25 Best WWE Raw Matches Ever

5. Owen Hart Vs British Bulldog (February 26th, 1997)

CM Punk John Cena
WWE.com

There were few wrestling championships ever as meaningless as the WWE European Title, but Owen Hart and The British Bulldog literally bent over backwards and then some to afford it some prestige upon inauguration.

Practiced pros against one another, the brothers-in-law tore it up under the dimly-lit glow of a Monday Night Raw taped in Oberhausen, Germany. It lay in contrast to what had otherwise been a deeply disappointing experiment for the company, attempting to bottle the glorified house show footage masquerading as a high stakes tournament.

Their relationship was fraying at the edges in early 1997 as Owen's jealousy threatened to undermine an otherwise prosperous spell as Tag Team Champions. Spilling over into the match, an early technical masterclass devolved into hostilities and back again as the two clung on to their tenuous ties after an absorbing war.

Playing a sneaky cheat against the one-night babyface Bulldog, Owen was narrowly beaten on the night but it widened a rift that wasn't effectively addressed until newly-minted heel Bret reunited the family in April. The locked victory roll conclusion was a fitting amalgamation of 'The Hitman's legendary WrestleMania 10 and SummerSlam 1992 matches with both.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett