Righteous Rankings: Ladder Matches Part 1

Welcome to the newest and upcoming article, the Righteous Rankings. Every week I will break down a different list and only the best of the best and the worst of the worst will make these lists. Since Money in the Bank was last Sunday, I will start by breaking down the top ten ladder based matches of all time.

After adding all the ladder based matches the count comes out to over 100 matches. Well I broke it down to 18 matches and it wasnt easy but then I broke the field down to 10 and ranked them. After long hours of watching and thinking, here are my results for the top ten ladder based matches of all time.

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Ranking: #10

Match: Money in the Bank 1 (Jericho vs Kane vs Benoit vs Edge vs Benjamin vs Christian)

Event: Wrestlemania 21 (2005)

Setting up for the first ever Money in the Bank match and it was big. Now it is often used to boost the status of a mid-carder but these guys entered this match with experience on the ladder and that is what made it competitive.

THE START: This match set the bar so high that none of the Money in the Bank matches have topped it since. The match kicked off fast and started on the entrance ramp, so these guys were battling it out before they even reached the ring or the ladders.

THE BREAKING POINT: About halfway through this contest, every man in the match was a top the ladders just trying to get a reach on the belt but in a matter of seconds they were all laying on the ground.

THE FINISH: Benjamin, Christian, and Jericho were all laid outside the ring so that left just three guys in the running. Benoit climbed a ladder in the corner and dove off onto a downed Kane but it came with a price to pay (PAIN). Benoit was however able to gets to his feet with blood dripping down his face and climb the ladder. As soon as he reached the top he went for a slight rest but there was no time as he got blindsided by a chair shot from Edge. Edge then was able to take the nice easy climb to victory!

NOTE: Edge waited all the way until the next year where he cashed in at New Years Revolution against Cena. Cena was coming off of a tough and brutal Elimination Chamber win so Edge had an easy time cashing in. Edge lost the Heavyweight Championship just three weeks later at the Royal Rumble.

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Ranking: #9

Match: Fatal Four Way Tag Team Match (Kenrick & London (c) vs Hardy Boyz vs MNM vs Regal & Taylor)

Event: Armageddon (2006)

Kendrick & London became the longest reigning WWE Tag Team Champions (over 145 days) but started a non-title losing streak to the team of Regal & Taylor. This match was set up to be a title match between the two teams but then they threw in MNM and the Hardy Boyz. That decision ended up being the light that sparked this flame of a match.

THE START: This match was never in favor of anyone because every time someone hit a move, there was someone right behind them to hit the domino effect. The ladders were used more as stationary weapons as to being used as striking weapons but a high flying contest none the less early on.

THE BREAKING POINT: Mercury was just an arms length away from reaching the belts when four men all teamed up to lift the ladder. Mercury panicked and was unable to pull down the titles so he ended up getting dumped straight from the top of the ladder, all the way down outside the ring where he took out partner Nitro. The team was left blood later on and struggled to get back in the match once there golden opportunity had past.

THE FINISH: Nitro got to the top of the ladder that was poorly set up so he wasnt in range to reach the belts. Jeff Hardy then met him at the top and took him down with a sunset flip into a powerbomb! This left his brother Matt Hardy to face-off with London in the final battle a top the ladder. London was able to fight off Hardy with his fists and grabbed the belts just in time as Nitro and Taylor approached.

NOTE: The team of London & Kendrick was able to retain in a tough match that was probably the highlight of their tag team career. They went on to rein a short while after until an injury cost them the titles. They then were split by the supplemental draft upon return and then were released not to long after that.

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Ranking: #8

Match: King of the Mountain 4 (Harris vs Angle vs Styles vs Joe vs Christian)

Event: Slammiversary (2007)

After five standard qualifying matches, the fourth King of the Mountain had five big names coming into the match. People often consider this match as the highlight of Harris's career even though he lost. This match also was marked to crown the first TNA Heavyweight Champion.

THE START: The first halves of this match didnt even feature a ladder but the explosiveness of the match made up for it. Every man was able to get in at least a few decisive moves but it seemed that Styles got the best of it all by using his agility to take control. At least until he got sent flying outside the ring only to meet with a ladder set up on the crowd barrier.

THE BREAKING POINT: Joe absolutely snapped during the long stretch of this match by utilizing his opponents. You would have thought his size would put him at a disadvantage but that wasnt the case. He was able to bring Christian off the top of the ladder and the biggest move of the match was throwing Styles. Joe was sitting on the holding chamber when he decided to toss Styles by his arms which sent him downward until splitting the announce table in half down the middle.

