WWE loves Christmas. Not enough to let their wrestlers be with their families and not make them wrestle on Monday Night Raw, but they do love Christmas.
They’ve shown this numerous times. To segments with Santa and some of the best Christmas themed matches, WWE has always showcased the magic of the holiday season.
Since the end of the Attitude Era, WWE has been more than happy to have their wrestlers fight in Christmas themed matches. Top stars like John Cena, Mick Foley and Dean Ambrose have all been part of the festive fighting.
Sometimes these matches are interwoven into existing stories. Sometimes they Christmas-themed bouts can help propel a story forward, whilst also entertaining the fans.
However, usually they are self-contained, merely used to entertain the fans during the holiday season. Matches that are never referenced again, and have no impact on the wider storytelling in WWE.
Luckily, most WWE stories have the complexity of a biscuit and a even Santa vs Santa match can’t confuse the fans.
Here are the top 5 best Christmas themed matches in WWE history
Best WWE Christmas Themed Matches
Christmas Present on a Pole match – Dolph Ziggler vs Fandango – Monday Night Raw, 23rd December 2013
2013 was a mixed year for Dolph Ziggler. At the beginning of the year, he was the iron man in the Royal Rumble match. He was Mr Money in the Bank, and became the World Heavyweight Champion on the night after Wrestlemania, beating Alberto Del Rio.
By the end of the year, he had shrunk to the bottom of the card. Concussion had curtailed his push, he lost his world title and was grappling with the likes of Jinder Mahal and Santino Marella.
On the Christmas episode of Monday Night Raw however, he had the chance to earn a shot at the Intercontinental Champion. He faced Fandango on Raw, in a Christmas Present on a Pole Match.
The present in question was a match for the Intercontinental Championship against the champion, Big E Langston.
The match was surprisingly good for such an awful stipulation. It is the second best “…on a pole” match I’ve ever seen. The first was the “Hardcore contract on a pole” match, between John Cena and Dean Ambrose for the right to face Seth Rollins.
Miracle on 34th Street Fight – The Revival vs Heavy Machinery – Smackdown, 20th December 2019
The match between Heavy Machinery and The Revival (Now FTR in AEW) was a fun Christmas themed match in WWE. It isn’t a classic match, or a technically proficient bout, but for some Christmas themed fun, you cannot go wrong.
The match came at a strange time for both teams. The Revival looked to have one foot out of the door of WWE. They had asked for their release multiple times, and despite wanting to leave still but on the best matches they could
Heavy Machinery at this point was being used as a vehicle to make Otis a star. The crowd cheered for Otis with some of the biggest pops ever week, and only 6 months later he would become Mr Money in the Bank.
Now we know that WWE squandered Otis’ MITB run and his main event push, but back then he seemed like he could have been a huge star. This match is one example of this, and thoroughly entertaining to watch too.
The match had all the staples of a great Christmas themed WWE match.
Suplexes into presents. Dash Wilder hitting Otis with a Singapore “Candy” Cane. Even a bodyslam onto Lego.
Otis won the match by hitting his finisher, The Caterpillar and The Compactor on Scott Dawson, pinning him for the victory.
Foley Claus vs JBL Kringle
At the 2005 edition of WWE Tribute to the Troops, there was a showdown between two Santa Clause’s. One was Foley Clause, which was Mick Foley in the classic red and white Santa suit. He faced of against JBL Kringle, which was former WWE Champion JBL in a camouflage Father Christmas suit.
Jonathan Coachman stood in the ring, shocked at the two Father Christmas’. He declared that their could only be one Santa Clause, and the two jolly fellows began to fight for the right to be WWE’s Santa Clause.
The match wasn’t Christmas themed in stipulation, but was a classic WWE Christmas match. The pair brawled for the couple of minutes in their Santa costumes, but soon the beards and hats had been punched off.
Soon, Mick Foley grabbed Santa’s sack, pulling out a pillow. He thwacked the pillow in the face of JBL, who sold it like death before Foley ate a giant big boot from the Wrestling God.
Foley pulled out the win with a Mr Socko assisted Mandible Claw, sending the military fans home happy. He reigned supreme as the true Father Christmas of WWE, and vanquished the clearly more Scrooge like of the two, JBL.
Miracle on 34th Street Fight – John Cena vs Alberto Del Rio – Monday Night Raw, 24th December 2012
Don’t think that you’ll get away with it if you murder Santa Clause. If you do, John Cena will be after you.
At least in WWE that is. On December 24th 2012, Alberto Del Rio hit Santa Clause with his car, which annoyed Cena. John Cena very much enjoys Father Christmas not being hit by a car. This causes what can only be described as “friction” between the two wrestlers.
This altercation lead to a Christmas themed match between the two former WWE Champions. It was named the Miracle on 34th Street fight match, in reference to the famous Christmas movie.
The match featured multiple weapons, both Christmas themed and not. It also was the source of the famous John Cena gif, where he opens a gift to reveal a steel. He went on to use the chair to smash Del Rio’s face in.
