WrestleMania 2015: Most Important Moments on Road to Massive PPV
Sunday night, the road to WrestleMania 31 will culminate in a four-hour pay-per-view extravaganza, headlined by Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
The two heavyweight competitors will wage war over the top prize in the industry, while matches such as Sting vs. Triple H, Bray Wyatt vs. The Undertaker, John Cena vs. Rusev and the ladder match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship provide undercard support.
World Wrestling Entertainment has spent months building to the most important show of the year, going as far back as August 2014's SummerSlam event to lay the groundwork for the rivalries and matches that will captivate fans from around the globe live on the WWE Network.
Just hours away from The Showcase of the Immortals and the potential coronation of a new face of WWE in the form of Reigns, it is important to look in the rearview mirror for a better understanding of how we got to this destination—of what milestone moments occurred to help make this weekend's event a reality.
As the Superstars and Divas prepare to chase immortality Sunday night, relive these 10 moments that were integral in shaping the card and planting the seeds for the biggest, and greatest, matches of the year, listed chronologically.
Brock Lesnar Destroys John Cena at SummerSlam 2014
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At this past August's SummerSlam pay-per-view, Brock Lesnar challenged John Cena for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Still relatively fresh off beating The Undertaker and ending his vaunted undefeated streak at WrestleMania, Lesnar was riding a wave of momentum into the titanic clash.
No fan could have expected what would occur when the bell rang.
Lesnar would deliver 16 German suplexes, leaving Cena in a heap of mangled flesh and bone. An F5 ultimately put the West Newbury, Massachusetts, native away, but the outcome was academic at that point.
After only getting in a minute or so of offense in the entire bout, Cena had been decimated and destroyed, left for dead by the conqueror of World Wrestling Entertainment.
The win would begin the run atop the sports entertainment mountain for Lesnar that will culminate with a championship defense Sunday night at WrestleMania.
For Cena, on the other hand, he was "suplexed right out of the WrestleMania main event," as Lesnar's advocate Paul Heyman likes to say.
Sting Debuts at Survivor Series 2014
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The Authority's tyrannical rule was threatened this past November at the Survivor Series when they assembled a team of Superstars to battle a team selected by John Cena. The pre-match stipulation stated that a loss by Triple H and Stephanie's competitors would result in their banishment from WWE.
Following a series of fast, furious and improbable eliminations, Dolph Ziggler remained the only Superstar left for Team Cena, battling Seth Rollins, the last remnant of Team Authority.
Late in the contest, a frustrated Triple H interfered in the match, wiping out the referee and attacking Ziggler.
Suddenly, the arena went dark, and the PA system emitted the sound of a squawking crow.
Then, for the first time in his legendary and iconic career, Sting stepped through the curtain and into a WWE ring. He delivered a Scorpion Death Drop to Triple H, laid a prone Ziggler on top of an unconscious Rollins and helped the heroes overcome the villains.
The seeds would be planted for a match between Sting and Triple H months later, but anyone thinking the Authority would remain out of mind and sight was fooling themselves.
They returned after a month away.
Roman Reigns Wins Royal Rumble 2015
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There was no doubt as to who was going to win the 2015 Royal Rumble match.
No matter how much fans wanted Daniel Bryan or Dolph Ziggler to pull of fairytale wins in the 30-man, over-the-top-rope match, the only Superstar groomed to win the match dating back to the previous summer was Roman Reigns. In front of a raucous Philadelphia crowd, that is exactly what he did, eliminating Big Show and Kane, then a sneaky Rusev, to cash his ticket to WrestleMania.
The fans greeted the outcome with a thunderous roar of jeers, not because they hated Reigns, but because they really loved Bryan and wanted to see the consummate underdog make that climb up the mountain once more.
Even a surprise appearance by The Rock, who celebrated with Reigns to close out the show, could not convince the people to lighten up their anger and furor.
While nowhere near what Reigns would have hoped for from his biggest moment to date, it was when he realized that his dream of holding the heavyweight title was on its way to becoming a reality.
Simply put, this is the moment that sparked the build to Sunday's main event.
Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar Face-to-Face
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On the heels of a Royal Rumble win that did not generate the reaction he and management would have hoped for, Roman Reigns was badly in need of a strong performance on Raw to turn the crowd in his favor.
Unfortunately, a snowstorm crippled the Northeast, causing WWE to cancel Raw for the first time in the show's two decades of existence.
The lack of a live crowd or arena did not keep the company from broadcasting the show on USA Network. Airing from WWE Headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut, the January 26 episode of Raw featured Reigns and WWE world heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar's first face-to-face confrontation.
It was intense, and as he had done earlier in the show, Lesnar reiterated his lack of respect for Reigns and any other Superstar on the roster.
Of all of the build that went into Sunday's main event at WrestleMania, it was the simplistic staredown from the unprecedented episode of Raw that most resonated with fans.
Had WWE been able to sustain the intensity that the initial face-to-face had featured, then the reaction to Reigns and Lesnar's marquee bout would have been much different than it is now, just hours from the biggest match of the year.
Bray Wyatt Challenges Undertaker at Fastlane
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For weeks, Bray Wyatt cut pre-taped promos, babbling on about the darkness and someone coming and finding him. At first, it sounded like the unhinged ramblings of a maniac, but at WWE's Fastlane pay-per-view in February, the picture became much clearer.
The familiar sound of a gong sounded, and druids walked a casket to ringside. Fans everywhere expected to see the return of The Undertaker, who had been missing since his loss to Brock Lesnar at the previous year's WrestleMania.
