When considering the greatest rivals of The Man Called Sting not named Ric Flair, one person comes to mind: Big Van Vader. You can teach selling. And it has rarely ever worked better than Eddie Guerrero vs. Brock Lesnar at No Way Out in 2004. Its hard to tell where one teams madness began and the others ended in this frankly ludicrous, 10-car pileup of a match that saw Edge & Christian retain their World Tag Team Championship against The Dudley Boyz and The Hardy Boyz on The Grandest Stage of Them All. It took place on April 1, 2001, at the Reliant Astrodome in Houston, Texas.It was the first WrestleMania held in the state of Texas.Twelve matches were contested at the event, including one broadcast . Instead, it was Mysterios lack of size that necessitated his moveset. Purists balk at the role George "The Animal" Steele played in the final outcome, claiming it denied the WWE Universe a truly decisive victory. You want everybody to forget about who won or lost. DEAN MALENKO, AS TOLD TO BRIAN PELLEGATTO, Remember earlier, when we said the long way is the best? JEFF LABOON. Both would have better bouts against others, but for two of the greatest, this was their best ever against each other. "It was always so hard to tell who the crowd was going to root for more. ANTHONY BENIGNO, We defy you to think of the Hell in a Cell Match without picturing The Undertaker throwing Mick Foley off the side of the demonic structure and onto a table below. The WWE 2K23 ratings reveal is in full swing, and there are all sorts of juicy numbers floating around. Though Vader escaped the Figure Four, Flair was able to take out the giants weakened knee and pin him to win the title and continue his epic career. I remembered what Ricky Steamboat taught me about showmanship, what Bobby Eaton taught me about punching, Arn with his general a**kicking and I tried to mimic everything I did after Barry Windham. PETER ROSENBERG, AS TOLD TO ZACH LINDER. I submitted, and everybody looks at it and goes, 'Dang, what a match!' Both competitors were battered and bloodied as they unloaded from their diverse arsenal of moves, with Lynn delivering perhaps the biggest highlight of the night: a sunset flip powerbomb that drove RVD through a table on the outside floor. After the match, you halfway expected Michael J. The Big Red Machine tombstoned The Dead Man, while a broken-down Michaels crawled over Undertaker to steal the win. While this match would be far overshadowed by their WrestleMania 13 bloodbath, their Survivor Series 1996 showdown remains one of the finest examples of in-ring storytelling you'll ever see. Thus the much-anticipated rematch became a Career vs. Streak match, as both men had everything to lose. Some dudes just "click" and that certainly applies to Mark Calaway and Michael Hickenbottom, better known by their respective ring names of The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels. Every minute was full of unadulterated, wince-inducing punishment and the ECW fans loved them for it. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle was actually able to stop The Showstopper, forcing Shawn to tap out to the Ankle Lock. Thats a level of tag team expertise you dont see anymore. He thought it was just a regular match, and all of a sudden he got thrown onto a pay-per-view when he showed up. KARA MEDALIS, At WrestleMania III, the 15-year undefeated Andre the Giant stepped over the top rope to face WWE Champion Hulk Hogan in front of more than 93,000 members of the WWE Universe. The two competitors engaged in a ferocious brawl where it seemed that neither would ever relent. So I trained like nobodys business. MICHAEL BURDICK. In the end, the madman from Japan won this battle in what was a war of many matchups between the two human highlight reels. And then, to top it off, Jericho emerged an even bigger heel, hugging Michaels as a ruse to kick him in the junk. "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair and "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels for the Intercontinental Championship in a ladder match. It's brief, but the actions and decisions really hit the right notes for . Thats how I learned by listening to these guys, my mentors. You might have a brother who always wants to be better. It's a match that would feel fresh in any era, with a simple story about an egomaniac (Jericho) trying to break out of his hero's shadow, while that same hero (Michaels) wants to prove he's still got it. ANTHONY BENIGNO. Although The Deadman won, it was The Game who rose