10 Wrestling Matches Better Than They Had Any Right To Be

In today's patently choreopgraphed WWE environment, real emotion is rare. The problem inherent in eschewing the real sports framework associated with dreaded southern wrasslin' means that genuine stakes are often jettisoned along with it. It's sometimes hard to imbue matches with meaning when outcomes are rarely factored into future storylines.

Even more impressively, WWE's horrendous track record with reneged-upon dismissal stipulations did not compromise the immense drama of this match, the genuine emotion in which elevated it beyond a merely well-worked sub-fifteen minute midcard outing.

Some were lukewarm at the prospect. Cody Rhodes had been jobbed out so thoroughly beforehand that he hardly presented a viable threat to the formidable Shield. Goldust had long been a shell of the performer who had once disproved the notion that wrestling talent wasn't hereditary in the early nineties. Both men, however, fashioned winning chemistry to surpass all reasonable expectations.

Goldust in particular impressed with the platform for his late career renaissance, the unfortunate side effect of which gave rise to yet another abhorrent JBL cliche: "I tell ya, that Goldust has never looked better!"

The addition of Dusty Rhodes at ringside was also astute - the fans in attendance popped huge for his altercation with Ambrose on the outside and his role in the subsequent victory celebrations.