2022 was the first full calendar year since 2019 to feature fans at every WWE pay-per-view which wasn't possible in 2020 and 2021 because of COVID-19. It's nice for fans to have some normalcy, and there were a lot of changes in WWE in 2022. Nevertheless, WWE flexed its muscles by having some of its talent headlining pay-per-views, and producing banger after banger in some enthralling main events.
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There were 13 pay-per-views in 2022, and the UK hosted a WWE pay-per-view for the first time in 19 years, but for the first time in 30 days in a stadium. There were several high-quality pay-per-view main events in 2022, but not every main event was memorable.
13 Men's Royal Rumble Match - Royal Rumble
The 2022 men's Royal Rumble match was massively disappointing. Fans love to see a few legends compete in a Royal Rumble match for nostalgia purposes but that failed to materialize. The whole Royal Rumble match was poor, and one of the highlights was two-time Royal Rumble winner Randy Orton's appearance as the Rumble was in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri.
Shane McMahon's involvement caused a stir as he wanted to look strong in this Rumble, which led to his departure afterward. Ultimately, Brock Lesnar dropped the WWE Championship to Bobby Lashley early on in the night, but that did not stop him from entering the Rumble as the 30th entrant, and he won the Royal Rumble for the second time in his career.
12 Roman Reigns Vs. Brock Lesnar - WrestleMania 38 Sunday
For the first time in five years, Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar headlined WrestleMania in a one-on-one World Championship match. This time the stakes were higher in the second main event of WrestleMania 38 as Roman Reigns' Universal Championship and Brock Lesnar's WWE Championship were at stake with the winner going on to become the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion.
Unquestionably, it was better than their WrestleMania 34 encounter, but it was an average match. Reigns resorted to hitting Lesnar with the Universal Championship and he managed to fight off the Kimura Lock. Nevertheless, the Beast Incarnate attempted the F5 in the closing stages, but Reigns battled out of it, and the Tribal Chief connected with a spear and thus became the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion.
11 Bobby Lashley Vs. Brock Lesnar Vs. Seth Rollins Vs. AJ Styles Vs. Austin Theory Vs. Matt Riddle - Elimination Chamber
Bobby Lashley defended the WWE Championship in an Elimination Chamber match against Brock Lesnar, Seth Rollins, AJ Styles, Austin Theory, and Matt Riddle. The Almighty didn't even get the chance to attempt to retain his title as he was ruled out of the match after Rollins executed a buckle bomb on Theory which broke his pod.
This Chamber belonged to one man and that was Lesnar who won the men's Royal Rumble match. He broke through his pod and tore through the field emphatically. He eliminated Rollins, Riddle, and Styles with an F5 in quick succession. Lesnar toyed with Theory, and he executed an F5 off the top of a pod. Lesnar dragged Theory into the ring, and he pinned him to secure the WWE Championship for the seventh time in his career.
10 Matt Riddle Vs. Seth Rollins - Extreme Rules
UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier was the special guest referee in the Fight Pit match between Matt Riddle and Seth Rollins at Extreme Rules. Riddle had a significant advantage considering his MMA background. This was a decent match and could have been better provided Riddle and Rollins were given more minutes.
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Rollins paid homage to Rob Van Dam as his attire was similar to his. There were some good spots with both fighting at the top of the cage on the platform with Rollins executing a buckle bomb. Rollins connected with a Pedigree, and he demanded Cormier count Riddle out, but he refused as Riddle had to be in the ring. It was a valiant effort from Rollins but he submitted to the Triangle Choke which felt anti-climatic.
9 Steve Austin Vs. Kevin Owens - WrestleMania 38 Saturday
The unthinkable happened at WrestleMania 38 with Steve Austin coming out of retirement to wrestle his first match in 19 years. The Texas Rattlesnake clashed with former Universal Champion Kevin Owens in a No Holds Barred match, and props have to be given to Austin for a superb performance.
Austin was on the receiving end from a devastating suplex onto the concrete floor by KO. However, the WWE Hall of Famer saw off Owens with a Stunner in a fun match to send fans home happy on the first night of WrestleMania 38.
8 Men's Money In The Bank Ladder Match - Money In The Bank
Despite dropping the United States Championship early on in the night at Money in the Bank, Austin Theory was added to the men's Money in the Bank ladder match by Adam Pearce. Seth Rollins, Madcap Moss, Sheamus, Drew McIntyre, Matt Riddle, Sami Zayn, and Omos were the other participants in the bout.
It wasn't the greatest of Money in the Bank ladder matches but there were a few decent spots. All the participants sans Theory drove Omos through the broadcast table. Rollins was on the receiving end of an RKO off the ladder by Riddle, and Theory pushed Riddle off the ladder for the victory.
