Matt Hardy picks 33-minute WWE bout as Match of the Year

Matt Hardy recently gave his thoughts on the biggest wrestling moments of 2024. Reviewing the best matches of the year, the WWE legend picked Cody Rhodes' victory over Roman Reigns in the WrestleMania 40 main event.

Two years after returning to the company, Rhodes defeated Reigns in 33 minutes to become the first member of his family to hold a WWE World Title. In a star-studded finish, The American Nightmare received help from John Cena and The Undertaker before finally dethroning his long-term rival.

On The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy, the veteran explained why Reigns vs. Rhodes topped his list:

"I am going to go with the biggest match of the year. I'm gonna go with the match that produced the most money when it comes to being a draw of pro wrestling all year, and that was the main event of WrestleMania 40 where Cody finally finished his story and he defeated Roman Reigns. It was full of some bells and whistles at the end, which made for a super historic match and some historic moments as well." [47:17 – 47:41]

Rhodes has held the Undisputed WWE Championship since beating Reigns on April 7. In his latest televised title defense, the SmackDown star defeated Kevin Owens at Saturday Night's Main Event on December 14.

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Matt Hardy names Cody Rhodes' win as Moment of the Year

After returning to WWE in 2022, Cody Rhodes made it his mission to win the same title his father Dusty failed to capture in 1977. The 39-year-old unsuccessfully challenged Roman Reigns in the WrestleMania 39 main event in 2023, prompting many fans to support him even more.

Matt Hardy believes Rhodes' long-awaited victory over Reigns was also the best wrestling moment of 2024:

"I have to say Cody finishing the story. There was just so much build behind that. It was such a polarizing environment a year prior at WrestleMania when he didn't finish the story, but he busted his a** for a year and kept people invested." [51:40 – 52:03]

Hardy added that Rhodes' triumph was "one of the most iconic moments in all of WrestleMania history." He also applauded WWE's inclusion of John Cena, The Rock, and The Undertaker in the closing stages of the main event.

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Please credit The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.