WWE: 10 best matches of 2016

7. AJ Styles vs. John Cena – WWE Money in the Bank

When AJ Styles debuted in WWE at the Royal Rumble, you knew it was only a matter of time before the former face of TNA would step foot in the ring with the face of WWE, John Cena. Cena had been out of action for five months due to a shoulder injury and was welcomed back to Monday Night RAW in late May by Styles. AJ had distanced himself from Anderson and Gallows the week before, so when the two hit the ring looking for a fight as the two icons got to know one another, Styles turned heel and realigned himself with his pals from The Club and attacked the 15-time world champ. This set up a dream match at Money in the Bank, with Styles signing a contract saying that Anderson and Gallows would not get involved.

Say what you will about Cena, but when the stakes are high, he puts on a show and when you’ve got arguably the best wrestler in the world across from you, you really don’t have a choice but to step up and he did just that. In a match that the world never thought they would see, Cena and Styles battled for over 24 minutes in a great back-and-forth affair. What was odd about it was that Cena seemed to be the one to opt for the high-impact maneuvers while Styles tried to slow Cena down. It’s not that Styles didn’t bring the high-octane moves out, as he certainly did, but it was just a different approach and I dug it. As you would expect, each kicked out of the other’s finisher(s) and built some drama. I really enjoyed these two in the ring together.

The finish left a bit to be desired as Anderson and Gallows got involved after the referee went down, which allowed Styles to pick up the win, but that didn’t take anything away from how special this match was prior to their involvement. It was the start of a great feud and we’ll get into some more of that in a little while.