WrestleMania 30: Power Ranking Every Card in Event's History After Massive PPV
WrestleMania XXX is in the books, and fans are still buzzing about the monumental events that took place during Sunday's broadcast.
The Undertaker's legendary streak is over! Daniel Bryan is the new WWE World Heavyweight champion! John Cena defeated Bray Wyatt, and The Authority was toppled!
The sheer number of unforgettable matches and moments from the show is sure to rank it highly among WrestleManias gone by.
With the sights and sounds of the show still indelibly etched in the minds of fans who witnessed the show live, many wonder where it belongs in the discussion of greatest WrestleMania events ever. What effect does the shocking loss by Undertaker and Bryan's rise to the top of WWE have on its legacy?
Find out now.
The Worst
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30. WrestleMania 2
The first, and only, WrestleMania to be broadcast from three different locations, WrestleMania 2 featured an underwhelming Hulk Hogan vs. King Kong Bundy steel cage match for the WWE Championship, a truly awful Adrian Adonis vs. Uncle Elmer bout and an overabundance of D-list celebrities.
The British Bulldogs' victory over Brutus Beefcake and Greg Valentine was the match of the night and saved it from being in contention for worst pay-per-view in WWE history.
29. WrestleMania XI
Lacking the special feel of the event, WrestleMania XI felt more like an In Your House broadcast with a few celebrities added in for good measure.
Lawrence Taylor's win over Bam Bam Bigelow came in one of the best celebrity wrestling matches ever, and Diesel's victory over Shawn Michaels was named Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Match of the Year. Poor use of stars like Bret Hart, Undertaker and Razor Ramon and a lack of any excitement surrounding the matches made for an uninspired production.
28. WrestleMania IX
WWE created a Roman Coliseum for the ninth annual WrestleMania, which emanated from Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, but a tremendous setting and a neat theme could not make up for a poor card and even worse booking decisions.
Tatanka and Shawn Michaels stole the show in the opening bout, but by night's end, no one would remember because an over-the-hill Hulk Hogan had his ego stroked with a fifth WWE Championship win in an impromptu match against Yokozuna.
27. WrestleMania IV
The concept of a grand tournament to crown a new WWE champion was an great one, but the execution of said concept left a lot to be desired.
Superstars with little fan following, such as One Man Gang, Don Muraco and Greg Valentine advanced while talented individuals such as Rick Rude, Jake Roberts and Ricky Steamboat failed to pick up a single victory.
Randy Savage's triumphant victory in the final-round match was overshadowed by the presence of Hulk Hogan, something that would fuel the following year's main event.
26. WrestleMania XV
At the height of the Attitude Era, WWE produced an event that featured bad matches throughout and questionable booking decisions that began to highlight the negatives of Vince Russo's storytelling.
A phenomenal main event between The Rock and Stone Cold, the first in their epic trilogy, and an entertaining bout between Shane McMahon and X-Pac for McMahon's European Championship were not enough to make up for an awful Sable vs. Tori Women's title match or Butterbean destroying Bart Gunn's career in a Brawl for All fight.
25. WrestleMania
The first WrestleMania was a revolutionary concept, and its success is the reason why WWE was able to celebrate the show's 30th birthday Sunday night.
The historic nature of the show, however, cannot mask the fact that the card for the first event was truly terrible. Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda's Tag title loss to Nikolai Volkoff and Iron Sheik may have been the best match on the show, but when the rest of the card features the likes of David Sammartino vs. Brutus Beefcake and SD Jones vs. King Kong Bundy, that is not necessarily a glowing endorsement.
The star-studded main event that saw Hulk Hogan and Mr. T defeat Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff perfectly blended spectacle and action, however.
24. WrestleMania 2000
A rare letdown during the greatest year WWE has ever had creatively occurred when the company presented WrestleMania 2000 from the Anaheim Pond.
The night was a perfect example of what can go wrong when too much is stuffed onto a card with the sole intent being to get everyone a payday. With only one singles bout, a catfight between Terri and The Kat, and a single classic bout in the Triangle Ladder match between the Hardy Boyz, Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian, the card was simply overwhelming.
