5 underrated singles matches of Edge in WWE
Since his WWE main roster debut in 1998, Edge has been a constant when it comes to main event matches, whether those main events have been on Raw, Smackdown, Backlash, SummerSlam, or even WrestleMania.
In April of 2002, Edge's singles career began to kick-start after a series of pay-per-view matches with WWE Hall of Famer, Kurt Angle. Following his matches with Angle, Edge was seen by fans and WWE management as a Superstar with all of the potential in the world due to his unique look, creativity, youth, and ability to have a great match with nearly everyone.
Upon Edge's return from his first triple spinal fusion in 2003, he returned to Raw in 2004 and picked up right where he left off, and began to have more classic singles matches with the likes of Randy Orton, Chris Benoit, and Matt Hardy.
Furthermore, Edge is known to never have the same match twice, and every encounter has had different forms of storytelling, psychology, innovation, and athleticism. Whether Edge was facing a WWE legend like Ric Flair, or facing a speedy underdog like Rey Mysterio, each match had its own story that was perfromed to perfection.
Moreover, the Ultimate Opportunist is one of the rare performers that has faced nearly everyone from his era on pay-per-view, from the likes of The Undertaker, Randy Orton, Triple H, Eddie Guerrero, Kurt Angle, John Cena, Chris Jericho, Kane, Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, and many more.
Let's take a look at five Edge matches that are tremendously underrated!
#5 Edge vs Chris Jericho (C): WrestleMania XXVI
In mid-2009, Edge had been sidelined with a torn achilles tendon while teaming with Chris Jericho, as they were the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions. Following the injury Edge sustained, Chris Jericho went on to cut a couple of promos on his tag team partner, seemingly ridiculing him for his injury, and replacing him with Big Show.
However, it was reported by WWE that Edge would miss up to fourteen months of in-ring action due to the injury he sustained in early July 2009. After nearly eight months, the Rated-R Superstar made his return during the 2010 Royal Rumble match as the 29th entrant. Following a huge ovation, Edge stormed into the ring and nailed spears on John Cena and Shawn Michaels; then, he went right for his former tag team partner and eliminated him, gaining retribution.
Following Edge's 2010 Royal Rumble win, Chris Jericho won the World Heavyweight Championship in the Elimination Chamber match, and the match was set for WrestleMania XXVI - Chris Jericho vs Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship.
In the WrestleMania match, the psychology was excellent, with Jericho attempting to attack the achilles tendon as much as he could. In addition, the in-ring prowess was excellent and the near falls were believeable. The Spear off the table through the barricade should have been in the match, not after. Otherwise, the result was quite surprising, as Y2J bested the Ultimate Opportunist.