MTV Clutch's Top 10 'Holy S***!' WWE Moments Of 2011

[Juan]

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The WWE has been stuck in a rut for the past few years but 2011 brought many fans back thanks to CM Punk's run, The Rock's return and a variety of damn good moments that had pro wrestling fans yelling "Holy S***!" at their television screens. To honor the year that will surely go down as one of WWE's best, MTV Clutch has chosen our favorite insane moments. From Mark Henry becoming the heavyweight champion to he and Big Show's destruction of a ring with one move, to Evan Bourne getting airborne from 20 feet up and CM Punk's "Money In The Bank" performance, there was a lot of love this year. Without further delay, here is our list of the best "Holy S***!" WWE moments from 2011.

10. Mark Henry Becomes Third African-American Heavyweight Champion

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It's hard to believe that there have only been a couple African-American champions in WWE's entire history, and we were long overdue for another. Still, no one really thought Mark Henry would beat Randy Orton at "Night of Champions" for the title. Not only did he do that, but he beat him clean. A huge moment in WWE history.

9. Christian Wins First World Title At Extreme Rules

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Christian has always gotten the short end of the stick as main event talent. But after proving he could carry the ball as a champ in TNA, Christian returned to the WWE. After his real-life best friend and story line brother Edge abruptly retired, Christian got his chance to taste gold at "WWE Extreme Rules" against Alberto Del Rio in a ladder match. Christian won, fans rejoiced and it was one of the more sentimental "Holy S***" moments of 2011.

8. Randy Orton RKOs Christian Off Top Rope On Steel Steps

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Randy Orton is known for pulling off RKOs from virtually any position in the ring. Christian caught the bad end of it at "SummerSlam" when Orton jumped off the top turnbuckle and RKOs him on the steel steps. Boy, that had to hurt.

7. Evan Bourne Goes "Air Bourne" Off 20-Foot Ladder

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Evan Bourne's shooting star press by itself has been a pretty impressive "Holy S***" moment. But doing the move off the top of a 20-foot ladder has all kinds of epic "Holy S***" written all over it.

6. John Morrison Spiderman Act At Royal Rumble

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It's too bad that the WWE is hell-bent on burying John Morrison because this guy is a friggin' rock star in the ring. How he managed to save himself from elimination at the 2011 "Royal Rumble" is proof positive that this guy is a unique talent.

5. Big Show's 500+ Pound Flying Elbow Off The Top Rope

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We're not sure what's more impressive, Big Show's humongous frame perched on the top turnbuckle like an elephant on a tightrope or his graceful crash landing on top of Mark Henry.

4. Undertaker vs. Triple H At "Wrestlemania"

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One big "Holy S***" match by itself, it still has us shaking our heads. While we were pretty sure that Undertaker's "Wrestlemania" streak wouldn't end, there were several times Triple H had us believing it was over for the Deadman.

3. Big Show And Mark Henry Break The Ring

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Yes, this happened on an episode of "Smackdown" in 2003 with Brock Lesnar and Big Show, but that didn't make it any less awesome in 2011. Especially considering the sheer amount of bulk that came down on the canvas. We wince just watching it.

2. The Rock Returns As Surprise Guest Host Of "Wrestlemania XXVII"

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There is no move involved in this "Holy S***" moment, just the shocking return of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as the host of "Wrestlemania XXVII." If you didn't go into full fanboy freakout during this moment, you have no pulse and should be ashamed to call yourself a wrestling fan.

1. CM Punk Wins World Title At Money In The Bank

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A "Holy S***" on so many levels, the match between CM Punk and John Cena drew a ton of interest for its various angles: CM Punk's run of awesomeness, the rumors that he was done with WWE, the idea that he could leave the company as the WWE champion in a match taking place in his backyard of Chicago. But after one of the most awesome matches, WWE fans were treated to an amazing finish that saw CM Punk walk out of the building and away from the WWE (albeit momentarily) with the championship.

[Rammsteinmad]

Pretty good list/read. To be honest, despite people on the internet never being happy, this year has been fucking fantastic. Seems all the talent have really stepped up, the writers have stepped up, everyone seems to have their heads on properly right now. The only legit complaint I can possibly think of for 2011 was that Wrestlemania was a bit crappy.

[OldSchoolFan]

I think the AirBourne to RKO from Raw should have also made this list... it stands out in my mind as one of the biggest Holy Shit moves for me

[Rammsteinmad]

Wasn't that in 2010?

[OldSchoolFan]

Wasn't that in 2010?

Holy hell you are right... damn seems soooo much more recent...

[Lock Jaw]

Tired of people thinking Taker/HHH was "great".

[Aguakate]

Tired of people thinking Taker/HHH was "great".

it was pretty good. It's just that the formula HBK and Taker used, having a lot of near-falls, was used by HHH and Taker too, yet it wasn't as effective in terms of the possibility of a surprise ending.

