MAGIC, MEMORIES, AND MANIA: Top Ten Post Shawn Michaels WrestleMania Matches

WrestleMania week is here, and I am where every wrestling fan in the world wants to be now, staying at the wrestlers’ hotel in New Orleans. This will be my 16th WrestleMania that I am attending live so I have been fortunate to see some of the greatest moments and matches in the history of the event.

Sadly, the one show I missed in the last 17 years was Wrestlemania 19, which I feel was the best show in WWE history. It featured the return of The Heartbreak Kid, the greatest performer in Mania history. Shawn Michaels is also known as Mr. WrestleMania for his unparalleled streak of classics on the Grandest Stage of Them All. After having seen most of HBK’s best Mania matches in person and then going to every show after he retired, there is a huge gap when it comes to landmark matches. Today, I wanted to rate the top 10 WrestleMania matches in the post-Michaels era.

10. A.J. Styles vs. Shane McMahon

It was a stretch to come up with ten memorable Mania matches after HBK retired, but it is fitting that we start with the man most people recognize as the greatest performer since Michaels. AJ Styles has been the best wrestler of the last couple years, and he should have been in a main event match. Instead, WWE used him to give the show an exciting opener against the First Family’s daredevil son Shane O’Mac. I am not a fan of Shane’s goofy persona and have always seen him as a glorified stuntman. The year before, I saw one of the most stunning sights I have ever seen when he stood atop the towering Cell structure and flew through a table. When we heard that a roller coaster was being built into the set, many of us imagined him doing some insane maneuver off the structure.

What took place was an entertaining but forgettable match with numerous displays of high-flying athleticism from both Shane and Styles. AJ, who came in as a heel, received one of the loudest ovations of the night. The fans were solidly behind him, but they also liked McMahon. Many felt there would be a backlash, but that did not take place. Shane’s shooting star press and fall through the table captured the crowd without risking his life. This was a worthy opener to a lackluster show and it opens this list.

STAR RATING ***1/2*

9. The Rock vs. John Cena – WrestleMania 29

The year before, this match was labeled as “once in a lifetime.” Unsurprisingly, after a successful buyrate, they decided to go back to these two for the main event. The rematch build was much better than the alienating insider shoot digs the two took at each other for Mania 27.

Although the first match may have been a bigger event, I enjoyed the rematch more because I felt the storytelling was stronger playing off their previous bout. I really enjoyed the parallel structure moments, including when Rock attempted the Five-Knuckle Shuffle. That was a great false finish as many of us thought it was over. The finale was not popular, but I thought it was the best they could do with the story they wanted to tell. Although Cena generally makes me embarrassed to be a wrestling fan every time I see him, I thought Rock telling him he “came back for this moment” was a classy touch.

STAR RATING ***1/2*

8. Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Batista – WrestleMania 30

By the time of the main event, the crowd was still in a daze of confusion over the startling Undertaker loss. The three competitors had an enormous hole to climb out of, but they slowly got the crowd back into the show. I thought this was a very good main event, and each contestant played their role perfectly. I loved how Batista and Orton paid homage to their Evolution past by working together to take out Bryan. The two really do share a great chemistry, and it reminds me why I rate Evolution as the best stable in wrestling history. The stark contrast between their Greek God appearances and Bryan’s everyman stature made the story of the match more interesting.
The last ten minutes of the contest featured some amazing spots. I love subtle references to history, and when Batista and Orton looked at each other and decided to slam Bryan through the table, it reminded me of when Triple H and Michaels decided to work together to suplex Chris Benoit through the announcers table in the Wrestlemania 20 main event. The series of false finishes were brilliantly done, and they achieved the unenviable task of working the dead crowd back into a frenzy. This was a worthy main event to one of the better Wrestlemanias in history.

STAR RATING ****

7. Triple H vs. Daniel Bryan – WrestleMania 30

Triple H’s entrance, from costuming to music to special effects, was one of the most spectacular sights I have ever seen. For me, it was right up there with Shawn Michaels’ Wrestlemania 25 intro as the two greatest entrances in wrestling history.. Whatever you think about The Game, the magnitude of his stage presence, and his grasp on how to create a larger-than-life character is nearly unparalleled.

