1) Kevin Owens: Damn, it was incredibly hard to pick a top choice this week. There was so much going on but one man was at the center of it all. Kevin Owens. First, he appeared on Raw to seemingly answer the US Title Open Challenge. Instead, he traded barbs with the top guy in the business and laid him out before stepping on the US Title. Then, he possibly took out Hideo Itami in the parking lot before TakeOver. He headlined that show and nearly killed Sami Zayn before coming face to face with the debuting Samoa fucking Joe. I can't think of anyone who is a more wanted man than our NXT Champion. Whether he actually beats John Cena at Elimination Chamber is unknown, but for right now, he is the most important man in all of professional wrestling.
2) Sasha Banks: You have no idea how hard it was to not give Sasha Banks the top spot. Not only do I think that Sasha is the best all around female performer in the WWE, but she's one of the best wrestlers in the entire world period. Male or female. She went out with Becky Lynch and stole the show at TakeOver: Unstoppable. On a show where Samoa Joe debuted in the WWE, just as many people were talking about this match coming out of the event. I was tempted to lump Becky and Sasha together, but gave Sasha the advantage for retaining. She continues to deliver as the Women's Champion and I expect her to make this list a lot more in the coming year. If you read this consistently, you know my thoughts on the match.
3) Finn Balor: Lost in all of the hoopla of the women's match and Samoa Joe's debut is that Finn Balor won a very important match. While we didn't get the Triple Threat match we all wanted, Finn and Tyler Breeze had a singles match to determine the number one contender to the NXT Championship. Both guys got special entrances, giving this a big fight feel. They had a really good to great match that was won by Finn. He became, I believe, the first person to kick out of the Beauty Shot. Finn is added to the list of people gunning for Kevin Owens. He wasn't the biggest story of the busy week, but his victory should not be overlooked and he deserves credit for the performance and victory.
4) Becky Lynch: Though I didn't group her with Sasha, Becky Lynch still earned a spot. I can't say enough good things about this match. It was, in my opinion, the best singles match in the entire WWE this calendar year. Both girls impressed greatly here, but this was Becky's coming out party. Those who knew her as Rebecca Knox knew that she could go, but to those that didn't, now you know. For a while, I said I would only accept Bayley as the girl to dethrone Sasha Banks but after watching Unstoppable, Becky Lynch is more than a great answer. She is the second best girl in NXT in my opinion, and she showed exactly why this past week. People need to really understand how big of a deal this match was, so I had to make sure and include both girls.
5) Angelico, Ivelisse and Son of Havoc: The Trios Champions continue to kill it. After an outstanding performance to win the titles against the Crew, they had to defend them against that same team in a Ladder match. They just went out and managed to have another awesome match. They played off the prior contest, with Angelico topping his cross body with a sick massive missile dropkick. That dude is insane. They retained the belt and continued to be one of the best things going in all of pro wrestling. I love seeing Ivelisse get a chance to be a big deal and she, along with Angelico and Son of Havoc, are proving they deserve it with each outing.
