WWE RAW delivered its fair share of memorable moments and matches in 2006. RAW kicked off the year with a solid outing on January 2. The card featured a solid opener between Shawn Michaels and Kane. It capped off with a First Blood Match between John Cena and Kurt Angle.
The Olympic Hero would soon leave for WWE SmackDown in one of the greatest acquisitions for the blue brand in 2006. Angle’s departure left a void from a purely wrestling perspective, but the red brand still managed to deliver some great matches over the course of the next 12 months.
That being said, let’s take a look at five of the best WWE RAW matches of 2006:
Edge vs. John Cena (WWE Championship Steel Cage Match – October 2)
Edge lost his title to John Cena in one of the greatest TLC matches in WWE history at Unforgiven 2006. The bitter rivals meet inside a steel cage on the first WWE RAW of October for the championship.
The match featured some solid spots. Edge got a little help from Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch in the match. However, he still lost the match due to timely interference from D-Generation X. This match would lead to the birth of Rated RKO.
Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels (WWE RAW – January 16)
This is perhaps the weakest match of the four singles match between Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle. That being said, this match gets a pass because it is still one of the better matches on WWE RAW from 2006.
The build-up here is pretty weak, to say the least. Vince McMahon books Michaels and Kurt with the bizarre stipulation that the Heartbreak Kid will get fired in case of a loss in the match. Both men show some solid groundwork. Michaels was able to keep his job after an (accidental) interference from Daivari cost Angle the match.
Jeff Hardy vs. Johnny Nitro (WWE Intercontinental Title Ladder Match – November 20)
Jeff Hardy returned to WWE after a stint with TNA in 2006. The Daredevil immediately ignited a feud with Johnny Nitro (aka Morrison) over the WWE Intercontinental Championship. The duo exchange traded wins at PPV events and weekly shows.
They also gave fans one of the best WWE RAW matches of 2006 in November. Both men competed in a ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship. Hardy clearly had the advantage in a match he made a career out of.
Nitro, however, proved more than a formidable opponent as he showed his incredible agility to pull off some cool moves. The real-life parkour expert hit a dropkick on Jeff off the ladder to a huge ovation from the crowd.
Ric Flair & DX vs. Kenny & Rated RKO (WWE RAW – December 11)
Rated RKO was born out of pure hatred for D-Generation X. The duo of Edge and Randy Orton spent the last quarter of 2006 tormenting Triple H and Shawn Michaels. The pair even asserted their dominance by winning the tag team titles.
Rated RKO teamed up with Spirt Squad main man Kenny Dykstra to take on Ric Flair and D-Generation X in a six-man tag team match on WWE RAW in December. This was a solid match to continue the heated feud between the six men involved.
Edge vs. Ric Flair (WWE Championship TLC Match – January 16)
Edge won his first of four WWE Championships at the 2006 New Year’s Revolution PPV event. The Ultimate Opportunist cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on a bloody and battered John Cena, who had just survived the Elimination Chamber main event.
To prove that he was a fighting champion, Edge put his title on the line against “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair on the January 16, 2006, episode of WWE RAW. The TLC stipulation heavily favored the Rated R Superstar, but the challenger was no slouch either.
Flair put on an incredible performance in the high-risk match-up despite his advanced age. The Nature Boy took some nasty bumps in front of his native North Carolina crowd. In the crowd was Flair’s young daughter, Ashley.
I wonder what she’s up to these days.
Also read: Best WWE RAW Matches Of 2007
