3. Bray Wyatt vs. John Cena - Last Man Standing Match (Payback)
As of right now, it would be difficult to reminisce about the entirety of 2014 without spending a great deal of time discussing the success of the Bray Wyatt character. It would also be difficult to ignore that one of the central themes of the year was the drive by many upstarts to grab the brass ring and take WWE into a new generation - a conversation piece that undeniably includes Wyatt, too. Wyatt is as good a candidate for Wrestler of the Year, therefore, as any other. Wyatt's initial character peak happened before June, but the sixth month did play host to Bray's most critically acclaimed night in the ring. He is among the group that spent the year scratching and crawling their way to potential mainstay positions at the top of the card - a movement that was defined in many ways by their performances in big match situations. Wyatt, in a Last Man Standing match against John Cena at Payback, helped offer a modern blueprint for what the gimmick should look like without blood. Cena did the trendsetting years ago, when he would take brutal beatings that included a corresponding bath in crimson shades, but taking that element away left Last Man Standing void of its stipulation standard. Thanks to Wyatt, there is a new standard. The Eater of Worlds proved that LMS can be exceptionally violent simply by the nature of the way that he performs. He is psychologically violent and his offense reflects his cerebral assassinations with its sheer brutality. The additions of the Wyatt Family and the Usos, it must be clearly stated, were also quite important. They were intricately involved in distracting viewers from the requisite down time of the gimmick, creating a side story to accompany the Wyatt-Cena rivalry. Such innovation, coupled with odes to WWE's past, have been commonplace among the youth movement in 2014.
"The Doc" Chad Matthews has written wrestling columns for over a decade. A physician by trade, Matthews began writing about wrestling as a hobby, but it became a passion. After 30 years as a wrestling fan, "The Doc" gives an unmatched analytical perspective on pro wrestling in the modern era. He is a long-time columnist for Lordsofpain.net and hosts a weekly podcast on the LOP Radio Network called "The Doc Says." His first book - The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment - ranks the Top 90 wrestlers from 1983 to present day, was originally published in December 2013, and is now in its third edition.
Matthews lives in North Carolina with his wife, two kids, and two dogs.
