Today I have a list of the ten greatest July PPV matches of all time. The July PPV wasn't invented until 1988, when the NWA created a Great American Bash special headlined by Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger for the World Title. For years the NWA/WCW was alone in presenting a PPV event in July, but in 1995 the WWF jumped in, filling the monthly gaps in their PPV schedule with a series of In Your House shows. In 20 years nary a July has gone by without a PPV event. While none of the Big Four shows have ever taken place during this month, the annual B-shows have supplied some real classics, some of which I'll talk about, startiiiiing...............now.
10. Midnight Express vs. Southern Boys - GAB '90 - 7/7/90
In 1990 the Midnight Express delivered some of the best matches of their career, and some of the best matches that year. After dethroning US Tag Champs Brian Pillman and Tom Zenk at Capitol Combat, the Midnights defended against hot new babyface team The Southern Boys (Tracey Smothers and Steve Armstrong) at the Great American Bash. The result was a blazing 18-minute tag team clinic that saw the Midnights retain. In a rather poor in-ring year for the NWA, the US Tag division stood above the rest.
9. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn - Battleground - 7/24/16
These former best friends-turned hated rivals clashed one last time at the 2016 Battleground, in a match intended to put their epic feud to bed forever. And what a battle it was. Zayn and Owens know each other so well and have worked together so long they'd be hard-pressed to have a bad match, but this bout pulled out all the stops and ratcheted up the drama. After a brief feeling-out process the big moves appeared fairly early in the match, with Zayn nearly killing himself on an errant springboard moonsault. Owens then attacked Zayn's vulnerable right arm before Zayn staged a late-match comeback, complete with multiple brutal-looking half-nelson suplexes. After several unsuccessful attempts to hit the Helluva Kick, Zayn finally nailed the move, picked Owens up almost with a look of regret, and hit a second for the win. This match easily stole the show and proved one of WWE's best bouts of the year, while giving Zayn a much-need big win.
8. Jeff Hardy vs. Rob Van Dam - Invasion - 7/21/01
The Invasion PPV should've been the start of the greatest angle in wrestling history. Unfortunately the WWF misfired at almost every turn, burying just about every non-WWF guy in the process. The one import that caught fire though was Rob Van Dam, who for about six months was pushed to the moon, beginning with this Hardcore Title match against Jeff Hardy. The two daredevils traded breathtaking high spots in a match that ranged all over the arena, before Van Dam snared his first taste of WWF gold. The Invasion show may have been a disappointment but this match delivered huge.
