10 Best WWE TLC Matches EVER - According To Dave Meltzer
6. Jeff Hardy Vs CM Punk (SummerSlam 2009, ****1/4)
The final truly sensational match of Jeff Hardy's second run with WWE, this SummerSlam loss came right as he was due to exit the organisation and just before a personally damaging drugs bust at his home a month later. His substance abuse history had been alluded to in the angle itself, with Punk at his sardonic worst in the majestic heel variation of his 'Straight Edge Superstar' persona leading into the dramatic showdown.
A relatively brave choice for the show's top spot in an era swallowed whole by the presence of John Cena, Batista, Randy Orton and D-Generation-X, Punk and Hardy knew expectations were sky high, but the pair delivered one of the strongest singles TLC efforts in the near-20 year history of the match.
Punk was devilish with the weapons, electing to inflict punishment on the Champion with unnecessary roughness and aggression born out of the frustration he'd felt since Hardy took the title back from him a month prior. In response, the 'Charismatic Enigma' took his usual array of wild risks, including a gorgeous Swanton Bomb on the challenger through an announce table from the summit of easily the tallest ladder the company has ever used.
Jeff's last bump was less memorable but just as painful. Losing a fistfight underneath the belt, Hardy fell hard to the edge of the ring from the top rung, sacrificing himself for the cause one last time.