[James Steele]

it was pretty good. It's just that the formula HBK and Taker used, having a lot of near-falls, was used by HHH and Taker too, yet it wasn't as effective in terms of the possibility of a surprise ending.

So, in the heat of the moment watching that match live..you never went "Holy shit, thats it. Triple H is going to fucking win. Holy shit!"?

[What Would Kevin Do?]

it was pretty good. It's just that the formula HBK and Taker used, having a lot of near-falls, was used by HHH and Taker too, yet it wasn't as effective in terms of the possibility of a surprise ending.

I'd argue they didn't even use the HBK/Taker formula. HBK/Taker was a great match with a good build. HHH/Taker was the last 5% of a big time Mania match spread over 20 minutes.

[James Steele]

I will say that the WrestleMania 17 match was better.

[Aguakate]

So, in the heat of the moment watching that match live..you never went "Holy shit, thats it. Triple H is going to fucking win. Holy shit!"?

Of course. But at the same time, everytime one of them kicked out, I thought "This is exactly what HBK and UT did in their two 'Mania matches".

It was a weird mix of "I know what's going to happen" and "Holy shit, I may be wrong!"

[Juan]

Tired of people thinking Taker/HHH was "great".

lol you're tired of people having a different opinion than you?

[Lock Jaw]

Yeah. Ridiculous, really. Come on people. :nono:

[Innovator]

Of course. But at the same time, everytime one of them kicked out, I thought "This is exactly what HBK and UT did in their two 'Mania matches".

It was a weird mix of "I know what's going to happen" and "Holy shit, I may be wrong!"
Yeah you're right, HBK and Taker did kick out of pin attempts. Those are called false finishes.

HHH and Taker was the best thing on Mania last year.

[Lock Jaw]

Nah. Cody/Rey Match of the Night.

[Heyman]

I will say that the WrestleMania 17 match was better.

Well of course it was.

Both Trips and Taker being 10 years younger may have had something to do with that eh?

[XL]

Of course. But at the same time, everytime one of them kicked out, I thought "This is exactly what HBK and UT did in their two 'Mania matches".

It was a weird mix of "I know what's going to happen" and "Holy shit, I may be wrong!"
Isn't that the best we can hope for as "informed fans"/"smarks"?

That same sentiment made Punk/Cena at MitB. The "they won't have Punk win and leave with the belt"/"but they might"/"HOLY SHIT they did!" factor made the match that much more intriguing.

I for one reverted to being a mark during the HHH/Taker match, they had me ona few of those near falls.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Number 6 is bullshit you can see the two marks he has to hit to stick. Parkcoure isn't supposed to be staged like that.

[James Steele]

Well of course it was.

Both Trips and Taker being 10 years younger may have had something to do with that eh?

Maybe, but HHH whacking the shit out of Taker in the skull with a sledgehammer to get out of the Last Ride was an awesome spot they could have reused and it wouldn't have made much different to either man's knees.

The story was almost the opposite of their encounter in 2001. In 01, Triple H said he had beaten everyone and Taker came out and said "not so fast, boy!" In 2011, Triple H came out and said (in a promo with no words) he had done it all but one thing... beat Taker. The aura around the match was completely different and everything, and I think that is why X7 was better. They could actually build up through the match and tell a better story. WMXXVII was more about 2 giants knocking the shit out of each other until one died.

[XL]

One thing's for sure, the build to WMX7 was waaaaaaaaaaaay better.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Maybe, but HHH whacking the shit out of Taker in the skull with a sledgehammer to get out of the Last Ride was an awesome spot they could have reused and it wouldn't have made much different to either man's knees.

The story was almost the opposite of their encounter in 2001. In 01, Triple H said he had beaten everyone and Taker came out and said "not so fast, boy!" In 2011, Triple H came out and said (in a promo with no words) he had done it all but one thing... beat Taker. The aura around the match was completely different and everything, and I think that is why X7 was better. They could actually build up through the match and tell a better story. WMXXVII was more about 2 giants knocking the shit out of each other until one died.

I agree completely. I'm not going to knock the efforts of either guy, but I have no desire to watch their encounter at WrestleMania again. It was "epic" in the sense that it was staged beyond that of a wrestling match. It was a "blockbuster," but I enjoyed Punk vs. Orton and Rey vs. Cody more.

[Damndirty]

The CM Punk deal was the most shocking for me! He stepped away from the straightedge face-rubbing into a radical expression of fearless out-speaking. At Money In The Bank, never before had I wanted a person to take the title as bad as I wanted him to. I was thinking that if Cena came out champ in this instance, WWE will begin to lose alot of ratings up until his match with the Rock. Now I say that the company is willing to make proper change, maybe not the full extent of what is needed to bring them back to their golden ratings reach, but is willing to step away from some of the repeating cliches even the most hardcore of fans refuse to stomach anymore (and that's when the channel changes).