The Complete A-Z Of Wrestling In 2017

21. F - Festival Of Friendship

The Shield Paige
WWE

With all the action, comedy, drama and romance of a summer blockbuster, Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho's cynical friendship was destined for doom. The manner in which it concluded was worthy of cinematic acclaim. Taking place on a February Raw following the announcement that Owens would defend his precious Universal Title against Bill Goldberg, months of tension boiled over in heartbreaking-yet-spectacular fashion.

Allegedly devised by Jericho as circus crossed with Game Of Thrones' 'Red Wedding'-style finale, the segment was paced and performed to perfection, delivering a payoff made all the more distressing by the television time WWE gave to their ever-so-gradual fracture.

A callous manipulator, Owens violently severed ties with 'Y2J' as his former friend was at his most bewildered, concluding his wicked attack with an intended tribute to Jericho's own 2008 assault on Shawn Michaels - itself a callback to 'HBK's vicious Barber Shop beatdown of Marty Jannetty.

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