14. Chris Benoit Vs. Chris Jericho - Ladder Match For IC Title (Royal Rumble 2001)
There were a few noticeable groans from fans when it was announced that Jericho and Benoit would clash over the Intercontinental Championship at the 2001 Royal Rumble. Sure, the two always had great matches with each other, but the feud was a little played-out by that point. The Canadian Chris's had clashed at Backlash (straight singles), Judgement Day (submissions rules) and SummerSlam (2/3 falls) the previous year. It felt like more of the same. This time, however it was going to be a ladder match, each man's first in the organisation. Y2J and Benoit had an absolute scorcher, eschewing dangerous highspots in favour of tight psychology and good old-fashioned violence. Jericho caught Benoit with a chair shot as the Rabid Wolverine was performing a suicide dive, gave him a Walls of Jericho on top of the steel and dropkicked a ladder right into Benoit's face. Benoit gave as good as he gor, as he always did. This match revitalised what was, at that point, a bit of a stale feud and it was one of the best ladder matches in an era full of them.
