed wire deathmatch, and Britt Baker doing her best Abyss impersonation.

Biggest take out was probably the main event, just because it was a darn good match.

Winner: NXT. Shawn Michaels. A ladder. What’s not to get geeked about? If Razor Ramon turns up next week I’ll have a celebratory one man mosh pit on my desk.

The Whole Damn Show

WWE/NXT

When you back NXT into a corner they come out swinging, and this build to TakeOver is shaping up to be a juicy one. Whereas last week I wasn’t feeling Bálor vs. Kross, now I am starting to get into it. Bálor sounded threatening without being condescending, but I still think Scarlett should do the talking for Kross. Just let him murder things.

The only thing holding NXT back this week was on the match front, but there was nothing bad, just a tad too much filler in-ring.  

No Dexter Lumis or Austin Theory this week though. Shame.

———

A good show for AEW once again, punctuated by great in-ring work.

The ‘not Bullet Club’ saga between Kenny, The Bucks, and The GBs could easily be stretched out for ages, and I am here for it. If there is one thing AEW does really well, it’s long term booking. Throw in the fact that Moxley and Eddie are likely to make all five of them bleed in the not-too-distant future and we could be on for a barn burner.

But until then, this week was just good at best. Is this recency bias because they’ve been on such a hot streak? Possibly, but that’s ok. You can’t go at 100% all the time. Look what happened to WCW.

Winner: NXT. Recently NXT has felt a bit clunky, and a bit half arsed, but this week was concise, focused, and every decision and segment made sense. Again, that’s not to say that Dynamite didn’t, but AEW aren't currently building to anything so the pressure is off their shoulders a little.

In Conclusion

AEW

Two good shows this week, but aren’t they always? Although NXT won 4-1 this week, that’s not to say AEW was garbage, just topic by topic NXT was better. Again, it all depends on what you're after. If you want the drama and story beats then go for NXT, if you want the best in-ring action then go for Dynamite.

Matches of the week: Allin vs. Silver. Devlin vs. Kushida. Conti vs. Rose. Half tempted to put WALTER vs. Maverick in here, but that's because I'm a psychopath.

For those keeping score at home:

NXT - 3. AEW - 4.