This Sunday is the 33rd edition of “The Showcase of the Immortals” WrestleMania. As the number suggests, the WWE/F has presented this storied event 32 times before. And yes some of these shows have been complete stinkers (who can forget WrestleMania 9 from Caesars Palace), but there has also been memorable WrestleManias over the years that still has fans talking.
For all the good WrestleManias that have taken place, there are only five that come to mind as the best shows in the company's history. Dream matchups, title changes and epic performances are the landmarks for a great WrestleMania. In no particular order, here are the five Wrestlemania shows that changed the landscape of the WWE.
WrestleMania 30
This show will be forever known as the night that The Undertaker’s 21-0 WrestleMania dominance ended at the hands of Brock Lesnar. The match was so stiff and hard-hitting, The Undertaker had to be rushed to the hospital after collapsing backstage post-match. The shock on the faces of fans as the referee counted to three were priceless as a milestone that will never be achieved again ended on a night in New Orleans.
Besides The Undertaker's streak coming to an end, WrestleMania XXX saw Daniel Bryan, who fought “the system” for over a year, win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. This was a major victory for Bryan as his win turned the tide in regards to what the WWE looks for in talent. Bryan wasn’t 6’4” and 296 pounds, but his in-ring skill and heart showed the WWE brass that someone his size can not only get over with the crowd, but also gain respect from an entire locker room. These two moments are the biggest reasons why WrestleMania XXX is in the top five of all time.
WrestleMania 10
This WrestleMania was a star-making show for Bret “The Hitman” Hart in Madison Square Garden. Hart took on his brother Owen Hart in the opening match of the show and proceeded to face WWF Champion Yokozuna in the main event. “The Hitman” reached the pinnacle and won the title for the second time. Although it was his second reign, the company was fully behind him as the face of the company this time unlike his first title run.
This WrestleMania also featured an epic Ladder Match between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels. Wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer gave this match five-stars and it was deserving of the rating as this match set the bar for future Ladder Matches to this day. Yokozuna, who weighed well over 550 pounds at the time, wrestled twice that night as he took on Hart and Lex Luger and cemented his stardom in the sport. While the undercard was disappointing at some points, WrestleMania 10 was a great show at a time where business was down for the company.
WrestleMania 17
The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin headlined this show from the Astrodome in Houston but the rest of the card was great as well. You had a Tables, Ladders and Chair match between The Dudleys, The Hardys and Edge and Christian in addition to the first-ever matchup between Triple H and The Undertaker (which the WWE never mentions). It was a great “wrestling” show and even the Gimmick Battle Royal with older wrestlers was exciting. The highlight of the night however was Austin vs. The Rock.
The lead-up going into a main event was one of the best. Limp Bizkit’s “My Way” as the song for the entire show and the match was a great selection as it added that extra something to the match. While the match was epic, the intensity from the crowd for both men was overwhelming as well. The match went so well until Vince McMahon came down to the ring and Austin turned heel as he beat the bejesus out of The Rock with a steel chair, thereby beginning the worst heel turn in the history of pro wrestling. It was an amazing show and arguably the best WrestleMania...until the following year in Toronto.
WrestleMania 18
The next year’s WrestleMania was in front 68,000 fans in the Toronto SkyDome and saw two legends involved in one the greatest WrestleMania matches in history. “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan and The Rock wrestled in a “Icon vs. Icon” match and while Hogan came into the match as heel, the Canadian crowd was completely behind him and turned him into a babyface while The Rock was the heel to the crowd. While The Rock won the match, no one cared because the moment overshadowed the outcome.
The show also featured Triple H and Chris Jericho fighting for the WWE Undisputed Championship and a four corners match tag team match. Add in a No Disqualification match between Ric Flair (his first match in a year) and The Undertaker and you had a card that was full of action. Hell Diamond Dallas Page and Rob Van Dam even wrestled on the show. Stone Cold Steve Austin faced Scott Hall in a match and no one even mentions that match, that is how great this show was.
WrestleMania 3
The night the earth shook was WrestleMania 3 after Hulk Hogan bodyslammed Andre The Giant at the Pontiac Silverdome. This was the show that put the WWF on the map, more than WrestleMania 1. The match was not a technical marvel, but it accomplished what it needed to – it pushed Hulk Hogan to superstardom and immortalized Andre The Giant forever. But there was another match from WrestleMania 3 that still stands over all matches as the best ever:
Randy Savage and Ricky Steamboat performed in the greatest WrestleMania match of all time. The match was just 14 minutes, but it’s 14 of the most marvelous, technically sound in-ring minutes ever seen to this day. The show was built around Andre/Hogan, but this is the match that everyone still talks abut to this day. Steamboat came out on top but both Steamboat and Savage were winners in this match as they tore the house down at WrestleMania 3 for the Intercontinental Championship.
What are your top WrestleManias? Let us know in our comment section.
