The Rock is set to defend his WWE Championship against John Cena in the main event at WrestleMania XXIX, and that has left many fans sour. Based on the success of the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber, however, there is no doubt that the WWE made the right decision with regard to The Rock's title reign.

According to the WWE (h/t WrestlingNewsWorld.com), preliminary buyrates were released for both the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber pay-per-views, and the early returns are quite impressive. The Royal Rumble drew an astounding 498,000 buys, which was up from 443,000 last year. Also, Elimination Chamber pulled in a respectable 210,000 buys, which bested the 178,000 that Elimination Chamber 2012 generated.

The Rock and CM Punk headlined both of those shows. The Rock defeated Punk for the WWE Championship at the Rumble and then successfully retained the title against Punk at Elimination Chamber. It isn't surprising that many fans have tried to downplay the importance and overall quality of those matches, but the WWE is a business driven by financial gain.

That is exactly what Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber provided.

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The weeks leading up to WrestleMania are always extremely busy for the WWE, and the past week has been no different. Although the WrestleMania XXIX main event scene has been in place for quite some time, the undercard needed some work. Much of Raw was dedicated to shaping it, and it seems as though everything is now in order.

Although the creative team has admittedly slacked when it comes to the midcard, things have come together in recent days. In addition to the matches that have been announced, the WWE also revealed the WrestleMania XXIX musical performance. While many fans were probably hoping that the WWE would skip something like that, it should appeal to a wide audience.

Several 2013 WWE Hall of Famers revealed who would be inducting them the night before WrestleMania as well. In other news, a top, part-time star is being advertised for a SmackDown taping in London a couple weeks after WrestleMania, while a superstar who has been on the shelf for a significant amount of time made his in-ring return at NXT.

Keep reading for analysis on all the biggest news and rumors surrounding the WWE for the week beginning on March 24.

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With so many great matches over the course of the first 28 WrestleManias, it is nearly impossible to come to a consensus on which one was the best. Not every great 'Mania match was necessarily important in the grand scheme of professional wrestling, however.

Since WrestleMania is the mecca of the business, most of the biggest bouts in the history of the sport have taken place on the 'Mania stage. That isn't to say that huge matches haven't happened on other pay-per-views or in other promotions, but WrestleMania is the top of the mountain and has changed the very course of professional wrestling.

Not every match has the power to do that, but a small handful of Superstars have been able to transcend the sport over the years and take it to new heights. Whether they were title contests, dream clashes, retirement bouts, new match types or anything in between, all of the encounters on this list influenced the way people view wrestling in a positive manner.

Here are the 10 most important WrestleMania matches of all time. They certainly aren't the 10 best 'Mania matches from an in-ring perspective, but they all left an indelible mark on the business.

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While SmackDown is generally considered to be the WWE's "B" show, there is no question that this week's edition is a must-see event. It isn't often that The Rock appears on the blue brand, but the WWE Champion will do precisely that as he hypes his WrestleMania XXIX match against John Cena.

The Rock figures to draw plenty of fringe viewers who don't necessarily watch SmackDown regularly. But there should be plenty in place for the diehard fans as well. The biggest segment announced ahead of time is a weightlifting competition between Mark Henry and Ryback. Since Henry and Ryback are considered the two strongest men in the WWE, it should be an extremely interesting exhibition.

There are plenty of other feuds going on as well that are likely to heat up with WrestleMania drawing ever closer. Jack Swagger has made life miserable for Alberto Del Rio and Ricardo Rodriguez as of late, so Del Rio is probably in the mood for revenge.

Also, Chris Jericho and Fandango have been going at it for the past week and are now scheduled to face each other at WrestleMania, meaning their program will be advanced on SmackDown, too.

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Since the inaugural edition back in 1985, WrestleMania has been an absolute staple of the WWE and professional wrestling in general.

Nobody knew how big of a spectacle it would become, but with WrestleMania XXIX closing in fast, it is abundantly clear that 'Mania won't be slowing down any time soon.