7 Big E Vs. Brock Lesnar Vs. Bobby Lashley Vs. Kevin Owens Vs. Seth Rollins - Day 1
The deck was stacked against Big E as he had to defend his WWE Championship in a fatal-5-way match at Day 1 with former World Champions Brock Lesnar, Bobby Lashley, Kevin Owens, and Seth Rollins as his challengers. This match was off the charts considering it was under 10 minutes, but there were tons of actions.
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Rollins and KO worked as a cohesive unit as they tried to remove Lesnar from the equation. In the closing stages, Big E battled out of Lashley's Hurt Lock, and he connected with the Big Ending. Big E attempted to hit the Big Ending on Lesnar, but it was to no avail with Lesnar ending Big E's WWE Championship reign with the F5.
6 The Bloodline Vs. Drew McIntyre & RK-Bro - WrestleMania Backlash
The Bloodline's Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns and the SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos clashed with Drew McIntyre and the Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro in a superb six-man tag team match at WrestleMania Backlash. Fans salivated when Reigns and McIntyre went toe-to-toe.
The Tribal Chief posed with his championships mid-match, and McIntyre took down Reigns with the claymore kick. Fans chanted this is awesome, and Reigns put McIntyre through the broadcast table with a uranage. Reigns brought a halt to proceedings as he put Riddle out of his misery with a Spear.
5 The Bloodline Vs. Kevin Owens, Drew McIntyre, And The Brawling Brutes - Survivor Series: WarGames
Survivor Series: WarGames was the final pay-per-view of the year, and the main event did not fail to disappoint. Kevin Owens, Drew McIntyre, and the Brawling Brutes had the advantage over The Bloodline which they were looking to take advantage of. Business picked up when Roman Reigns ordered Sami Zayn to go next in line instead of Jimmy Uso to help his brother Jey.
The storytelling was fantastic throughout as the picture between KO and Sami became a lot clearer. Owens was close to securing the win as he executed the Stunner on Reigns but Sami held the referee's hand. Sami proved his allegiance to The Bloodline as he low-blowed Owens and hit him with the Helluva Kick. That allowed Jey to hit the Uso Splash on Owens with The Bloodline triumphant.
4 Roman Reigns Vs. Logan Paul - Crown Jewel
Roman Reigns' final Undisputed WWE Universal Championship title defense of the year came at Crown Jewelagainst YouTuber, Logan Paul. Paul had no business looking as good as he did in just the third WWE match of his career.
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The crowd was heavily invested in the bout, and Paul had Reigns on the ropes. He grabbed a mobile phone from ringside and he filmed his frog splash on the Tribal Chief through the broadcast table. There was outside interference from The Usos, Logan's brother Jake, and Solo Sikoa. Ultimately, Logan pushed Reigns to his limit but Reigns retained his title with the Spear.
3 Roman Reigns Vs. Drew McIntyre - Clash At The Castle
The atmosphere was electric inside the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales at Clash at the Castle. Roman Reigns squared off with Drew McIntyre with the Tribal Chief's Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at stake. They knocked it out of the park in a fantastic wrestling match with the British crowd desperate for McIntyre to prevail.
There was near fall after near fall, and many believed that the Scottish Psychopath had a great chance to secure his third World Championship reign. The roof was almost blown off the building with McIntyre connecting with the claymore kick, but a debuting Solo Sikoa saved his cousin at the last second. Reigns at the skin of his teeth managed to retain the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.
2 Roman Reigns Vs. Brock Lesnar - SummerSlam
Roman Reigns squared off with Brock Lesnar in a Last Man Standing match for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match at SummerSlam. This was the first Last Man Standing match in the history of SummerSlam, and this bout did not fail to disappoint.
As expected this was a hard-hitting match with Lesnar dominating the early stages. However, Paul Heyman distracted Lesnar which allowed Reigns to hit Lesnar with a Samoan Drop through the table. Lesnar got on his tractor which he brought to ringside, and he hoisted the ring which became unusable for the rest of the match. Lesnar put his former advocate Paul Heyman through the broadcast table. Austin Theory attempted to cash in his Money in the Bank contract but his efforts were thwarted. With outside interference from The Usos, Reigns managed to see off Lesnar in a hard-fought battle.
1 Cody Rhodes Vs. Seth Rollins - Hell In A Cell
Arguably, WWE's match of the year was the Hell in a Cell match between Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins at Hell in a Cell. This was their third premium live event meeting in succession but Cody tore his pec before the match began and it's a testament to his professionalism that he still wrestled as he had a horrific bruise and was in a lot of pain.
This match wasn't for the faint-hearted, and Rollins was in no emphatic mood as he targeted Rhodes' injured pec with kendo stick shots. This was a five-star epic, and the American Nightmare registered a third straight win over Rollins after he connected with a couple of Cross Rhodes, and he clocked Rollins in the face with a sledgehammer shot.
