Top 10: Defining WWE Moments of the Modern Era

The Peaks of Modern Wrestling

10. The Miz cashes in Money in the Bank on Drew McIntyre (2010). It was a clumsy, desperate segment that highlighted the mid-card status of the champion at the time, but it remains a masterclass in opportunistic heel booking.

9. The Shield debuts at Survivor Series (2012). Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns power-bombed Ryback through the announce table, effectively resetting the main event hierarchy for the next decade.

8. Bayley and Sasha Banks main event NXT TakeOver: Respect (2015). This 30-minute Iron Man match shifted how the company treated women's wrestling, though the lack of a clean finish in the final seconds felt like a missed opportunity to cement a definitive victor.

7. AJ Styles debuts at the Royal Rumble (2016). The reaction from the Orlando crowd when his name flashed on the screen proved that the company could no longer ignore the success of independent talent.

6. CM Punk drops the Pipebomb (2011). While the promo itself is legendary, the subsequent booking of his title reign was often disjointed and failed to capitalize on the momentum generated by his shoot-style rhetoric.

Defining Rivalries and Returns

5. Daniel Bryan occupies the ring at Raw (2014). This fan-led takeover forced the hand of creative to include Bryan in the WrestleMania 30 main event, turning a stubborn booking decision into a massive success.

4. Bray Wyatt feuds with LA Knight (2022). LA Knight initially viewed this pairing as an odd fit, yet the tension during the Pitch Black match at the Royal Rumble turned into one of the final compelling chapters for Wyatt.

3. The Undertaker's streak ends at WrestleMania 30 (2014). Brock Lesnar hitting the third F-5 to secure the pinfall at the 25-minute mark left the Superdome in a state of genuine shock that has never been replicated.

2. Kofi Kingston wins the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 35 (2019). The Kofimania movement felt organic, though the abrupt manner in which he lost the belt to Brock Lesnar months later on SmackDown remains a bitter pill for fans to swallow.

1. Cody Rhodes finishes the story at WrestleMania 40 (2024). He defeated Roman Reigns after interference from John Cena and The Undertaker, finally securing the title in a main event that lasted over 30 minutes.