WWE Fastlane: 5 Best Matches in the Event's History

Ever since the first edition in 2015, Fastlane has been the last pay-per-view WWE presents before WrestleMania. Sandwiched between Royal Rumble and WrestleMania, along with Elimination Chamber, the show is rarely counted among the most important shows of the year, given that it is both preceded and succeeded by more important shows.

However, that is not to say that the February/March pay-per-view has not been home to good matches, with four of the previous editions so far producing at least one Match of the Year candidate.

Even though the Road to WrestleMania starts at Royal Rumble, most of the time, it isn't until Fastlane that the majority of the marquee matches, including the World Title matches, are set for the Biggest Show of the Year.

This year's show, which is scheduled for March 21st, also promises to be a fun affair already, with a Universal Title match between Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan already confirmed for the show, and a WWE Title defense for Bobby Lashley also expected to be confirmed soon.

Both matches have "show-stealer" written all over them. So before we witness what WWE has in store for at Fastlane 2021, here are the five best matches in the history of the pay-per-view.

Honorable Mentions:

AJ Styles vs Chris Jericho (Fastlane 2016)

Braun Strowman vs Roman Reigns (Fastlane 2017)

Samoa Joe vs Andrade vs Rey Mysterio vs R-Truth (Fastlane 2019)

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#5 Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar vs Dean Ambrose (Fastlane 2016)

A Brilliant match that confirmed two marquee matches for WrestleMania.

For the first two years, the main event of Fastlane decided the main event match for WrestleMania, and the presence of genuine stars resulted in a few great matches. While not on the level of the main event of the inaugural Fastlane event, this triple threat match to determine Triple H's opponent at WrestleMania 32 was great in its own right.

Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, and Dean Ambrose - three of the biggest active superstars in WWE at that time - gave it their all in this 16-minute slugfest. Action was non-stop between the bells. Lesnar was his typical self, dominating both Reigns and Ambrose in the first half of the match before the two Shield Members power bombed him through the Announcers Table twice, before burying him underneath the wreckage.

The stretch between The Big Dog and The Lunatic Fringe was equally good, and a late return by The Beast enhanced the excitement for the closing stretch. A victory for Reigns at Fastlane not only confirmed the main event of Mania but also laid the stones for the Mania program between Lesnar and Ambrose.

#4 The Shield vs Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, and Drew McIntyre (Fastlane 2019)

This was among the last few matches of Dean Ambrose's WWE Career.

The first of two matches of Fastlane 2019 to appear on this list, the main event from the show, featuring a reunited Shield taking on the unlikely alliance of Bobby Lashley, Drew McIntyre, and Baron Corbin, is a testament to what six highly talented singles superstars are capable of in Tag Team matches.

Dean Ambrose was on his way out of WWE, and The Shield had reunited for one last time before his departure. So the excitement of this was high, and the in-ring action at Fastlane only added to the excitement exponentially.

From ringside action to brawling through the crowd, this tag team match was reminiscent of past Shield matches, with a lot of hard-hitting and breathtaking moves. Rollins even did his famous dive off the railing on Lashley and McIntyre, and the trio hit their patented Powerbomb on McIntyre through the Announcer's Table, before finishing Corbin with the same move inside the ring.

The fact that WWE decided to have a rematch between the two teams again soon after dampens this classic from Fastlane, but one can't deny that not only was it one of the best matches in the history of Fastlane, but also in the history of The Shield.

#3 AJ Styles vs Dolph Ziggler vs Kevin Owens vs Sami Zayn vs Baron Corbin vs John Cena (Fastlane 2018)

A slugfest between 6 highly talented performers.

Multi-men matches are exciting encounters, and this huge match from Fastlane 2018 for the WWE Championship was no different. In the midst of his monumental WWE Title reign, AJ Styles was easily the most over superstar on the roster, and a dream match with Shinsuke Nakamura at Wrestlemania 34 was on the cards for the Phenomenal One.

However, standing in his way was a quintet of superstars who defined the post-2016 Brand Extension era of Smackdown. What followed was an outstanding encounter that ranks among the finest bouts not only in the history of Fastlane but also in WWE history.

In John Cena, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Dolph Ziggler, and Baron Corbin, Styles had the perfect opponents to fight his way out of the puddle that he was put into to secure his dream match with Nakamura. The 22-minute slugfest was non-stop action from the opening bell, with the Champion and Cena acting as the anchors of the bout.

The WWE Championship rivalry was not the only point of focus of this match, as Owens & Zayn's issues with Shane McMahon and John Cena's WrestleMania arc were also given prominence. Fastlane 2018 is the last brand-specific pay-per-view to date, and there could not have been a better way to bring an end to that trend than with this match, which ended with Styles hoisting his prize over his head.

#2 Daniel Bryan vs Roman Reigns (Fastlane 2015)

Bryan and Reigns gave fans a contest to remember.

Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan are scheduled to face each other in the main event of Fastlane in a couple of weeks, with the former's Universal Championship and a WrestleMania main event spot on the line. There isn't a more anticipated match in WWE at the moment.

Six years ago, both Byran and Reigns were in the same spot, facing each other in the main event of the inaugural Fastlane, with the main event of WrestleMania on the line. Back then, there wasn't a more anticipated match, maybe in the entire wrestling world.

The backdrop to this match was crystal clear. Reigns, the 2015 Royal Rumble winner, was hated by fans despite being pushed as the top babyface. Bryan was the crowd favorite who didn't receive the push that the fans wanted. It all came to a head at Fastlane, with a shot at Brock Lesnar and his WWE Championship on the line, and the two gave fans exactly what they wanted from Bell to Bell.

Though the crowd was firmly behind Bryan, booing every single move from Reigns, the magic between the two inside - and outside the ring - forced the crowd to forget the bias and appreciate the two workhorses. Despite being the main event of a B-level pay-per-view, this 20-minute classic from Fastlane 2015, which ended in a victory for Reigns, is an encounter that fans will remember for years to come.

#1 Daniel Bryan(c) vs Kevin Owens vs Mustafa Ali (Fastlane 2019)

A surprising World Title match that ended up stealing the show at Fastlane

Taking place during the height of Kofimania, this match from Fastlane 2019, which was initially a one-on-one match between Daniel Bryan and Kevin Owens, had no right to be as good as it ended up being.

The craze and support for Kofi Kingston was so strong by this point that even someone like Mustafa Ali, who was one of the promotion's few organic babyfaces at the time, was booed by the crowd when he was revealed as the third participant of this match instead of Kingston.

However, what fans got at Fastlane was a contest so brilliant and majestic that the crowd cheered and chanted for the three brilliant performers by the closing. The chemistry between Owens, Ali, and Bryan was so good that the match, which lasted for a little less than 19 minutes, was filled with non-stop action.

The match went at such a brisk pace that none of the three superstars managed to get a clear edge over their opponents before Bryan pinned Ali to retain his WWE title. An underrated classic that got lost among other title defenses during Bryan's reign, this WWE title match from Fastlane 2019 can easily be termed one of the best matches in the WWE careers of Bryan, Ali, and Owens.