The match itself was a very good opening contest, and a perfect example of good versus evil storytelling. Daniel Bryan played the upstart underdog to perfection, and he had the crowd firmly behind him. Triple H was brilliant here as the unrelenting bully, and he showed why he is one of the great heel workers in wrestling history. Stephanie McMahon put on a five-star performance at ringside, from her sexy attire to her sadistic facial expressions. It was a foregone conclusion who would win, but Bryan and The Game created a sense of drama that kept the crowd on high, and I believe the first hour of that show was the greatest opening hour in wrestling history.

STAR RATING ****

6. Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins – WrestleMania 31

This was one of the more fascinating matches in recent history. It was one of the more unpredictable finishes out of any Mania main event. Nearly nobody could say they were certain who was going to win, and that is what made the match interesting from start to finish. The actual work in the ring was about as good as you could possibly want. Lesnar was absolutely devastating giving a brutal beating to Reigns that reminded us of his Summerslam demolition of John Cena.

Reigns also played his part well as the resilient underdog struggling to win the fans’ respect and fight off a seemingly invincible force of nature. The match was laid out brilliantly, especially the bloody Lesnar cut that dazed him, and that was the impetus for Reigns’ comeback. The last few minutes, I had no idea who was going to win, and I certainly did not think Rollins would cash in his contract in the middle of the match. It was a unique finish that electrified the crowd and made sense in the narrative. It presented numerous exciting options going forward and it was a bona fide Wrestlemania moment.

STAR RATING ****

5. The Rock vs. John Cena – WrestleMania 28

This one had one full year of buildup, which should actually be called build-down, because the two tore into each other so much that each star ended up looking worse in the process. I hated the storytelling leading into this, and I feel that nearly any Torch reader could come up with better drama if they put in five minutes of thought; however, I was excited to finally be able to see The Rock get back into the ring, especially in front of a massive hometown audience

I thought that Rock looked tremendous for someone that has not been in a singles match in nearly a decade. He was athletic and agile, but most importantly, he still has that ring presence and knows how to build a match that captures the crowd based around his skill-set. Cena was good as well, and this match was probably on the higher end of expectations, which for me were pretty low. Again, it was not even close to the climactic epoch of the show, nor was it the biggest match of all time. This did not even come near matching the atmosphere and dramatics of Hogan versus Rock or the first Undertaker versus Michaels match. It was not even the biggest match on its own show, but WWE was smart enough to send the fans home happy, with Rock winning in front of his hometown fans. I liked the ending with the concept of Cena getting too cocky and losing as a result. This was as good as it could be and lived up to the hype.

STAR RATING ****

4. Brock Lesnar vs. Bill Goldberg – WrestleMania 33

Although it was a foregone conclusion that Lesnar would win the belt from Goldberg, most were curious about how the match would unfold. Could Goldberg perform a contest longer than one minute? Would Brock squash him? Could this go too long and become another embarrassment such as their Wrestlemania 20 debacle?

Goldberg and Lesnar defied expectations with easily the most exciting match of the night. This may have been the greatest five-minute match I have ever seen. Both combatants went all out with intense warfare that sent a bored audience into loud cheers. This was the one match on the entire show that appeared to have the crowd enthralled and it was deserving of the applause. The speed with which Goldberg hit his first spear out of nowhere was awe-inspiring as was the monster Brock leapfrogging to avoid a later spear. We all were curious whether Pat Patterson laid out the match because it was perfect for what it needed to be.

