25 Best WWE Raw Matches Ever

19. John Cena Vs Cesaro (February 17th, 2014)

CM Punk John Cena
WWE

Cesaro was on the precipice of a massive babyface turn when he went move for move with 'Big Match John' in one of his last matches as a member of Zeb Colter's 'Real Americans.

'The Swiss Superman' had snuck into the Elimination Chamber main event that month, and came within a whisker of toppling chamber-mate Cena in a contest that solidified the justification to include him at all.

WWE always trumpeted the structure as a sheer test of endurance, but both appeared to push themselves even further to win an ordinarily routine television match. In a unique twist, the company played on the locale to further the arc. Their conditioning as tested by the Denver, Colorado altitude, adding evocative heft to the fatigue and ungodly feats of strength from the freakish gym-friends.

With several memorable spots (including a jaw-dropping superplex from the outside into the ring from Cesaro) this forgotten epic should have elevated the 'King of Swing' as much as his Andre The Giant Battle Royal win a month later was supposed to. That they'd have tribute sequels to this original during Cena's US Open Challenge streak in 2015 only magnified Cesaro's stalled trajectory.

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