2. Triple H Vs. Cactus Jack - Street Fight For WWE Title (Royal Rumble 2000)
Many, including the man himself, assumed that Foley was done in January 2000. Years of punishing matches and reckless bumps had taken their toll on Mick and his in-ring career was noticeably winding down in late 99. But Foley still had a couple of matches left in him with one of them being not only one of the best of the Attitude Era but of Mick's career, too. Foley's transformation from kind, gullible Mankind into the mean, violent Cactus Jack was a thing of beauty. Triple H sold it like he had seen a ghost and anticipation for the match was high. Still, there were those who doubted whether or not Foley could produce when the occasion called for it. Gladly, he did. The Game and Jack and went at it hard and fast, building and building the match. Garbage cans, steel stairs and even a wooden crate were all used in the early going before the introduction of barbwire and thumbtacks really pushed it to the next level. Keeping up with street fight specialist Foley, Triple H was quickly becoming legitimised in the eyes of the critics. The finish was one of the sickest in WWE history: after absorbing a back body drop onto the tacks, Triple H gave Cactus a pedigree onto the steel pins. It was shocking and brutal in all the right ways and, according to Foley, directly against the orders of Vince McMahon.