The show that followed, Backlash in April, was a much better event and featured The Rock winning the WWE Championship that he should have won to close out WrestleMania. Instead, Triple H became the first heel in history to win the WrestleMania main event.
The Mediocre
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23. WrestleMania 13
In hindsight, WrestleMania 13 is one of the most important shows in WWE history, thanks to the star-making performance from Steve Austin that catapulted him to the top of the industry. The image of him fighting through extreme blood loss and tremendous pain associated with Bret Hart's Sharpshooter during a Submission match and never giving up is one of the most enduring moments in the annals of WWE.
The rest of the card, however, never quite lived up to the potential it had, at least on paper. The Undertaker's WWE title win capped off a six-year championship drought but came in an awful match against Sycho Sid.
22. WrestleMania XXV
The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels stole the show with their WrestleMania XXV match, which was instantly recognized as one of the best matches in wrestling history.
Outside of that legendary bout, however, the remainder of the event was shrouded in mediocrity. There was a tremendous amount of "good" and "very good," but it lacked that one match that could really join Undertaker vs. Michaels in elevating WrestleMania XXV to undeniable greatness.
Both the World Heavyweight Championship match between Edge, John Cena and Big Show and the WWE title bout between Triple H and Randy Orton suffered from an emotionally drained audience following the aforementioned Undertaker-HBK classic, leading many to wonder why that match did not close the show.
21. WrestleMania VI
WrestleMania VI may have been a one-match show, but that one match was the epic encounter between Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior, the first time two babyfaces headlined the sport's biggest show against one another. It was also the first time the Intercontinental champion and WWE champion clashed on the grand stage.
Warrior defeated Hogan in what equated to a passing-of-the-torch moment. History would tell us that Warrior's title reign was nowhere near as successful as his opponent's, but on that one night, Hogan surrendered the spotlight to one of his peers and immortalized himself in the process.
20. WrestleMania V
The culmination of a year-long story came in 1989, as Hulk Hogan challenged Randy Savage for the heavyweight title in the main event of WrestleMania V.
WWE invaded Trump Plaza in Atlantic City for the second consecutive year, and many of the same fans who had witnessed the rise of the Mega Powers the year before watched as they exploded in one of the most anticipated main events in the early history of WrestleMania. Hogan defeated Savage, whose jealousy had led to the end of their team, and captured his second WWE title.
A successful title defense by Tag champions Demolition and Jake Roberts' battle with Andre the Giant were other highlights on a largely so-so card.
19. WrestleMania XXVII
The Rock returned to WWE for the first time in seven years, serving as the guest host of WrestleMania XXVII and directly involving himself in the WWE Championship bout between The Miz and John Cena. His interference in that bout was the most noteworthy moment of an otherwise uneventful main event.
Triple H and Undertaker stole the show, while Randy Orton and CM Punk wrestled a tremendous match further down the card. The lackluster title bouts and questionable use of time overshadowed a fairly solid card, however, leading to a show that never truly capitalized on its potential.
The Good
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18. WrestleMania XII
The biggest selling point of WrestleMania XII was the much-hyped, much-anticipated Iron Man match for the WWE Championship between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels. The gifted athletes captivated the audience and carried the banner for the so-called New Generation of WWE with a classic wrestling match that went the full one-hour time limit, then spilled over into a sudden-death overtime period before Michaels captured his first WWE title following Sweet Chin Music.
Undertaker and Diesel shocked "smart" fans with a very good battle between the big men, and Ultimate Warrior made his triumphant return to WWE, defeating a young Hunter Hearst Helmsley.
17. WrestleMania XXIX
Despite their encounter at the previous year's event being dubbed "Once in a Lifetime," The Rock and John Cena once again headlined the Showcase of the Immortals, this time delivering a disjointed and clumsy match that saw Cena finally defeat the Great One and capture the WWE title in the process.
