WrestleMania is today, so what better way to prepare for the biggest event of the year by creating a 10 match SuperCard from all of the past WrestleMania’s. Brennan Daly brings you an eclectic mix of WrestleMania matches to create an ultimate SuperCard.
A lot of people like to create a list of the best WrestleMania matches but I thought it would be interesting to put a twist on it and make it more difficult.
While doing this I made some rules. Rule #1 was that I could not use the same person twice. Rule #2 was that and have to create a lineup based off the slot that the match was originally in.
Unfortunately for those early WrestleMania’s, they will not make the list as WrestleMania back then had about 13 matches on its card. After hours of exploring each WrestleMania Card, this is what I believe would be the Ultimate Mania. Go checkout all these matches on the WWE Network and imagine a Mania with all them combined!
Match 1
WrestleMania 30
Daniel Bryan vs Triple H
WrestleMania always starts off with a bang. What better way to get the crowd going, by putting one of the most over guys in WWE history against “The Cerebral Assassin”! This was easily Match of the Night. I loved how they essentially worked a match that missed out signature spots and brought out sequences that were unexpected.
I’d say that was Triple H’s best pure singles match since Mania 26. He sold his ass off and did the right thing. For Bryan it was the perfect way for his feud to end with “The Authority” and was Bryan’s best moment in his career.
Match 2
WrestleMania 24
CM Punk vs Shelton Benjamin, Chris Jericho vs Carlito vs MVP vs Mr. Kennedy vs John Morrison
(Money In The Bank Ladder Match)
Money In The Bank was a great concept and I wish they kept doing it at every WrestleMania instead of its own PPV, but that’s another topic.
At WrestleMania 24, this match brought out a ton of entertaining spots that we had not seen before. We saw John Morrison do a ladder Moonsault onto 4 opponents and Shelton Benjamin getting pushed off the ladder and flipping onto another ladder on the outside.
If you turned your head for a moment, you would miss a “holy shit” moment. This was the beginning of CM Punk as he pulled out the victory and was given the spotlight that he had been wanting/deserved.
Match 3
WrestleMania 19
Trish Stratus vs Victoria vs Jazz
(Triple Threat for WWE Women’s Championship)
There were not a lot of viable options to choose from. Honestly, go look at all the Women’s matches in WrestleMania history. After this year, the Divas Triple Threat Championship Match with Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch, will be replacing this one on the list.
All the women had different characters that meshed pretty well. Victoria was the natural athlete in the ring. Jazz was the baddest women’ s champ of them all and Trish, the perfect babyface. Unfortunately for them, they wrestled in the wrong era, as Women’s wrestling wasn’t a priority. In about a 7-minute match, all three did well given the circumstances. Stratus ended up winning with a kick to the stomach to Victoria.
Match 4
WrestleMania 16
Edge and Christian vs The Dudley Boyz vs The Hardy Boyz
(Triangle Ladder Match for WWF Tag Team Championship)
The Hardyz, Dudleyz, and Edge & Christian rivalry during that time is still talked about among us. All three teams helped revolutionize tag team wrestling and made it relevant again. As for the match it was just wow after wow after wow. E&C got the win and all three continued their rivalry at WrestleMania 17.
WWE also got to make a new match concept called Tables, Ladders, and chairs match. Need I say more?
Match 5
WrestleMania 13
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Bret Hart
(Submission Match)
In my opinion this feud was the best thing about 1997. Their characters were perfect for each other. Great matches, great segments and promos, the double turn was a pivotal moment for the Austin Era and the company.
When the bell rang there was no stare off his time, there weren’t even wrestling exchanges as they immediately brawled because this rivalry had moved far past proving who the best wrestler is. This fight was about ravaging the other man’s body and his will. It is about beating the other man into submission – the ultimate defeat.
Austin’s performance was quite possibly the most inspiring wrestling performance ever – the blood gushing out of his temple as he resisted the pain, his refusal to quit, and giving it his ALL to attempt to escape the hold are all honorable actions.
Austin’s body may have technically submitted because it passed out to the pain, but his will was never broken by Bret Hart. Not only that but this was my personal favorite turn of all time. This put Austin on a whole new level and even led Bret to be a surprisingly great as a heel that year. Legendary!
