Mt. Rushmore of WrestleMania: Which 4 WWE Legends Deserve the Honor?
Over its more than three decades of existence, WrestleMania has been shaped by the hundreds of Superstars who have taken part in it.
Only a select few of those Superstars have managed to transcend the biggest event in sports entertainment to become synonymous with it, however.
When asked to name the best of the best in certain categories, analysts often provide their Mount Rushmore in reference to the monument in South Dakota that features the faces of former presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.
If WWE were to erect its own Mount Rushmore based solely on the impact Superstars have had on WrestleMania, here is a rundown of how it should look.
Shawn Michaels
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What would the Mount Rushmore of WrestleMania be without Mr. WrestleMania himself?
Shawn Michaels earned that moniker many years ago based on the sheer number of memorable matches he competed in on The Grandest Stage of The All.
Wins and losses have nothing to do with Michaels' place on the WrestleMania Mount Rushmore, as The Heartbreak Kid went just 6-11 at the Showcase of the Immortals.
From WrestleMania X on, however, it is impossible to find a bad match wherein Michaels took part at WWE's biggest show of the year.
Michaels' first few WrestleMania matches were as part of The Rockers before he moved on to a singles career and had solid tilts with Tito Santana and Tatanka.
His journey toward becoming Mr. WrestleMania began at the show's 10th edition, when he and Razor Ramon clashed in a ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship. It was the first ladder match to be seen on a large scale, and it stands the test of time as one of the greatest of its kind—as well as one of WrestleMania's finest matches.
From that point forward, HBK could always be counted upon to come through in the clutch, as his WrestleMania matches against Diesel, Bret Hart, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Chris Jericho, Triple H and Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle, Vince McMahon, John Cena, Ric Flair and The Undertaker all delivered.
Michaels achieved his boyhood dream by becoming WWF champion at WrestleMania XII by virtue of his Iron Man match win over Hart, and after dropping the title to Austin two years later, he took an injury-enforced five-year hiatus from in-ring activity.
It's incredible to think how much more Michaels could have cemented himself as a WrestleMania legend had he been in the fold during that span.
Even with that break figured in, Michaels is undoubtedly among WrestleMania's pillars.
While some Superstars ride off into the sunset a shell of their former selves, Michaels went out on top of his game with a pair of legendary matches against The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXV and WrestleMania XXVI.
Those two matches are widely considered among the best in wrestling history, and the fact Michaels was able to perform at such a high level from start to finish during his WWE career is a big reason why he is forever linked to WrestleMania.
The Undertaker
2 of 4
When it comes to dominance in terms of wins and losses at WrestleMania, nobody comes close to matching what The Undertaker has accomplished over the course of his illustrious career.
Prior to his shocking defeat at the hands of Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania XXX, The Phenom had a 21-0 record at WrestleMania.
Following that loss, The Deadman picked up wins over Bray Wyatt and Shane McMahon to improve to 23-1 before losing to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33 last year dropped him to 23-2.
The Undertaker's first WrestleMania match was a win over Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka at WrestleMania VII in 1991, and he went one to compete in every WrestleMania from then through last year with the exception of WrestleMania X and WrestleMania 2000 (16).
Perhaps the most impressive thing about The Undertaker's WrestleMania career is his matches got progressively better as he got older.
Among his first WrestleMania bouts, the only one that could be considered as being of a high quality was his surprisingly strong tilt with Diesel at WrestleMania XII.
From that point forward, there were few disappointing outings.
His best stretch undoubtedly went from WrestleMania 23 in 2007 to WrestleMania 29 in 2013. In succession, Taker faced Batista, Edge, Shawn Michaels (twice), Triple H (twice) and CM Punk.
All of those matches delivered at or above the lofty expectations placed upon them, and his matches against Michaels will always be remembered as two of the greatest bouts to take place on The Grandest Stage of Them All.
