20 Greatest WWE Royal Rumble Undercard Matches
9. Edge Vs. Dolph Ziggler (2011)
Before Dolph Ziggler was irreparably damaged in WWE main events, his overselling as a sneaky heel brought exceptional drama to several compelling headline bouts.
Experiencing his first true taste of the upper echelon in early-2011, his on-screen relationship with Vickie Guerrero had led to a feud with then-World Champion Edge, who had become the experienced babyface old guard of the blue brand in the months leading up to his unexpected retirement.
As acting SmackDown General Manager, Vickie would abuse her power to ban ex-husband Edge's Spear outright, robbing him of a finisher against her new beau.
Without his biggest weapon, Edge was required to think outside the box in defeating Dolph, dusting off a host of old favourites such as the Edgecution, the Edgecator, and Edge-o-Matic. But as well as being lousy puns, these moves also failed in despatching the resilient Ziggler, who looked to have the match won after a sleeper and Zig-Zag combo generated a nail-biting two-count.
However, upon reapplying the sleeper, Ziggler and Edge collided with the referee. The 'Ultimate Opportunist' outsmarted his foe, hitting the prohibited Spear unbeknownst to the official. As the referee regained consciousness, an innocent-looking Edge would scrape a beaten Ziggler up and use Christian's Killswitch for the win.