5 of WWE Superstar Sheamus' best career moments
WWE Superstar Sheamus is a three-time WWE Champion. He won the title less than eight months after making his debut for the Stamford-based company, which was a unique tag for a new wrestler.
Along the lines of his huge victory at TLC 2009 over John Cena, the Irishman has had quite a few memorable moments in his decade-plus run with the biggest wrestling promotion in the world.
He has also been a rather underwhelming act, not reaching the heights that the company hoped for him when they pushed him heavily in 2010 and 2012.
This year, however, the Celtic Warrior officially formed the Brawling Brutes and found a resurgence midway through. With a five-star match under his belt and the backing of the crowd, the fan-favorite is even a legit challenge to Roman Reigns for Royal Rumble in 2023.
Here's a look at five of Sheamus' best career moments.
#5. Sheamus as Mr. Money in the Bank and feud with Roman Reigns
Let's begin with an offbeat choice for a career-best moment.
After returning to WWE in early 2015 with a ridiculous makeover, Sheamus quickly entered a feud against Dolph Ziggler, then won the Money in the Bank contract.
He was the least interesting option at the time. But then again, so was Roman Reigns, who lost the ladder match after Bray Wyatt interrupted and cost the Big Dog the bout. The two men would move on to a feud that was titled "Anyone but You."
Sheamus was mostly irrelevant despite being the contract holder, but things changed out of nowhere when the Celtic Warrior cashed in on Roman Reigns after the latter had just won his first WWE Championship at Survivor Series.
It was this feud and storyline that brought about major support for the Big Dog, who was struggling to connect with the crowd.
It's about what you contribute and bring to the table, yes?
With a world title win and putting over a prominent young talent in Roman Reigns in a match that had the crowd hooked from start to finish, the 2015 chain of events was one of Sheamus' best career moments.
#4. Sheamus' first WWE Championship win at TLC 2009
Sheamus defeated John Cena in a Tables match at TLC 2009 and was instantly pushed into the main event scene. The finish of the bout kickstarted a run for the Irishman that was a bit of a hit-and-miss.
He was booked in a WrestleMania match against Triple H and subsequently beat the Game in a Street Fight at Extreme Rules in 2010, which surprisingly marked the latter's last WWE match as a full-time wrestler. Later that year, the Celtic Warrior regained the WWE Championship for a second time and once again defeated John Cena, this time in a Steel Cage match at Money in the Bank.
Despite constantly being featured on Monday nights as the world champion, his best outing came in a Six-Pack Challenge at Night of Champions 2010, where he dropped the belt in the main event to Randy Orton. Nevertheless, this was a very eventful year for the Celtic Warrior, with some memorable wins.
#3. An underrated classic for the World Heavyweight Championship
Sheamus won the Royal Rumble in 2012 and faced Daniel Bryan for the World Heavyweight Championship.
After beating the champ in 18 seconds, he began a reign that was largely forgettable barring one angle, which came at the end of the Celtic Warrior's reign.
The Big Show defeated Sheamus in a singles match at Hell in a Cell, which came off as a huge surprise at the time. The match was very good, but that's not all. Both wrestlers were embroiled in a feud that was reminiscent of the Attitude Era, with backstage brawls and promos that sold their premium live event bouts.
They went on to have two more matches at Survivor Series and TLC in 2012, the latter being a Chairs match. All the in-ring action delivered big time and their feud is one of the most underrated of all-time.
#2. "We don't just set the bar, we are the bar!"
One of the greatest tag teams of the last decade was none other than The Bar. Sheamus and Cesaro were the epitome of workhorses and both wrestlers nailed it every time they stepped foot in the squared circle.
Forming a union after feuding with each other and competing in a Best-of-Seven series of matches, Sheamus and Cesaro were two gifted wrestlers that floundered on television prior to becoming relevant as a team.
The Bar notably won a Traditional Survivor Series Tag Team Elimination match in 2016 before ending The New Day's historic run as the longest-reigning Tag Team Champions at the time.
In 2017, they were embroiled in a summer feud against The Shield's Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins. This was also when Cesaro proved that he was a wrestling machine when he defied his broken teeth, which happened by accident during a bout at WWE No Mercy.
Putting on Banger after Banger, in the Irishman's own words, The Bar reigned supreme in the tag team division of WWE in the second half of 2010s.
#1. The Brawling Brutes and feud with The Ring General
at Clash at the Castle in the Belly of The Red Dragon 🏴 who you got?
Forget Roman V Drew.. Sheamus V Gunther ‘The Foregone Conclusion’ will be the big banger💥 at Clash at the Castle in the Belly of The Red Dragon 🏴 who you got? https://t.co/MSltCgHhzO
Sheamus posted the above tweet prior to his Intercontinental Championship match against Gunther in Cardiff, Wales earlier this year. He was right on the money as the duo went on to steal the show. Sheamus garnered a standing ovation after 19 minutes of big meaty men slappin' meat!
The Brawling Brutes vs. Imperium is one of the defining feuds of the current era of WWE, where Triple H is running things and it is hard to stand out when there is an undisputed top guy like Roman Reigns in the main event.
At Survivor Series: WarGames, Sheamus led a team consisting of Ridge Holland, Butch, Kevin Owens and Drew McIntyre inside WarGames. Whilst they lost to the Bloodline, there was no shame in defeat after a banger of a match.
The year 2022 was Sheamus' best, and here's to the new year where hopefully the Celtic Warrior retains the new wave of momentum he has built this late in his career.