to his feet and walked up the entrance ramp. Ric Flair sure was a bad guy. In many ways, Shawn Michaels was the perfect wrestler. One of the most infamously vicious battles youll find on WWE Network is also one of NWA/WCWs finest. In the end, Bryan prevailed, defeating Triple H in what one of the best opening matches in WrestleMania history, and Triple H's last great match before retiring in 2022. Yet, just like 18 other brave souls before him, Triple H fell to The Undertaker. We both wanted to just slug it out. Its one of those things you share with each other." For Triple H's Royal Rumble opponent, WWE turned Cactus Jack into a mythic figure less a flesh-and-blood man than violence personified. WWE's first Hell in a Cell Match is best known for giving us our first glimpse of Kane, who tore the door off the notorious structure to get his hands on The Undertaker, costing his brother the match. Michaels and Hart made their match feel real, as real as any boxing match or MMA fight. MITCH PASSERO, "I always wanted to be a Paul Heyman Guy. What makes it even more impressive is there were no gimmicks (HIAC or Casket) and no stakes (like HBK's career), besides of course, Undertaker defending his streak and the pride of victory. Watching at a young age, I was creeped out and weirded out by him. Perhaps the biggest testament to that fierce conflict was their WWE Iron Man Match for the WWE Title at The Showcase of the Immortals. SAM ROBERTS, AS TOLD TO ZACH LINDER, There may not be another match that embodied WWEs Attitude Era more than "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and Dude Loves battle for the WWE Championship at Over the Edge 1998. DAVID SHOEMAKER. Not only did Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns formally debut by going after the biggest, baddest dog in the yard (thatd be Ryback), but their first match was against that same guy, and the most dominant Tag Team Champions since D-Generation X, in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs Match in WWEs Brooklyn debut. I was in my 40s and he was knocking on the door. chant helped make him the biggest babyface on the planet, it was the other biggest babyface on the planet, WWE Champion John Cena, who picked him as his challenger for the main event of SummerSlam 2013. She did and she didnt, maturing before the fans (and Banks) eyes into a bona fide, certified champion, while still retaining the hugs, headbands and admiration that defined her aesthetic. Maybe "The Nature Boy" thought that getting inside "Macho Man's" head would make Savage lose focus, get disqualified and in doing so, fail to win the WWE Championship. There had never been another WrestleMania match quite like this and, perhaps, there never will be. It was over-the-top and cartoony in the best way, and resulted in a bout that ended with a bloody Flair getting rolled up by Savage for the 1-2-3. "I really thought it was going to be the last move I ever did in wrestling," Foley told WWE.com. Triple H was at his in-ring peak, Austin's heel run revitalized his work (though hurt business), while Jericho and Benoit were hungry to prove they belonged at the top. It's The Wrestling Classic here with another list for ONE37pm. Both are the legend of WWE and popular among the fans of WWE family. Lock and he got [disqualified]. Fans revolted and rather than have his WrestleMania main event hijacked, McMahon relented and set up Bryan for the big bout but first he had to go through Triple H, the face of The Authority. It's one of those magic things where its hard to point out why it worked so well. "You cant predict chemistry. The Dragon played the long game and tied the bout up at three falls with less than 10 minutes left, and reversed a sleeper hold into a pinfall to take the lead as time ran out in the grueling contest. When you watch the match, you have a feeling that the only people who truly know its the end are Austin and The Rock. But as Bray emphatically told the Hounds of Justice, "I welcome this war!" They should have screamed. HIGHEST RATED WWF/WWE MATCHES ON CABLE TV. But on this night, the Hart brothers stood tall: Bret for winning the title, Owen for beating his brother, and both for putting on the greatest opening match in WrestleMania and WWE history. It was a great Vengeance in July 2002 and an unbelievable Triple Threat main event that saw WWE Undisputed Champion Undertaker, The Rock and Kurt Angle strike down upon each other with furious anger and with one anothers signature moves, including a Rock-charged