Best WWE pay-per-view matches of 2021 so far
We're halfway through the year and WWE has given us six pay-per-views so far, including two of the big four. Alongside Royal Rumble and WrestleMania 37, we've seen Elimination Chamber, Fastlane, Backlash, and most recently, Hell in a Cell.
Which of these events has given us the best WWE matches in the past six months? Spoiler warning: there's a lot from WrestleMania here. The first major event from the company to feature a large live crowd? Of course, WWE pulled out all the stops for that one.
We're here to count down the five WWE best pay-per-view matches of 2021 so far. We're kicking off, obviously, with WrestleMania.
#5 Drew McIntyre vs Bobby Lashley for the WWE Championship - WrestleMania Night 1
Man, they really ran this feud into the ground, eh? Still, fans knew that Bobby Lashley and Drew McIntyre could deliver a great WWE Championship match on the Grandest Stage of Them All. They were two of the most dominant forces in all of WWE. We should've known the potential of this feud when we saw them square off at Backlash 2020.
This time, with no Lana to interfere and Lashley walking in as WWE Champion, there was a fresh feel to it. McIntyre was chasing, looking to win back a belt that he never should've lost. Add to all that the fact that this was kicking off WrestleMania, and we had a recipe for success.
They laid into each other from the word "go." It was exactly what fans were hoping to see: a pure hoss fight. Lashley's resilience and pure will were showcased here, as he took everything McIntyre had and then some. A trio of Future Shock DDTs couldn't do the job when one was usually enough for any other WWE Superstar.
A big dive to the floor saw McIntyre flatten both the champion and MVP, and it seemed McIntyre was poised to get the WWE Championship back. However, a brief distraction from MVP allowed Lashley to avoid the Claymore and catch McIntyre in the Hurt Lock. With nowhere to go and that classic Bret Hart step-up turnbuckle reversal failing, the Scottish Warrior passed out in the middle of the ring.