Match 6
WrestleMania 25
Undertaker vs HBK
On the 25th Anniversary, WWE needed to put the two legends against each other. It had been awhile since these two had a major interaction and you knew this one was going to be a classic. Both competitors executed their finishing move a few times, but each one kicked out of the other’s signature move. Frustration was evident on the faces of both these superstars, especially the Undertaker’s.
At one point during the match, Shawn was on the outside of the ring. Undertaker was about to dive, but HBK pulled a cameraman in front of him, and Undertaker accidentally jumped on the cameraman. I honestly thought for 5 seconds that The Undertaker had broken his neck and died live at WrestleMania.
The little things in this match, helped make it perfect. Shawn Michaels brought out the best in the Undertaker and vice versa.
Nothing else on the show came close to being this good. Undertaker caught Michaels while going for a sunset flip and the streak continued.
Match 7
WrestleMania 7
The Ultimate Warrior vs Randy Savage
(Retirement Match)
In creating this card, I had to give some respect to the throw back WrestleMania’s. There have been a handful of retirement matches in WWE history but this is really where it all started. Technically not the best, but seeing the 2 top faces go at it, and the back-and-forth structure of the match gave it a hell of atmosphere, a truly “don’t know what’s going to happen!” vibe.
Plus, the crowd was completely jacked! One of the most dramatic matches I have ever seen and had a payoff that hit all the right emotional chords. The build to the reunion of Randy & Elizabeth was like a live fairy tale.
Match 8
WrestleMania 24
Floyd Mayweather Jr vs The Big Show
This was the hardest spot for me to pick a match. I have already used some of the biggest names in wrestling history, so I decided that a celebrity attraction match would help spice up the card. The biggest athlete of all time vs one of the greatest boxers, certainly gained mainstream attention.
It all started when Mayweather saved Rey Mysterio from The Big Show. In doing so, Mayweather ended up legitimately breaking The Big Shows nose and the angle took off from there. No one can forget Mayweather’s entrance, where money came down from the sky!
The Big Show dominated early but then Mayweather grabbed brass knuckles from one of his entourage and landed a big right hand to the chin of the giant. Big Show struggled to get up, but he gets counted out. It was never going to be a great match but the two without a doubt had the crowd interested.
Match 9
WrestleMania 18
The Rock vs Hulk Hogan
The original Once-In-A-Lifetime match, this was one of the most anticipated matches for fans all around. Hogan coming back to the company shortly after Vince bought out WCW, as soon as he came back they immediately threw one of WCW’s top guys in a match at WrestleMania with one of the WWE’s top guy, The Rock.
While the wrestling itself was alright, it was a fantastic match to watch from a storytelling standpoint. The crowd kept switching between cheering for the Rock and Hogan (despite him being booked as a heel). We saw Hulk Hogan “Hulking up” for the first time in ages, to the Rock kicking out of the Atomic Leg Drop, to the Rock saving Hogan after the NWO turns on him.
It had nonstop fun from start to finish. When you look at the most incredible atmosphere surrounding a match in WWE history, this should be at the top of the list. The Rock went over on The Icon and it was one of the most memorable moments in WrestleMania history.
Match 10
WrestleMania 19
Brock Lesnar vs Kurt Angle
(WWE Championship Match)
“The Beast” started his WWE run with a bang. Within the first year of his debut he was heading WrestleMania against one of the best technical wrestlers of all time. This is another stellar rivalry that brought us some of the most physical matches we had ever seen up until this point in the WWE. Both competitors coming from an armature wrestling background seemed to connect them better in the ring.
Their story was not all about the wrestling however as it did gradually become more and more personal. The best part about the matchup was that the two had yet to touch prior to their encounter at the event. Lesnar had run through a majority of the roster with the exception of the Olympic Gold Medalist, and in order to win his second WWE title, he had to go through the measuring stick for success on SmackDown.
Additionally, Angle went rogue on the WWE Universe shortly before the bout, setting up Lesnar as the next big babyface in WWE.
Sadly, the match is remembered for Lesnar’s botched Shooting Star Press, and boy, did it look ugly. You have to give it to him for attempting to have his “WrestleMania Moment” and he did hit it successfully several times before in developmental. At any rate, that backfired for Brock, who still managed to power through with an F5 on Angle to secure the win and the prestigious prize. Lesnar earned Angle’s respect and this led to the rise of Lesnar.
Thank you for reading my article! Feel free to give me your thoughts on twitter or the comments section.