Best WWE Matches From First Half of 2018

Johnny Gargano vs. Tomasso Ciampa (NXT TakeOver: New Orleans)

WrestleMania weekend lived up to the hype this year, hosting some of the best matches WWE had to offer. But the standout match from the weekend turned out to take place a night before WWE's biggest main roster show, as Johnny Gargano and Tomasso Ciampa stole the show in the main event of NXT TakeOver: New Orleans.

The build for the match could be traced back years to their first appearance in NXT as the tag team DIY, and the two continued to call back to previous moments from their past as they beat the tar out of each other. The final sequence saw Gargano give his former friend one last chance at redemption as they sat side by side just like in their match at the Cruiserweight Classic, only for Ciampa to try and strike Gargano with his knee brace.

Gargano, not allowing himself to be tricked again, reversed the attack and locked in the Gargano Escape with the knee brace pressed against Ciampa's face to force a tapout.

Based on their brutal street fight at NXT: Chicago II, this feud could easily still be going by the end of the year.

Ronda Rousey & Kurt Angle vs. Stephanie McMahon & Triple H

There were a million questions swirling around Ronda Rousey when she first debuted in the WWE at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The biggest one, ironically, was could she actually wrestle.

WWE hedged their bets on her by putting her in a mixed-tag match with two future Hall of Famers in Angle and Triple H and the detestable heel McMahon at WrestleMania 34. But it turned out the former UFC Champion could back up her hype in the ring as she took a number of big bumps while delivering some insane MMA-style moves on McMahon and Triple H.

Her hot tag late in the match earned one of the biggest crowd reactions of the night, and by the end of the event she was still the talk of fans watching along at home.

AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (Money in the Bank)

On paper, AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura's four WWE Championship matches should all have been contenders for list. But that definitely was not the case.

Their first match at WrestleMania 34 failed to live up to the expectations surrounding it based on their previous encounter in Japan, but it did promise a more interesting feud with Nakamura's post-match heel turn. Heel Nakamura has been an absolute treat on SmackDown Live every week, but the next two matches at Greatest Royal Rumble and Backlash sucked the air out of the room thanks to the booking's obsession with Nakamura nailing a low blow.

The two were finally allowed to cut loose in a 31-minute Last Man Standing match at Money in the Bank and delivered an outstanding performance. Styles' Phenomenal Forearm smashing Nakamura through the announcer's table was merely the exclamation point on a fantastic match, reaffirming the reigning WWE Champion as one of the best wrestlers in the company.

Seth Rollins vs. The Miz vs. Finn Balor (WrestleMania 34)

Ever since he wrestled over an hour in gauntlet match on Monday Night Raw, Seth Rollins has had the most momentum of any Superstar on the WWE roster.

The former WWE Champion carried that momentum all the way to WrestleMania 34 in April, when he squared off with one of the company's best heels in The Miz (who was chasing history for longest tenure as Intercontinental Champion) and a rising star in Finn Balor.

The trio kicked off the incredibly long night and delivered from start to finish, culminating in Rollins nailing Miz with a curb stomp to win the championship and become a Grand Slam Champion.

Ricochet vs. The Velveteen Dream

John Cena said in an interview that "there's something special there" when it comes to NXT's Velveteen Dream.

The former Tough Enough competitor continued to prove that at NXT TakeOver: Chicago II, tearing the house down with Ricochet in a wildly entertaining and athletic match.

Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka (WrestleMania 34)

In one corner, you had WWE's most successful female wrestler on the roster in her sixth reign as WWE Women's Champion. In the other, a woman with an undefeated streak longer than Bill Goldberg's, the longest championship reign of the modern era and the winner of the inaugural Women's Royal Rumble match.

Whether you liked with how the match ended or not, the hype surrounding Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka at WrestleMania 34 cannot be denied. The two mostly managed to live up to said hype, throwing out their best moves against one another before Flair forced a submission even with an injured arm.

Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match (Money in the Bank)

It seems only right to get one of WWE's many multi-man matches on this list. This year's Royal Rumble (normal and Greatest) and Elimination Chamber matches were all fine, but none really stood out beyond who wound up winning.

The Money in the Bank match, on the other hand, was a definite standout. All eight men took part in some insane spot and Braun Strowman, the eventual winner, was the clear standout throughout when he rose out of a pile of ladders and later slammed Owens through a table from atop an obscenely tall ladder.

2018 has been a banner year for Strowman so far, and there's no telling what the second half of the year will bring.