The Undertaker persevered through facing some less-than-ideal opponents early in his career, but as his star continued to rise and his legendary status at WrestleMania continued to grow, he was given better dancing partners to work with, and he made the most of those opportunities.
Hulk Hogan
3 of 4
Controversy aside, it is fair to say WrestleMania may never have become the phenomenon it is today if it were not for Hulk Hogan.
The Immortal One main-evented each of the first three and eight of the first nine WrestleManias, which is an unparalleled accomplishment that nobody has come close to matching.
Mr. T's involvement played a significant role in the success of the original WrestleMania in 1985, but Hogan's crossover star power is what sparked the Rock 'n' Wrestling Connection and helped professional wrestling go mainstream.
Hogan's spot on the Mount Rushmore of WrestleMania is far less about the match quality Shawn Michaels brought to the table on The Grandest Stage of Them All and more about his drawing power and ability to make the masses flock to WrestleMania.
His most iconic match at the Showcase of the Immortals was his WrestleMania III clash with Andre the Giant.
The bout occurred in front of a then-record crowd of 93,173 people at the Pontiac Silverdome in Michigan.
Hogan famously bodyslammed Andre in that match and went on to beat him and retain the WWE Championship.
More huge matches followed for Hogan, as he faced "Macho Man" Randy Savage at WrestleMania V, when The Mega Powers exploded, and The Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VI in what was dubbed the Ultimate Challenge.
The match with Savage was quite possibly the best of Hogan's WrestleMania career, and the WrestleMania VI match may have been the best of Ultimate Warrior's pro wrestling career.
Hogan was such a huge draw that chairman Vince McMahon went back on his decision to have Hogan pass the torch to Warrior at WrestleMania VI by booking Hogan to beat Iraqi sympathizer Sgt. Slaughter for the WWE Championship in the main event of WrestleMania VII.
While Hogan left WWF after WrestleMania IX, he returned almost 10 years later and added a few more WrestleMania memories to his legacy.
Chief among them was his WrestleMania X8 match against The Rock. Although Hogan started that bout as a heel, the crowd got behind him and turned him face, thus confirming the power of Hulkamania.
Along with McMahon, Hogan essentially made WrestleMania, and there is no way he could be left off a monument dedicated to it.
'Stone Cold' Steve Austin
4 of 4
His seven matches at The Showcase of the Immortals are by far the fewest of anyone on this list, but "Stone Cold" Steve Austin simply can't be left off the Mount Rushmore of WrestleMania.
After a fairly nondescript WrestleMania debut against Savio Vega at WrestleMania XII, Austin went on one of the most remarkable runs in wrestling history.
The Texas Rattlesnake was chiefly responsible for ushering in the Attitude Era and helping WWE prevail over WCW in the Monday Night War.
His performances in major WrestleMania matches played a big role in that, beginning with WrestleMania 13 in 1997.
Austin's transformation from a hated heel to a beloved antihero began at that pay-per-view, at which he lost a classic submission match to Bret Hart by passing out while bleeding profusely as he was locked in the Sharpshooter.
The Austin 3:16 era was off to the races at that point, and Stone Cold went on to headline three of the next four WrestleManias.
At WrestleMania XIV, Austin beat Shawn Michaels to win the WWE Championship for the first time, and he was aided by Mike Tyson's betrayal of D-Generation X in one of the most memorable WrestleMania moments of all time.
WrestleMania XV marked the start of the greatest trilogy in WrestleMania history, as Austin defeated The Rock in the main event.
Stone Cold defeated The Rock once again at WrestleMania X-Seven, shockingly turning heel by aligning himself with Mr. McMahon.
At WrestleMania XIX, Austin and The Rock did battle one last time, with the Great One coming out on top in what turned out to be the final match of Austin's career.
The Rock could have edged out Austin for the final spot on the WrestleMania Mount Rushmore, but since Stone Cold was slightly more vital to the WWF's meteoric rise in the late 1990s, he got the nod alongside Michaels, The Undertaker and Hogan.
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