Instead, Wyatt sat up in the casket, microphone in hand.
He called out The Undertaker, issuing a challenge for a match at WrestleMania.
In the coming weeks, Wyatt would label himself the "New Face of Fear" and continue his attempts to goad The Deadman out of hiding.
Finally, The Undertaker made his presence felt, igniting Wyatt's trademark rocking chair in flames and accepting the challenge, all without actually appearing on Raw or SmackDown.
The build to the match has been one-sided, with Wyatt being asked to carry the hype. He has done a phenomenal job; his performance at Fastlane remains the brightest spot in the build to the biggest match of his career.
Sting's Challenge to Triple H at Fastlane
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Fed up with Sting sticking his nose in Authority business, Triple H challenged the Icon to meet him at Fastlane in what would become the first official face-to-face between the industry legends.
Sting accepted and showed up with baseball bat in hand, thwarting The Game's attempt to use his sledgehammer.
Backing the COO of WWE into a corner, he took his bat and pointed it at the WrestleMania sign, making it clear that he wanted a match with the King of Kings at the annual Showcase of the Immortals.
He didn't need a long-winded promo to get over the idea of the match. Instead, facial expressions and the simple pointing of a bat toward a sign elicited a huge ovation from the fans and resulted in the addition of the monumental clash to the WrestleMania card.
In the weeks that followed, Triple H would cut solid promos hyping the match, while Sting would appear sparingly, even engaging Stephanie McMahon in a verbal confrontation.
But none of the moments that followed it was nearly as effective as what fans witnessed in February at the Fastlane pay-per-view event.
Roman Reigns Defeats Daniel Bryan
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Roman Reigns' victory in the Royal Rumble came at the expense of Daniel Bryan, the closest thing to a people's champion in WWE. The crowd rained down on the new No. 1 contender with a chorus of boos every time he entered the arena, making it known that no push or positioning atop the card would make them cheer the second-generation star over the Aberdeen, Washington, native.
Desperate to get the fans to show some respect and support for Reigns, WWE booked him in the main event of Fastlane against Bryan to decide the No. 1 contender.
In a strong match, Reigns defeated Bryan and then proceeded to shake his hand in a great sign of sportsmanship.
The win did not completely turn the audience in Reigns' favor, but it did win over a portion of the crowd. In a high-profile match, Reigns proved he could not only go but could keep up with a Superstar whom many consider the standard bearer in terms of consistent in-ring performances.
Without the match against Bryan and even the sign of respect from the leader of the Yes Movement, chances are that the crowd's distaste for Reigns would have worsened in the weeks leading up to WrestleMania.
Instead, Reigns continued to garner more and more support, even if there were still large pockets of the audience refusing to accept him as their hero.
Cena Makes Rusev Pass out
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Following a controversial defeat at the hands of the current United States champion Rusev at Fastlane, John Cena found himself on the outside looking in as far as WrestleMania went.
Stephanie McMahon said he was not guaranteed a spot on the card, revealing that the only way he would make it onto the lineup was if Rusev granted him a rematch.
The Bulgarian Brute repeatedly refused, but ultimately it would come down to his Ravishing Russian giving the leader of the Cenation what he wanted.
With Rusev trapped in the clutches of Cena's STF, losing consciousness with every single passing second, Lana gave the 15-time heavyweight champion what he wanted, setting up another marquee match for the Granddaddy of Them All—this one involving the franchise player of today's World Wrestling Entertainment.
It was a strong plot development and one that created dissension between Rusev and his social ambassador, something that could come into play when the Bulgarian defends his title, and unbeaten streak, against Cena this Sunday night.
Daniel Bryan Enters the IC Title Picture
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The WWE Intercontinental Championship became the object of desire for many a Superstar in the weeks leading into WrestleMania, leading to numerous competitors stealing the title. Bad News Barrett watched as R-Truth, Dolph Ziggler, Luke Harper and Dean Ambrose stole his title from one another.
A ladder match for the IC title was eventually announced for WrestleMania. The Superstars involved in the story to that point would have been enough to guarantee a great match come March 29, but by the time Daniel Bryan found himself in the shuffle, the prospects for a show-stealer increased tenfold.
On an episode of SmackDown, Bryan officially announced his entry into the match, instantly bringing credibility and legitimacy to the proceedings.
As a former heavyweight champion perceived by fans and his peers to be a main event star, his involvement in the contest lent meaning to the IC title feud and, in the process, ignited hope among the WWE Universe that the championship may once again return to the heights it once enjoyed as a premier title in sports entertainment.
Thanks, in large part, to the mere presence of Bryan.
Brock Lesnar Announces New Deal with WWE
10 of 10On March 24, Brock Lesnar appeared on ESPN's SportsCenter, promising to make a major announcement about his future.
Some thought that, by appearing on the mainstream sports program, that he would be announcing his return to mixed martial arts and the UFC.
Instead, he promptly retired from the sport and revealed that, late Monday night, he and World Wrestling Entertainment agreed on a new contract that would see him remain inside the squared circle.
It was a key moment in the build to the main event, a revelation that suddenly created doubt in the minds of fans who were so convinced that Roman Reigns would be leaving Levi's Stadium with the WWE Championship.
With Lesnar sticking around, it created speculation that the Beast Incarnate may claim his latest victim at WrestleMania, conquering another Superstar and retaining his title.
It remains to be seen exactly what happens when the Superstars take to the squared circle for the WrestleMania main event.
With Lesnar in the fold, though, the WWE can at least rest comfortably, knowing that it has a major draw at its disposal.
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