THE FINISH: Angle and Christian were battling it out on top of the ladder when Harris decided to spear Christian off the ladder for some reason. Angle then climbed up and hung the title belt on the holder which marked him as the first TNA Heavyweight Champion. After the match Joe went for a hand shake but got an Olympic Slam instead.

NOTE: Upon becoming the first holder of TNA's biggest title, Angle held the belt 119 days until Bound for Glory where he lost it to Sting. Just four days later Angle was able to win the belt back on Impact in a rematch. He then went on to rein another 180 days.

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Honorable Mention: Matt Hardy took on Edge in a ladder match that would decide who would have to leave RAW. The match was great even though the crowd wasnt best and it propelled Edge to a victory. It took a lot of help from Lita to get the job done but a win is a win. Perhaps the best moment was when Hardy jumped from a ladder, straight into the crowd area to take out Edge.

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Ranking: #7

Match: WWF Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match (Michaels vs Ramon)

Event: Wrestlemania X (1994)

This historic match was just the second ever ladder match. Michaels fought in the first against Hart but ended up losing. Despite the loss that made him to only man with experience coming into this high profile match but it didnt matter. The match was hard fought either way and that is why it is the only match to break the list so far with just two wrestlers fighting.

THE START: The match was very fast paced, not just at the beginning but throughout the whole thing. One on one match's can often feature moments of slow and boring wrestling but that wasnt the case here. The ropes also played a big factor as both men used them as multiple times to gain momentum. Getting tossed outside the ring wasnt un-common either, which eventually lead to Nash getting thrown from ringside because he couldnt keep his hands off of Michaels.

THE BREAKING POINT: Once the ladder came into play, things got rather interesting. Michaels was the first to attempt a climb to victory but Ramon got a hold of his foot. Instead of ignoring it and waiting to get thrown off the ladder, Michaels decided to capitalize and hit an elbow drop off the ladder. He then followed it by his TRADEMARK diving crossbody splash off the top of the ladder onto a lying Ramon.

THE FINISH: Ramon and Michaels both reached the top of the ladder to spring a face-off to decide the winner and Michaels ended up getting thrown off. But just as Ramon went to reach for the belt, the ladder buckled and collapsed on him. Ramon then set it back up but got kicked off by Michaels. This allowed Michaels to go for the winning climb later on but Ramon sent him off and Michaels landed groin first onto the top rope. This stunned Michaels just long enough for Ramon to pick up the win.

NOTE: Ramon may have won that meeting but the two faced off the next year at Summerslam in a ladder rematch for the Intercontinental Championship, and it was Shawn Michaels who climbed for the win this time.

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Ranking: #6

Match: TLC IV (Jeff Hardy & RVD vs Kane vs Dudley Boyz vs Jericho & Christian)

Event: RAW (2002)

After the aftermath of the whole Attitude Era and the brand extension, we got this great match. Three tag teams and Kane himself battled it out for the WWE Tag Team Championships in Las Vegas. Every TLC match up to this point was huge so this match got set with high expectations and it didnt disappoint.

THE START: The match started out much like a weekly TNA brawl. It was pure chaos and there were so many alliances that you couldnt tell what was going on. The match slowly broke up though and that is when things started to heat up and get interesting.

THE BREAKING POINT: Once the ladders came into the match, it was pure carnage and a lot of tables got destroyed that night. Its hard to call a single moment the one that broke the ice on this match since there is seven men but Bubba was able to hit some nice moves off the top of the ladder.

THE FINISH: RVD went to snatch the win after a long and exhilarating match but came up short. Jericho stopped him dead in his tracks with a steel chair shot and then met him at the top. He locked in an abdominal stretch at the top and then let go to sent RVD down to the ring. Unfortunately for Jericho, he couldnt do it fast enough because now he has the monster Kane coming up the ladder and there is nothing you can do when that happens. Kane gets a hold of his neck and jumps off to the ladder to chokeslam Jericho straight to the ground. Both men are down but Kane sits up, climbs the ladder, and picks up the big win!

NOTE: Kane's partner (The Hurricane) may have not been there to help Kane defend in a huge TLC match but Kane was able to pull of the SURPRISING victory all on his own. Some may think that it was for nothing since Kane and Hurricane lost the titles the very next week but Kane will forever be cemented into one of the greatest matches ever to take place on RAW.

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Thanks for reading and dont forget to read again next week to see the top five ladder based matches of all-time!

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