The best WWE match so far this year

Just yesterday, WWE posted the following on its Twitter account:

My first reaction to that was holy shit, we’re only halfway through the year? 2023 is moving at a snail’s pace.

Then, I realized WWE has been putting on a ton of great matches this year, with every Premium Live Event delivering unbelievable efforts from a group of immensely talented stars. Charlotte Flair and Rhea Ripley did something truly special at WrestleMania 39, and then Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn & The Usos did too, and then GUNTHER & Sheamus & Drew McIntyre did too, and then Roman Reigns & Cody Rhodes did too. And that was all just over two nights from one event!

What actually amazes me the most is when I really thought about it, and applied my own criteria to figuring out the match I liked best, and had the most fun with, it wasn’t at all what I would have expected.

For me, Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest at Backlash in Puerto Rico has been my “Match of the Year” to this point.

Hey, any excuse to post Bunny’s entrance for the match, which has become a comfort clip for me:

Everything that came after that was a brilliant mix of great wrestling, storytelling, memorable moments, and an adoring crowd who were impossibly hyped for all of it. Priest was so good in this match, it may very well have been what convinced the powers that be he should win the Money in the Bank contract (which he did). I remain baffled at how good Bad Bunny, a legitimate worldwide superstar in the music industry, is at working in the ring. Carlito’s return was sublime. It was deeply rewarding watching Savio Vega help the LWO fight off The Judgment Day.

It was just so incredibly fun.

It may not have had the emotional depth of some other matches, or the technical mastery of others, but it’s absolutely the match I could go back to over and over and always end up with a smile on my face.

That makes it number one for me.

What’s yours?