chokeslam, an Angle-executed Rock Bottom and an Undertaker-driven Angle Slam. "The rivalry was thought of so highly in spite of the fact that Orton was a hero. And after battling in enough five-star classics, they knew each others moves like the backs of their hands. The first fall was a regular one-on-one match, the second fall was a Street Fight, and the third fall was a steel cage match. The match told a simple but compelling story about two driven men competing to be the best. WrestleMania 21 ended with John Cena as the new WWE Champion and Batista as the new World Champion, setting the stage for the next generation of WWE superstars. So when the two decorated Superstars locked up in Seattle at WrestleMania XIX, it was a meeting of similar styles in a bout that became the ace in a stacked deck of a card. Go in there, do your thing and feel it.' "The greatest thing for me was Kurt knew he had the background of an Olympic wrestler and I was the pro wrestler, and he knew we had to merge those two worlds. It was how the future WWE Hall of Famers seemingly turned back the clock by a decade, delivering some of the most jaw-dropping maneuvers and counters weve ever seen out of the two men. If the match would still be a classic with the sound off, it makes the cut. A lot of tag team wrestling can be very paint-by-numbers. The Gold Standard truly set the standard for creativity in these types of matches with such feats as a twirling powerslam off a ladder, and even using a ladder as a ramp to reach an opponent on a separate ladder. Its 20 solid minutes of edge-of-your-seat drama; even if you go in knowing the ending, its impossible not to get wrapped up. The fact he came back for that sweet Saudi payday in 2018 doesn't take away from the finality, or the greatness, of this match. Thats damn near impossible, unless youve somehow been to every single mat contest since George Hackenschmidt won the World Title in 1905. came to a head at Starrcade 1985 in an "I Quit" Steel Cage Match. With the 38th edition of Wrestlemania on the horizon, we've assembled our ranking of the 25 best Wrestlemania matches ever, all of which can be watched on Peacock. and seemed almost disinterested in the action. Plus, get every WWE Premium Live Event and the worlds best TV and movies. It took years for me to get over his rivalry with Bret Hart. Moments later, Hart locked on The Sharpshooter to capture the title, launching one of the most prolific careers in WWE history. The match stands as a landmark moment in all of their careers. Following submission attempt after submission attempt, including Sharpshooters and Figure-Four Leglocks by both Superstars, the self-proclaimed "genetically superior" newcomer hit the Hart Dungeon-trained Superstar with her vicious Natural Selection for the win. You could make the case that this was the best of their three WrestleMania matches because they knew each other so well at this point. Theres a moment when they go outside the ring and The Rock wears Austins vest. But compared to what you see on TV today, The Southern Boys versus The Midnight Express is advanced trigonometry." SCOTT TAYLOR. The celebration, however, would prove short-lived. In 1989, Flair was Kanye 15 years before "The College Dropout" hit shelves. Not only was this bout in Edge's backyard of Toronto, but it was also Cena's first foray into theunforgivingrealm of TLC Matches. The only thing missing was John Williams' score, though the rapid Miami crowd more than made up for it. 1. "It was a really good action-adventure story, but as much as I love that match, its the one match that leaves me with that what if feeling. When people talk about Randy Orton, it's usually not as a hero, but he was perfect for the kind of opportunistic scoundrel villain that Christian was. Literally. Simple as that. Triple H was a guy who was able to bring out the best in me, and thats one of the hallmarks of a great opponent. While Bryan was the world's best wrestler since Day 1, his character work elevated him to WrestleMania main event-level status, especially his super sticky "Yes!" "It was very important for me in terms of redeeming myself for what I thought was a very disappointing appearance at WrestleMania XX. The 25 Greatest wwe events of all time are 1. "Imagine competing at a WrestleMania against your brother. They both must have been proud after this one. The Nature Boy entered at #3 and, despite having at least 10 years on most of his opponents, wrestled at full speed for more than an hour without ever needing to take a breath. The 1987 WWE fanbase had been conditioned to watching 6'5 giants with outlandish gimmicks take turns punching each other, with the biggest move being a bodyslam. But the middle portion the match itself demands just as much respect as those two milestones. SHAWN MICHAELS, AS TOLD TO ZACH LINDER, Sports-entertainment fans can be a jaded bunch. Summerslam 2002 4. Thats the tell-tale sign of two guys who know what theyre doing. "It all stemmed from an interview I did with Jim Ross in the WWE studios in Connecticut. 