STAR RATING ****

3. Undertaker vs. C.M. Punk – WrestleMania 29

Opinions were mixed going into this contest whether it would live up to the Dead Man’s sensational series of WrestleMania classic over the past half-decade. The atrocious storyline with Paul Bearer’s ashes leading into this battle did not do it any favors, especially after the epic tales of the past few years. This far surpassed the hype, and was by far the most sensational part of WrestleMania 29.
Undertaker was able to pull out another great showing despite the fact that he did not have the same athleticism he did during the Shawn Michaels series. The real star of the show, and the night, was CM Punk, who delivered an absolutely inspired performance that elevated this match to the lofty standards that we had come to expect from the Streak. I thought this was his best singular performance in WWE. His tremendous athleticism and heel mannerisms finally woke the audience up after we were bored throughout most of the first half of the show.

Unfortunately, because of the goofiness of the buildup, there was no point where we believed that Punk could win and it lacked that added drama of the previous years that the Streak may be in jeopardy. Lousy creative plotting aside, this was easily the hottest the crowd was that entire night, and despite the fact we knew Taker would win, they took us on a tremendous ride.

STAR RATING ****1/2*

2. Undertaker vs. Triple H: WrestleMania 27

This is the match that Bruce Mitchell called the greatest match in Wrestlemania history, high praise from one of the most respected journalists in the sport. I did not have high expectations coming into this match, especially after the two landmark battles between the Dead Man and the Heartbreak Kid. Then after two spectacular entrances, these two icons started the match off with a bang and took me on an emotional journey. This was an epic masterpiece between two warriors struggling over the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. This was worth the price of Wrestlemania alone.

Undertaker was incredible as always, but I believe the MVP of the night was Triple H. I have said for years that a little vulnerability would significantly enhance his character and his performance in the final ten minutes in particular was nothing short of extraordinary. In my opinion, he put on one of the greatest performances in wrestling history and certainly the best of his career. His role as the remorseless Cerebral Assassin agonizingly realizing that he could not put down his victim was wrestling drama at its best. Matches like this are why we love wrestling.

STAR RATING *****

1. Undertaker vs. Triple H with Shawn Michaels as special referee: Hell in a Cell – WrestleMania 28

After a legendary match the year prior, Triple H and Undertaker topped themselves. With Michaels added to the mix, the story told leading into this timeless classic was the absolute template for how to captivate an audience in preparation for a big match.

The storytelling in the ring lived up to the anticipation and surpassed it. There were so many spectacular moments in this epic encounter that I will not even attempt to sum it up. It was the very epitome of what wrestling should be, and it rose to the level of Oscar winning theatrics and character arcs. This match actually was the final act in a play that started four years prior when Michaels retired the Nature Boy in an overwhelmingly emotional moment that should have been the perfect ending to Flair’s career. Nearly every piece of the plot since then was pitch perfect, and it is because the focus was not been on backstage politics or breaking he fourth wall. It was well-rounded characters with clear motivations in compelling drama paced perfectly leading into battles with real consequences based around the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

I loved how this match played off of Flair-Michaels, the Taker-HBK series and their previous contest. The ending was brilliant, where Triple H crawled up Undertaker’s body, defeated yet defiant, recalling memories of the Mania classics from the last few years. The subtle touch of Michaels turning around, unable to watch to not only watch his friend beaten, but also haunted by memories of himself facing the same fate two years prior, was wrestling drama at its finest. It was parallel structure storytelling and artistic achievement at its highest level and the reason we all love wrestling in the first place.

STAR RATING *****

WWE Supposedly has more great workers now than ever, but as you can see from this list, it is the great characters that truly make an epic match. You need larger than life personalities with gravitas to create that majestic feel to a contest. Shawn Michaels was able to convey that more than any wrestler in history. Although there have been some excellent Wrestlemania matches following his retirement, Mr. Wrestlemania’s presence has been sorely missed and will be again this year at The Showcase of the Immortals.

By the way, please be sure to watch this week’s episode of The Pro Wrestling Top, The Best Wrestlemania Performers of All Time. Where will Shawn Michaels rank? Please watch and subscribe.

Please follow me and send questions, comments and feedback on Twitter @shawnvalentino and subscribe to our show on https://www.youtube.com/TheProWrestlingTop5

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