I have often said that if I could do any one thing for the rest of my life, it would be to wrestle professionally. And if boxing is known as the “beautiful science,” than I would argue that professional wrestling should be called the “majestic art.” This coming Sunday is the biggest professional wrestling event of the year: WrestleMania XXVIII.
WrestleMania has many monikers: The Showcase of the Immortals, The Granddaddy of Them All, and The Grandest Stage of Them All. WrestleMania moments are like boy scout badges and collecting them as a superstar is revered.
The master of WrestleMania moments is WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels. He has stolen the show with matches like one of the first Ladder Matches at WrestleMania X against Razor Ramon to determine the Undisputed Intercontinental Champion, his back-and-forth WWE Championship contest against Stone Cold Steve Austin with special guest enforcer “Iron” Mike Tyson at WrestleMania XIV, his return-to-the-Grandest-Stage-after-five-years-away match against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania XIX, his textbook contest against Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 21, all of which are matches that he lost. He’s also known for his 60-Minute Iron Man victory over Bret Hart in overtime to capture his first WWE Championship ever at WrestleMania XII. A man of many monikers himself—The Showstopper, The Main Event, The Heartbreak Kid, the Icon—Shawn is the only professional wrestler ever dubbed “Mr. WrestleMania.” But arguably the most dominant presence at WrestleMania is Undertaker.
At WrestleMania XXV The Showstopper and the Dead Man when toe to toe but it would be Undertaker who prevailed. One year later, at WrestleMania XXVI, the two would face off one more time with Shawn Michaels’s career hanging in the balance. And despite his legendary resilience, it was Undertaker who would win, and send Shawn into retirement.
Losing to Undertaker at WrestleMania is nothing to be ashamed of. Where others seek to collect memorable moments, ‘Taker collects wins. Going into this year, Undertaker is 19-0 in matches contest at the Showcase of the Immortals. Among those Undertake has bested are WWE Hall of Famers Michaels, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair, 2012 Hall of Fame inductee Edge, and future Hall of Famers Randy Orton, Kane (twice), and Triple H (twice). He even won a 2-1 match that was literally no small feat as he was pitted against the 7-foot, 500-pound Big Show and the 6’6”, 350-pound A-Train. Being 19-0 in WrestleMania matches, as commentator Michael Cole often points out, is akin to being 19-0 in Super Bowls. To call Undertaker the Joe Montana of WrestleMania would be to say that Joe Montana won 19 Super Bowls, including ones against the likes of Dan Marino, Bart Starr, Troy Aikman, Steve Young, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning (twice), and Tom Brady (twice). And this year, he looks to make it an even 20 as he faces Triple H for the third time, including the second time in as many WrestleManias. This year, however, the two men will face one another in a Hell in a Cell match, a match not seen at WrestleMania since WrestleMania XV where ‘Taker defeated Big Boss Man. And as an added bonus, Triple H’s long-time friend and the man who opposed and defeat Undertaker in the first-ever Hell in a Cell match (at Badd Blood in 1997), Shawn Michaels, will be the special guest referee. This will likely be the last match for both men and, thereby, signifies the end of an era as both are seemingly the last two “active” superstars began near the end of the Golden Era into the New Generation and then into the Attitude Era, survived through the Ruthless Aggression Era and continued to be successful in the PG Era. But now, as WWE moves in the New Era, these to colossal superstars will bid the ring adieu with what promises to be among the greatest matches in WWE, let alone WrestleMania, history.
It was just 10 years ago, WrestleMania X-8, when arguably the two most charismatic professional wrestlers of their respective eras squared off in the squared circle. The Rock would beat Hulk Hogan that night, but it may have been Hogan who won the bigger victory by reviving his career. The following year, The Great One, The People’s Champion, The Rock would face off for the third and final WrestleMania time with Stone Cold Steve Austin. Austin had beaten the Rock at both WrestleMania XV and XVII. But at XIX, it would be The Rock who would outlast Austin in what would be Austin’s final match. Rock and Austin personified the “Attitude Era” of WWE. The Rock would look to make it a clean sweep at WrestleMania XXVIII by defeating John Cena. Hogan was the best of his generation, Austin arguably the best of the generation that followed, and Cena is arguably the best of this new generation. By beating all three, and by beating all three at WrestleMania, The Rock will place his claim on being the greatest superstar of all time. Of course, Triple H and Undertaker would probably have something to say about that.
