Sometimes in order to know where you’re going, you must
first know from whence you came. Unless
WWE has some MAJOR plans Sunday, this year’s WrestleMania has to be the most
lackluster version of the Spring Classic on paper. No need to be surprised if they pull it off,
though. Last year’s Mania faced the same
circumstances but was actually a lot better than people expected (me
included). But even with a WWE Network
subscription, I’m not sure I wanna watch the show. It’ll be great to look at during those cardio
sessions in the gym after the fact, but I don’t think I’ll be watching this
Sunday. I think.
But WrestleMania has lived up to its “Showcase Of The
Immortals” moniker in the past. Some
great line-ups have laid the groundwork for the modern-day WWE. With that, I give you my five favorite
WrestleManias ever.
5. WRESTLEMANIA 14. The Mania that preceeded this one felt
like the last drops of 80’s and New Generation 90’s juice had dripped off of
it. After the events of the previous
year’s Survivor Series and everything leading up to it, new WWE stars were about
to ascend to new career heights. This
WrestleMania laid the groundwork for some of the greatest careers in the
business. Everyone wanted Owen Hart to
beat Triple H for the European championship.
Somehow, Hunter toughed it out and retained. Ken Shamrock actually beat The Rock for the
Intercontinental title, but his rage got the best of him and the decision would
be reversed. The manin event was part
hype, part era ushering as Steve Austin beat Shawn Michaels for his first World
championship. The Attitude Era kicked
into high gear almost immediately afterward.
4. WRESTLEMANIA III. 80,000 fans filled the Pontiac Silverdome
but the number was inflated to 93,173.
Good to know that practice isn’t just limited to the indies. They came to see Hulk Hogan versus Andre the
Giant, but they left talking about Ricky Steamboat and Randy Savage for the
Intercontinental belt. This one match
became every big league and small time wrestlers with big league egos original
inspiration to “steal the show”. It was
a mega event littered with regional stars now performing under WWE’s
umbrella. Harley Race faced off against
The legendary Junkyard Dog. Roddy Piper
beat Adrian Adonis, strangely giving birth the Brutus Beefacke’s Barber
persona. Jim Duggan, The Hart
Foundation. The British Bulldogs. Need I say more?
3. WRESTLEMANIA IV. So where were you on March 27, 1988? I know where I was: underneath a car helping my cousin Dwayne pull
a pair of pantyhose through engine pulleys because the car’s fan belt
broke. Here it is, the day of
WrestleMania. And here I am: 12 years old on the New Jersey Turnpike
working on a car that broke down on the way back from taking my sister back to
Rutgers University. Good thing they had
PPV replays back in those days.
When we finally got back to my aunt’s house, Randy Savage
was about to wrestle his second match. I
thought he looked awesome walking down the aisle in that sequined poncho and
ski glasses. Then, my older cousin says “he
won the whole thing”. And that - ladies
and gentlemen – was my first ever encounter with a spoiler. Even still, I’ve loved tournaments ever
since. Back in these days, marquee
matches were rare to see unless you watched Saturday Night’s Main Event once a
month on Saturday. The syndicated shows
had squash matches against jobbers (shout out to Barry Horowitz). On one show, you had top 14 top level guys
all fighting to become the champion.
That was rare. Demolition won
their first World championship beginning the longest (and most underrated) tag
team title reign in WWE history. The
Ultimate Warrior and Hercules went to war as well. An unpredictable day ended on a great note.
2. WRESTLEMANIA XX. The celebratory theme of WWE’s biggest
show was all over the place and it did not disappoint. Several significant moments happened on this
show. The Rock teamed with Mick Foley in
what would be his last match in seven years.
Randy Orton began to come into his own as a member of Evolution. John Cena won his first singles WWE
championship (the U.S. title). The smart
marks in the New York crowd made their presence known in the Brock
Lesnar-Goldberg match and rightfully so.
Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle wrestled a great match as well. Molly Holly displayed more balls than most
men by getting her head shaved after losing to Victoria. The main event is why this Mania gets ignored
more often than not as Chris Benoit won the World Heavyweight championship in a
magnificent triple threat match that ranks among one the greatest matches
ever. You really felt good for the
guy. We never saw what he would do years
later coming a mile away. Still, this
Mania was a celebration in all aspects.
1. WRESTLEMANIA X-SEVEN. A
few weeks before this show, WWE purchased WCW to officially end their war. Now more than ever, WWE had ALL of the wrestling
world’s eyes on it and it did not disappoint.
There was not one bad match on this show. Even the cheesy Gimmick Battle Royal had its
awesome moments. Despite Test’s foot getting hung up in the
ropes, his match with Eddie Guerrero had some really cool “big vs. little”
exchanges. The Undertaker vs Triple H
was a violent, bloody affair. The
first-ever TLC match had fanboys going bananas over its violent highspots. The undercard was magnificent and only an
even more magnificent main event could top it.
Steve Austin and The Rock delivered tenfold. This was my favorite WrestleMania ever.
More than anything, each of these Manias laid the groundwork
for significant changes in the WWE afterward.
There was no NXT to fall back on.
There was no real monopoly on North American wrestling. The smart mark and IWC population was only
beginning to speak loud enough to be heard.
Now, every aspect of the sport is being dissected by people with half a
clue trying to solve a case. Back then,
we let change happen instead of trying to figure out what that change would
be. These events, these magical moments
represented a true and unpredictable shift in pro wrestling. All because we sat there and simply watched
them happen. Our eyes and ears were the
only thing open besides the occasional shout, yell or scream of enjoyment.
A guy I used to work with years ago had a saying: “we can sing together, but we can’t talk
together”. This Sunday, the WWE
Orchestra will compose another piece to add to its collection of works that has
entertained us for three decades. Maybe
we should all shut the “F” up and listen.
Just… …listen.
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