'Taker finally granted Michaels his wish, but for a price HBK's career. Awesome wowed the Ohio crowd with his eye-opening agility, but Tanaka's display of heart in this classic was really something to behold. 25. But the shadow of the epic showdown at King of the Ring has lingered ever since. 1 post 0. In the ultimate show of respect, the Deadman and the Heartbreak Kid held up The Game as they left the stadium, battered, beaten and bloodied. This set the scene for the hated adversaries to beat the senses out of each other. Wed never seen that before. Meanwhile, Brock Lesnar truly was "The Next Big Thing," being put in the main event on a WrestleMania card featuring Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Chris Jericho, Triple H, Hulk Hogan, The Rock and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. A technical classic. RYAN MURPHY, "That was my favorite of the three matches in our trilogy, because we put in 55 minutes. Well, one veteran, as technically Kurt Angle had debuted only five years earlier, but by then had already established himself as one of the best ever. It was a 20 minute masterpiece of mayhem, telling a story about how Triple H had to reach new levels of evil in order to defeat the Hardcore Legend. After a trilogy of matches that changed sports-entertainment forever, Flair earned the respect of all that had despised him. Fans weren't too pleased when Shawn Michaels was shoe-horned into the main event of WrestleMania XX, turning a World Championship bout between Triple H and Chris Benoit into the first triple threat main event in WrestleMania history. Not only was Steve Austin vs. RYAN MURPHY, The Shield debuted at Survivor Series 2012 and carved a path of destruction that appeared to have no end in sight. The match was grueling, with Race targeting Flairs injured neck and Flair battling back valiantly. However, the event was stolen by two veteran wrestlers Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle. Fans were rabid for this match, creating an absolutely electric environment. In the end though, it was Flair who emerged the winner and consequently the champion. Anyone who says Foley was just a "gloried stunt guy" needs to watch this match to see what an exceptional storyteller he could be. ANTHONY BENIGNO. Sometimes, the long way is the best. The fact Hart not only salvaged the match, but produced an all-time classic that made both men look like stars, is a testament to his brilliance. Meanwhile, Michaels had supplemented the multifaceted, in-ring abilities that made him great in the 1990s, with the superb pacing and storytelling that comes from experience. There was just something very humble and working-class Canadian about his overall presentation, and he looked so cool. It's a matter of my physical prowess against his technical and high-flying ability. But while the story was simple, the match was complex, as the two Hart brothers - both graduates of their father Stu Hart's famous basement "dungeon" - put on a pro wrestling clinic. Of course, the No. I didnt come around to respecting him until 2000 or 2001. KOFI KINGSTON, AS TOLD TO ZACH LINDER. 5. That's the case here. Flair for the WWE Championship would be enough of a draw for most fans, this was McMahon Land after all, so the two were also feuding over Flair's less-than-gentlemanly treatment of Miss Elizabeth, who Flair "dated" before Savage ("She was mine before she was yours!"). This was before the internet, so it's likely that many regional fans weren't familiar with Flair. That was not the case in 2014. Maybe the best, in fact. With his longtime friend Shawn Michaels serving as the unpredictable special guest referee, Triple H used every tool in his arsenal including steel chairs, ring steps, his signature sledgehammer and multiple Pedigrees to put The Deadman down for good. Red Machine tombstoned the Dead Man, while a broken-down Michaels crawled over Undertaker to steal the win told Hounds... 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