Chris Jericho guided Fandango to a very solid match, while CM Punk and Undertaker delivered a Match of the Year candidate. A disappointing Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar match and a fairly average WrestleMania debut for The Shield leads to the 29th annual event landing near the middle of the pack.
16. WrestleMania X-8
The epic showdown between The Rock and Hulk Hogan headlined WrestleMania X-8 and proved to a brand new generation of fans that the Hulkster could still go when the lights were at their brightest and the stage was at its grandest. Rock defeated Hogan, but as the fans in Toronto proved, Hulkamania would live forever.
Triple H's long road to recovery from a torn quadriceps muscle suffered in May of 2001 culminated with an Undisputed Championship victory over Chris Jericho in an underrated wrestling match, while Undertaker and Ric Flair had a very memorable, very bloody brawl midway through the card.
15. WrestleMania XXVI
For the second consecutive year, the most anticipated match on the WrestleMania card was the showdown between Undertaker and Shawn Michaels. Desperate to get the Deadman back in the ring for one more shot at glory, the Heartbreak Kid put his career on the line against Undertaker's undefeated streak. His loss to the Phenom in the main event of the evening spelled the end of the line for WrestleMania's greatest performer.
John Cena and Batista clashed in a heavy-hitting WWE Championship bout, Edge and Chris Jericho wrestled a very fine World Heavyweight Championship match and Bret Hart finally got revenge on Mr. McMahon in a very slow yet very fitting match to close out their 13-year rivalry.
The Great
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14. WrestleMania VIII
The eighth installment of the Showcase of the Immortals took place inside the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis and featured a double main event.
In the night's first headliner, Randy Savage gained a measure of revenge on WWE champion Ric Flair, who had spent weeks claiming to have had an affair with Miss Elizabeth, by taking the heavyweight title from him and bloodying him in the process.
Later, in what was billed as his retirement match, Hulk Hogan defeated Sid Justice in a poor show-closer.
The real stars of the show were Bret Hart and The Undertaker, who established themselves as the future of the company with wins over Roddy Piper and Jake Roberts, respectively.
13. WrestleMania 21
WrestleMania went Hollywood as WWE presented the 21st event from the Staples Center in Los Angeles and changed modern-day wrestling history forever.
John Cena captured the first of many WWE Championships when he ended the eight-month reign of John Bradshaw Layfield and started his journey to the top of professional wrestling. Joining him in acquiring championship gold was Batista, who knocked off mentor and former Evolution teammate Triple H to win the World Heavyweight title.
A five-star classic between Shawn Michaels and the debut of the popular Money in the Bank match, won by Edge, solidified the event as a turning point for World Wrestling Entertainment.
12. WrestleMania VII
Perhaps the most underappreciated event in WWE history, 1991's WrestleMania VII overflowed with excellent matches and one of the greatest post-match angles of all time.
Hulk Hogan represented America as he defeated Iraqi sympathizer Sgt. Slaughter to win his third WWE Championship in a criminally underrated match that saw Hogan fight through the proverbial crimson mask to emerge victorious.
Ultimate Warrior wrestled the greatest match of his career, defeating Randy Savage in a Retirement match that told a tremendous story. After the match, Sensational Sherri turned on Savage, leading to Miss Elizabeth coming to the aid of her former charge. Elizabeth and Savage reunited in a truly touching moment that left many in the audience with tears in their eyes.
Great matches, including the Rockers vs. Barbarian and Haku and Big Boss Man vs. Mr. Perfect, as well as memorable moments, such as Undertaker's first WrestleMania victory, make the show one of the more undervalued productions in company history.
11. WrestleMania 22
The vocal Chicago crowd made for a very heated, memorable WrestleMania 22 in 2006.
WWE champion John Cena, despite being positioned as the top babyface in the company, was booed heavily as he took to the ring for his title defense against Triple H. The Game had spent weeks telling anyone who would listen that Cena simply was not good enough to beat him. He was proven wrong when the champion locked him in the STF and forced a tapout from the Cerebral Assassin.