Some WrestleManias have been incredible, some have been lackluster and others have simply been average, but the show's impact on the business is undeniable. When wrestling fans are asked to name their all-time favorite match, it's inevitable that most of them immediately point to a WrestleMania bout. When amazing matches happen at 'Mania they are almost always accentuated by the big stage.

It's a pretty common practice to rank the greatest WrestleMania matches of all time, but it all comes down to preference. With that in mind, I decided to put a different twist on things. There have been countless memorable matches from WrestleMania, and I have often wondered what the ultimate WrestleMania card would look like.

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There is no disputing the fact that WrestleMania has played host to many of the greatest matches in the history of the WWE and professional wrestling as a whole. Performing on the big stage makes it possible for great matches to become legendary, but it also allows poor matches to live on forever in the minds of wrestling fans.

While it isn't always the case, the main event is usually the most memorable match of the show. A top title tends to be on the line and the WWE likes to empty its tank in terms of star power. Even so, there have been plenty of main events over the course of WrestleMania's 29-year history that haven't lived up to the hype and aren't looked upon fondly today.

The main event is so important when it comes to the overall quality of WrestleMania that it is difficult for a 'Mania to be considered great if the show doesn't come to a satisfying end. While The Rock vs. John Cena may not have totally lived up to expectations last year, the atmosphere made for an electric encounter.

If things go the way people expect them to this year with Cena beating The Rock cleanly, then there will be more than a few fans calling it one of the worst main events in WrestleMania history.

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WrestleMania is the WWE's greatest showcase of talent, but it's a fact of life that not everyone has an equal opportunity to perform. Some Superstars will unfortunately be left off the card completely, while others may only have a few minutes to impress. A couple matches will inevitably fall into the latter group at WrestleMania XXIX.

After the most recent edition of Raw, there are now eight matches confirmed for WrestleMania's main card. There could still be a match or two added in the coming days, but the past two WrestleManias have had eight matches, so it's fairly safe to assume that this one will be no different. If that is the case, then there are a couple obvious bouts that could be cut short.

The first one that comes to mind is Chris Jericho vs. Fandango. The build toward that match didn't start until last week, and it wasn't made official until Raw. Things have certainly intensified between the two Superstars, but I can't imagine that they'll be given more than eight to 10 minutes. Jericho is still among the best in-workers in professional wrestling; however, this match is clearly undercard filler.

Team Hell No vs. Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston for the Tag Team Championships could easily get the same treatment. Kane, Daniel Bryan and Ziggler are all legitimate stars, and Langston is a promising prospect, but there hasn't been much attention paid to the tag straps recently. The WWE has a number of tag teams, yet it decided to put Ziggler and Langston in the title match despite the fact that they have never teamed together.

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It seems like Fandango has been part of the WWE roster for months due to the many vignettes hyping his debut, but he still hasn't wrestled a televised match. That will change when he faces Chris Jericho at WrestleMania XXIX, though, and it could very easily put Fandango on the fast track to stardom.

While Fandango has technically wrestled matches as Johnny Curtis, the Fandango gimmick is totally independent from anything he has done in the past. Because of that, we have to view Fandango as a new character who has yet to compete in his debut match. It is incredibly rare for a superstar to debut at WrestleMania, so Fandango has a golden opportunity to make a great first impression in front of a massive audience.

Fandango has teased wrestling in matches for the past several weeks, but has ultimately declined since nobody has been able to say his name correctly. That is how his feud with Jericho began as well. Fandango interrupted Jericho's promo on Raw, and Y2J proceeded to mock Fandango's name. Fandango then got retribution by attacking Jericho during his match against Jack Swagger on SmackDown.

Their rivalry carried over to the most recent edition of Raw as Jericho attacked Fandango prior to his scheduled match. Y2J then defeated Dolph Ziggler, which led to Fandango returning to the ring to get retribution. Later in the night, Jericho announced that he had spoken with Vickie Guerrero and set up a match against Fandango for WrestleMania XXIX, so it has finally become official after much speculation.

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