As 2016 draws to a close, we can look back and see a year that had a number of its ups and downs in the wrestling ring. The year stood out, as there were lives lost and careers that ended. There were also a number of moments that caught fans’ attention, not necessarily because they were good or bad, but because they were simply so out of the ordinary.
What constitutes a strange moment could be occasions, where it's unclear if what fans have witnessed is on the level or scripted. The strangeness originates amidst the confusion of what fans are witnessing.
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The moments selected for this list include booking decisions that the majority of fans couldn't have predicted, a match that ended prematurely, an injury that the referee wasn't aware of, and a multi-time international champion leaving fans in awe by losing.
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Regardless of whatever the specifics behind these moments were, they certainly were odd moments to have witnessed. Here are the WWE's five strangest moments in 2016.
#5 Shinsuke Nakamura losing title at NXT Takeover
When Shinsuke Nakamura arrived in the WWE in April, it was with a great deal of pomp and circumstance. He was a rock star, and all the hype he came with was justified for a notable Japanese wrestling star. He has competed in front of some of the biggest crowds in the world and was part of the biggest matches in the world as well.
But though he was earning a name for himself in Japan, his notoriety wasn't gaining as much steam elsewhere in the world. Unless fans followed New Japan Pro Wrestling they may be less likely to know about this superb athlete. It wasn't until the last few years that word about Nakamura began to spread.
His WWE debut match at NXT TakeOver Dallas against Sami Zayn was incredible, and from that point on, it appeared as though the company was going to get completely behind him, all the way to the NXT Championship.
What wasn't anticipated was, despite how over he was with the crowd, the company decided to go in a different direction with the Championship. After losing the NXT championship to Samoa Joe, a look of shock appeared on fans faces, as it was one of the strangest moments of the year.
#4 Neville/Chris Jericho match ending on an injury and no one knew
Currently, Jericho is being booked as part of the main event for Raw, due to his friendship with Universal Champion Kevin Owens. He is no longer 'The Ayatollah of rock n’ rolla, he is more renowned for wearing scarves and keeping 'The List.'
Conversely, Neville's booking since he has made it to the main roster has been mixed, at best. He can electrify a crowd with an array of athletic and daring moves, but in this day and age, it rarely appears on TV.
Their match on one edition of Raw in 2016 had one of the strangest results you could imagine. You might think it was a very special contest, but unfortunately, at one point Neville attempted a baseball slide between the legs of Jericho, and as he did so, his foot was caught on the canvas and he fractured his ankle.
It was a move he has done countless times before, but on this occasion, a freak slip caused an accidental break.
The strangest part was that referee Charles Robinson had no idea Neville was hurt and did nothing to stop the match. Jericho knew, so he deliberately got himself disqualified by pushing and shoving Robinson, in a display of legitimate anger. He could even be heard yelling 'He's hurt!’
#3 Finn Balor relinquishing title day after winning it
In July, WWE decided to split their roster between the Raw and Smackdown programs. They rebranded Smackdown as SmackDown Live, and as many know Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon are running that show, while Mick Foley and Stephanie McMahon are running Raw.
The first order of business was a draft to split up the roster, splitting talent between the two shows. One of the biggest draft picks was former NXT champion Finn Balor. Balor's addition instantly added depth to the brand and showed that the company wanted to have him, along with the likes of Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens, as an integral part of the brand.
With Dean Ambrose bringing the WWE World Heavyweight championship to SmackDown Live, a new title with equal value would need to be on Raw. This led to a brief tournament to determine the two top contenders for the championship, and a match at SummerSlam to crown the inaugural title holder.
Balor walked away as the champion that night, but suffered a severely separated shoulder during the bout and had to relinquish the Championship the very next night. It was the strangest occurrence to take place, this past year in WWE.
#2 The Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton finish cut, bloody short
One of the 2016 matches that had the best build was the SummerSlam confrontation between Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton. The match was announced a couple of months before they faced one another, and anticipation grew as it approached.
As many will remember, the match pitted a member of the SmackDown Live brand against a member of the Raw brand, as nine-time WWE champion, The Viper Randy Orton represented SmackDown, while Raw was represented by multi-time WWE champion, the Beast Incarnate Brock Lesnar.
The promos were scathing and direct, and each took the opportunity to attack their opponent on the opponents 'home' program. In fact, it almost appeared as though Lesnar had little to no respect for Orton, who felt that he was simply one RKO away from defeating his opponent. But the strangest moment of their match was the way it ended.
In what was a very uncommon booking, Lesnar used repeated hard elbows to the top of Orton's head, causing the skin to break and The Viper to bleed. As a result, the match was stopped due to excessive bleeding. Many had no idea whether that was intentional or accidental. Whether it was or not, the result certainly caught fans off guard.
#1 Goldberg defeats Brock Lesnar in 86 seconds
On Sunday, November 20th, weeks of hype and speculation finally came to fruition as Goldberg faced Brock Lesnar. The build towards the match began during Goldberg's publicity tour promoting WWE's 2K17 video game when he was asked on ESPN whether or not he would consider coming out of retirement to have one more match.
He didn't blink and suggested he wouldn't mind facing Brock Lesnar. That statement was addressed the following Monday by Paul Heyman, who said that Goldberg was going to 'be next'. Goldberg returned to Monday Night Raw for the first time in 12 years, and accepted the challenge from The Beast, assuring fans that Lesnar wasn't going to be next, but last.
The two appeared on Raw on alternating weeks and delivered pre-taped interviews or promos to continue the build. They only faced off once, on the final Raw before Survivor Series, Lesnar encouraged Goldberg's wife and son not to watch what was, going to happen.
The result was something no one could have anticipated in their wildest imagination. It wasn't a match, it was a complete and utter annihilation of The Beast. A push, a spear, a second spear and a jackhammer resulted in Goldberg completely squashing Lesnar in an astounding 86 seconds.
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