Rey Mysterio rode a wave of emotion into the event and dedicated his World Heavyweight Championship match against Kurt Angle and Randy Orton to the recently deceased Eddie Guerrero. Mysterio would score the biggest win of his career, capturing the title after pinning Orton.
Edge solidified his status as a main event star by defeating Mick Foley in a brutal hardcore match that saw them utilize chairs, barbed wire, thumbtacks and a flaming table. The spear from Edge to Foley, off the ring apron and through the table, made for a legitimate WrestleMania moment.
10. WrestleMania XX
Two of the finest wrestlers to ever lace up a pair of boots took center stage at WrestleMania XX when Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero were celebrated before a very passionate crowd in New York's historic Madison Square Garden.
Guerrero successfully retained the WWE title earlier in the evening with a win over Kurt Angle, while Benoit outlasted Shawn Michaels and Triple H in a five-star classic to capture the World Heavyweight title. With confetti falling from the ceiling, Benoit and Guerrero embraced to close out the show, a moment that has since been erased from WWE history, for obvious reasons.
A great match between the Rock 'N' Sock Connection and Evolution, not to mention an underrated bout featuring Chris Jericho taking on Christian, rounded out a card that would have made it further up this list had it been shorter and featured less filler.
9. WrestleMania XIV
Arguably the most important event in WWE history, WrestleMania XIV featured the crowning of Steve Austin as the top star in the industry following his WWE Championship victory over Shawn Michaels. With Mike Tyson serving as the guest enforcer, media from all over the world descended upon Boston for the night's event. As a result, writers and journalists had a front-row seat for the coronation of the industry's next major star.
Elsewhere on the card, Undertaker and Kane paid off a year's worth of build with a monumental clash that saw Undertaker deliver three Tombstone piledrivers to finally keep his brother down for the count.
Triple H, The Rock and Sable were all heavily spotlighted as it became clear that they would become the focal point of the company as it headed into the Attitude Era.
WrestleMania XXX
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8. WrestleMania XXX
Sunday night's WrestleMania XXX felt very much like the end of one legendary career and the genesis of another.
In one of the most shocking moments in both WWE and WrestleMania history, The Undertaker's storied undefeated streak came to an end when he was cleanly pinned by Brock Lesnar following three F5s. The crowd inside New Orleans' Mercedes-Benz Superdome was visually and audibly stunned, unable to process what it had just witnessed.
As Undertaker recovered and made his way to the locker room, it most certainly appeared as though the Phenom had wrestled his last match on the Grandest Stage of Them All.
For Daniel Bryan, WrestleMania XXX will forever be remembered as the night he broke through the glass ceiling and took his place atop the mountain in WWE.
After eight months of being repeatedly screwed over by The Authority, he got the ultimate measure of revenge by defeating Triple H in the night's opening bout. Bryan then overcame injury and interference from Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, not to mention a crooked referee, to capture the WWE World Heavyweight Championship from Randy Orton in the main event.
Bryan's celebration as confetti fell from the ceiling and pyro exploded at the top of the ramp made for a legitimate feel-good moment for one of today's most beloved stars.
The Best
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7. WrestleMania XXIV
The focus of the marketing materials may have been on the Big Show vs. Floyd Mayweather, Jr. match at WrestleMania XXIV, but it was the final match in the legendary career of Ric Flair and the World Heavyweight Championship bout that make the show one of the 10 best in event history.
There are few matches more emotional than Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair. Michaels was faced with the task of retiring his friend and mentor, and that is exactly what he did. After a grueling bout that saw Flair reach deep down inside himself one last time to pull out a truly memorable performance, Michaels looked the Nature Boy in the eye, told him he loved him and blasted him with Sweet Chin Music.
The long walk to the locker room remains a tear-enducing moment.
The show was headlined by a phenomenal match that saw Edge finally achieve his dream of competing in the main event of WrestleMania. His opponent? The Undertaker.
The Deadman ended the Rated R Superstar's World Heavyweight Championship reign and added him to the long list of Superstars who had previously fallen in defeat to the Undertaker at WrestleMania.
6. WrestleMania X
Few WrestleManias can claim to be a complete story, but WrestleMania X is one of them.
