Final Four Set For ESPY's WWE Moment Of The Year
The process of deciding the ESPYS' WWE Moment of the Year is down to the final four nominees. The finalists were revealed this morning:
- The Undertaker inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame
- Cody Rhodes returns to WWE at WrestleMania
- "Stone Cold" Steve Austin stuns Vince McMahon, Austin Theory, and Pat McAfee at WrestleMania
- Big E cashes in Money In The Bank briefcase and wins WWE Championship
Voting on the final four nominees is now underway. The winning moment will be revealed during the ESPYS. The annual sports award show will air on ABC on July 20 starting at 8pm ET.
This is the first year that the award is being decided in a bracket-style, elimination format. However, WWE and ESPN appear to have strayed from the original bracket of 16 nominees that was revealed last month.
When the field narrowed to eight last week, following the first round of fan voting, it appeared "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's WrestleMania stunners to McMahon, Theory, and McAfee would be put up against Cody Rhodes' return to WWE for a spot in the final four. Meanwhile, The Undertaker's Hall Of Fame induction was positioned to go against Big E's WWE Championship win in another quadrant of the bracket. Now, all four of those moments are in the final four.
The other four moments that reportedly advanced to the round of eight were Bianca Belair winning the "Raw" Women's Championship at WrestleMania 38, John Cena's return to WWE at last year's Money in the Bank event, Austin's impromptu match against Kevin Owens at WrestleMania, and last year's Hell in a Cell match between Edge and Seth Rollins.
The "SmackDown" Women's Championship match between Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair at WrestleMania 37 won the 2021 ESPY for Best WWE Moment. The first ESPY for "Best WWE Moment" was awarded to Roman Reigns in 2019 for his return to WWE after his battle with leukemia.