As would Chris Jericho and CM Punk. Both men have claimed to “the best in the world.” And this year, one man will be able to say that without question, he was the best in the world for at least one night. This match will be akin to the Jericho—Michaels match from WrestleMania XIX in that Jericho is a legend in his own right (like HBK) and Punk is well regarded as one of the better performers in the ring, seldom having an “ugly” match (like Jericho). The Second City Savior will defend the most-prized possession in professional wrestling, the WWE Championship, against Y2J, the man who won the first ever Undisputed Championship, the six-time former World Champion (includes reigns as WWE Champion, World Heavyweight Champion and his undisputed reign), and record nine-time former Intercontinental Champion (among other titles).
Speaking of other titles and speaking of World Champions, World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan will defend his title against Sheamus, the first and so far only Irish-born WWE Champion ever. Sheamus has done a lot in his first three or so years in WWE, winning the WWE title twice, the United States Championship once, and winning both the 2010 King of the Ring as well as the 2012 Royal Rumble. Bryan relies on a technical aspect with a great deal of athleticism whereas Sheamus relies more on power. The beauty of this match is that both men are relatively new in their WWE careers and both project to be very successful superstars for many, many years. And they are both very polished in the ring already. On a card that is billed as having 8 matches including the three monumental matches already mentioned, this match could prove to be the sleeper.
Look for many celebrities too. WrestleMania has long been a hotbed for the Hollywood crowd. Cyndi Lauper, Mr. T, Muhammad Ali, Floyd “Money” Mayweather, Aretha Franklin, Pete Rose, Willie Nelson, Michelle Williams, Reba McIntyre, Little Richard, John Legend, Nicole Scherzinger, Run D.M.C., Limp Bizkit, Kid Rock, Motorhead, P.O.D., and Lawrence Taylor, among others have appeared or performed. Last year, Jersey Shore star Snooki participated in a match and this year, Maria Menounos—of Today, Access Hollywood, and ET fame—will team with WWE Dive Kelly Kelly to take on Diva’s Champion Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres.
Men have been speared through flaming tables and from 20 feet in the air at WrestleMania, both courtesy of Edge. Men have been entombed in caskets and hanged from the Hell in a Cell structure at WrestleMania, both courtesy of Undertaker. Men have floated into the crowd on gigantic zip lines at WrestleMania, and by “men” I mean Shawn Michaels. What could happen at this WrestleMania? Tune in this Sunday, April 1st, live on pay-per-view at a special start time of 7p eastern time to find out!
Below, please find my predictions. Tweet me if you want an explanation. Please note that my predictions may not accurately reflect who I will be cheering for.
1. Divas Tag Team Match: Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos vs. WWE Diva’s Champion Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres
Winner: Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos
2. Total Control Match, 12-Man Tag Team Match: Team Johnny (captain David Otunga, Mark Henry, Jack Swagger, Drew McIntyre, The Miz, and Dolph Ziggler) vs. Team Teddy (captain & United States Champion Santino Marella, Booker T, The Great Khali, R-Truth, Kofi Kingston, and Zack Ryder)
Winner: Team Johnny
3. Singles Match: Randy Orton vs. Kane
Winner: Randy Orton
4. Intercontinental Championship Match: Big Show vs. Cody Rhodes (c)
Winner: Cody Rhodes
5. Once in a Lifetime Match: The Rock vs. John Cena
Winner: The Rock
6. World Heavyweight Championship Match: Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan (c)
Winner: Sheamus
7. WWE Championship Match: Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk (c)
Winner: CM Punk
8. End of an Era, Hell in a Cell Match with special referee Shawn Michaels: Triple H vs. Undertaker
Winner: Undertaker
(c) signifies that that superstar is the defending champion going into the match
Disclaimer: matches are listed in the descending order of potential awesomeness—as unscientifically determined by yours truly—from potentially least awesome to potentially most awesome.
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