2017 Ongoing MOTY List: Zayn v. Strowman

Sami Zayn v. Braun Strowman WWE 1/2

ER: We start the year off on a fun note with a big around the arena last man standing match. It seems a little odd to go from "Zayn can't last 10 minutes without a long Mick Foley interruption" to this, but whatever, this was fun. I dug Zayn getting the quick advantage and then allllll of that advantage flying right out the window when Braun KO'd him out of the air on his through the ropes DDT. The backstage brawl was more gimmicky fun, with Braun launching Zayn onto some storage crates and chucking another one at him for a cool "near miss" spot. Zayn hits a big crossbody sending both of them off the stage, but that's pretty much it for him as Braun rolls him down the ramp, crashes through him with more shoulderblocks and clotheslines, and just plants him into the ground with a couple of brutal powerslams.

PAS: So many of these gimmick heavy WWE brawls are worked 50/50 near fall style, it was fun to watch one where one guy gets dominated like this. Strowman took some really nasty looking post shots to set up the through the ropes DDT spot, I like the new video screen posts, it makes a really cool crackling effect when guys get smashed into them. There were moments where Strowman pulled some things he shouldn't of pulled, but there was plenty brutality. Thought all of Sami's hope spots were nicely placed and plausible, and I liked the definitive finish. Can't imagine that it will finish super high by the end of the year, but a nice match to open up the list.


2017 MOTY MASTER LIST