Bret Hart started the evening by competing against his brother Owen and losing. On top of that, he suffered a knee injury that could have very well affected his chances of winning the WWE title later in the evening's main event.
The knee clearly bothered him throughout the title bout against Yokozuna, but he showed great perseverance and ended up defeating the gargantuan for the gold. The babyfaces cleared out of the locker room to celebrate with Bret, who was hoisted up on their shoulders. Meanwhile, at ringside, a disgusted Owen watched, laying the groundwork for a feud that would dominate the remainder of the year.
The legendary Ladder match between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels provided the evening with its second five-star classic, the other being the aforementioned Hart brothers showdown.
5. WrestleMania 23
In many ways, WrestleMania 23 was Batista's coming-out party.
Despite winning his first World Heavyweight Championship two years earlier and catapulting to stardom, it was his match with Undertaker in 2007 that cemented his legacy as one of the best big men in WWE history. He and the Phenom tore the house down in Detroit, delivering a hard-hitting battle of two heavyweights with one of the most prestigious prizes in the industry at stake.
Not to be outdone, John Cena and Shawn Michaels delivered one of the finest wrestling matches of the year. Cena scored a submission win over HBK and retained his WWE title.
The Battle of the Billionaires was a massive mainstream media hit, but the match between Umaga and Bobby Lashley paled in comparison to the above-mentioned bouts.
4. WrestleMania XXVIII
Billed as a "Once in a Lifetime" match, the John Cena vs. Rock match at WrestleMania XXVIII was a match that featured two top stars from two different generations squaring off for no reason other than to prove that they were the best.
Cena and Rock captivated the Miami audience with a drama-filled match that ended when Cena got a bit too cocky, mocked Rock's People's Elbow finisher and fell victim to the Rock Bottom, which won the match for the Great One.
The best match of the night saw Undertaker once again successfully defend his streak with a win over Triple H inside Hell in a Cell.
3. WrestleMania III
With the biggest main event in professional wrestling history and one of the greatest matches the sport has ever seen on the same card, WrestleMania III has earned its reputation as one of WWE's greatest pay-per-view productions ever.
The WWE title match between Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant was three years in the making. Andre's heel turn and challenge to Hogan for a WWE title match captured the attention of fans everywhere, making their match a must-see event.
Hogan won the match and forever immortalized himself as one of the greatest stars to ever set foot in a WWE ring.
The Intercontinental title match between Ricky Steamboat and Randy Savage was a tremendous athletic display with near-falls aplenty and a hot crowd that hung on every move. Steamboat's win paid off a strong program heading into the event, and Savage's performance proved to management that he was ready to take the next step up the card.
2. WrestleMania XIX
Easily the most star-studded card in WrestleMania history, the 19th annual event featured three of the biggest names the industry had ever seen (Rock, Austin, Hogan), the greatest promoter of all time (Mr. McMahon), the biggest stars of the era (Triple H, Kurt Angle, Shawn Michaels and Chris Jericho) and one of the brightest young stars the business had produced in years (Brock Lesnar).
With great matches from start to finish, and with no less than five Hall of Fame talents performing on the card, the event is among the most memorable shows that McMahon's company has presented its fans with.
From Rey Mysterio taking to the WrestleMania stage for the very first time to Brock Lesnar missing a Shooting Star Press, the event was chock full of memorable matches and moments.
1. WrestleMania X-Seven
Just days after putting WCW out of business, WWE presented its most prestigious event from the Astrodome in Houston.
With a card touting matches such as Steve Austin vs. The Rock for the WWE title, Undertaker vs. Triple H, TLC II for the Tag titles, Shane McMahon vs. Vince McMahon in a street fight and Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle, there was absolutely something for everyone to sink their teeth into.
In many ways, the event signaled the end of an era. The wrestling business as fans had come to know and love would never be the same again.
The image of Steve Austin and Vince McMahon shaking hands to end the broadcast brought a conclusion to the wildly successful and influential Attitude Era and capped off the greatest feud in WWE history, bar none.
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