Ranking the 5 Best and Worst WWE WrestleMania Main Events of Last 20 Years

The main event of WrestleMania is the most important match on the card. It sells the show and represents a level of trust in the Superstars involved that solidifies their status at the top of the industry.

It is also the exclamation point on the statement that is The Showcase of the Immortals.

A great one puts a bow on the show as a whole, while a bad one leaves just enough of a sour taste that it could ruin what was an otherwise strong event.

Over the last two decades, fans have been exposed to both.

In preparation for WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas on April 19-20, let's relive the five best and worst main events The Show of Shows has produced over the last 20 years.

Honorable Mentions

There is no need to relive the bad and ugly dishonorable mentions that did not make the worst five in our countdown, but there are a few truly great matchups that narrowly missed our list and deserve recognition.

World Heavyweight Championship: The Undertaker vs. Edge (WrestleMania 24)

In his first WrestleMania main event since 1997, The Undertaker paid off a months-long rivalry with Edge by fending off interference from Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins, and the damnedest referee sprint of all time by Charles Robinson, to tap out The Rated-R Superstar with Hell's Gate and regain the World Heavyweight Championship in a drama-filled main event.

WWE Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins (WrestleMania 31)

Speaking of drama, fans watched Brock Lesnar obliterate Roman Reigns for three-quarters of the WrestleMania 31 main event, tossing him around the squared circle with reckless abandon and facing mounting frustration as The Big Dog absorbed it and advanced, like any great, resilient babyface does.

The late-match hijinx of Seth Rollins, who cashed in Money in the Bank and ultimately won the WWE Championship to close out the show, remains one of the greatest and most unexpected moments in WrestleMania history.

SmackDown Women's Championship: Bianca Belair vs. Sasha Banks (WrestleMania 37)

For the first time in WrestleMania history, two Black wrestlers competed in the main event of WrestleMania in 2021, with the SmackDown women's title on the line.

Tears were shed as they stood across the ring from each other and realized the enormity of the moment, but the significance of what Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks accomplished in the marquee match of WrestleMania 37 Night 1 never negatively impacted the main event.

The EST of WWE and The Legit Boss captivated fans, taking them on a roller-coaster ride that culminated with a vicious whip of a braid and a K.O.D. that crowned Belair as the face of the future in women's wrestling.

5. Worst, John Cena vs. The Miz (WrestleMania 27)

Worse than a bad match is one fans do not care about and such was the case in 2011 when The Miz defended the WWE Championship against John Cena.

The return of The Rock in January and the subsequent war of words with Cena ignited a rivalry that was infinitely more interesting than anything The A-Lister had done as champion, through little fault of his own.

The result was a contest that existed solely for The Rock to interrupt, lay out Cena and set up their much more anticipated showdown.

That is exactly how things played out in Atlanta as fans weren't interested in anything Cena and Miz did. To be fair, nothing they did was particularly interesting. The Rock inevitably interfered, cost Cena the contest and WWE had one of the biggest matches in WrestleMania history set in stone for 2012.

All at the expense of the 2011 main event.

5. Best, Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker (WrestleMania 26)

One year after, arguably, the greatest match of all time, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels ran it back in a contest where The Deadman's unbeaten streak on the grand stage was on the line against The Heartbreak Kid's career.

With the stakes higher than they were 12 months earlier, the two greats waged war, with every move, strike, connection and miss that much more important.

Ultimately, an exhausted yet defiant Michaels mocked Undertaker with his throat-slash gesture and a slap in the face, daring The Deadman to do what was necessary and put him away.

He did, ending Michaels' career and one of the great rivalries in WWE history in a match that may not have quite lived up to it predecessor but was still an epic encounter that built on previous spots and ended in the story-heavy, dramatic fashion fans have come to love from the most unforgettable WrestleMania main events.

4. Worst, John Cena vs. The Rock (WrestleMania 29)

In 2012, WWE promoted a "Once in a Lifetime" showdown between John Cena and The Rock at WrestleMania 28.

The Great One bested The Cenation Leader in his hometown of Miami and all was right with the world. Except, ticket sales, pay-per-view buys and the Cena redemption story demanded a rematch.

A rematch that no one asked for or wanted.

Rock and Cena took to the grand stage at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey and proceeded to deliver a paint-by-numbers version of their epic encounters from the previous year; a showdown that was little more than a money grab and an excuse for Cena to get his win back.

The fans saw through it, too, and they could not find the excitement or investment that they approached the original with.

While not particularly bad, the match was wholly unnecessary, with an audience that would have much rather seen Undertaker vs. CM Punk in that spot instead.

4. Best, Daniel Bryan vs. Edge vs. Roman Reigns (WrestleMania 37)

Assisted by Jey Uso, Roman Reigns successfully retained the Universal Championship in an action-packed main event that saw The Tribal Chief defend against Edge and Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 37 in 2021.

An action-packed bout that saw all three competitors shine and the crowd in Tampa Bay rain down chants of "this is awesome," it was a worthy main event for WWE's return to live audiences following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Perhaps most importantly, it was the first great Reigns WrestleMania main event in six years, reversing a trend that had become somewhat problematic for his legacy as the guy in WWE.

3. Worst, Roman Reigns vs. The Undertaker (WrestleMania 33)

The Undertaker has said in the years following the 2017 anti-classic WrestleMania 33 main event against Roman Reigns that he felt bad that he was not able to give his opponent the quality of match he deserved.

The Deadman nursed a bad hip throughout the match and appeared to be a step (or several) behind The Big Dog, slowing the pace and resulting in several disjointed spots.

The Florida crowd grew silent, recognizing they were not getting the best out of The Phenom and, coupled with the fact that they were very much over the Reigns mega-push by that point, there was little either man could do to right the ship.

The match limped to a finish, with Reigns becoming just the second Superstar to defeat The Phenom at 'Mania. From there, Undertaker teased his retirement, leaving his gear in the ring and descending into the deep, dark pit of the unknown to close the show.

Luckily for everyone, it would not be the last time fans would see him.

3. Best, John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 23)

Originally expected to be John Cena defending the WWE Championship against Triple H in a rematch of their WrestleMania 22 main event, the show-closer in 2007 was abruptly switched to Shawn Michaels when The King of Kings suffered a torn quadriceps and was unable to compete.

The result was another classic HBK performance on the grand stage that saw him aggressively and remorselessly attack the champion, driving him head-first into the steel steps with a piledriver and focusing his attack on his knee.

The narrative was that of a superior wrestler, and a man synonymous with WrestleMania, threatening Cena's title reign and it was up to the champion to prove he belonged.

He did, defeating his Raw Tag Team Championship-winning partner via submission with the STF.

A brilliant match from early in Cena's run as the top guy in WWE, but it's lost among the numerous classics Michaels had over the course of his Hall of Fame career. However, it still holds up and more than earns its high ranking on this countdown.

2. Worst, Drew McIntyre vs. Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania 36)

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted WrestleMania 36 significantly, taking it out of Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay and relocating it to the WWE Performance Center.

All things considered, WWE did a fantastic job of rearranging things and still producing its biggest show of the year as scheduled.

With that said, taking the show away from a live audience meant Drew McIntyre's coronation as WWE champion took place in an empty building, with no friends or family to witness the biggest achievement of his career.

It also meant there was little motivation for the match to go long or for then-champion Brock Lesnar to put in the effort he would have in front of a live audience.

The result was a 4:35 sprint that saw the Scot kick out of three German suplexes and a few F-5s before delivering three Claymore kicks and scoring the win and title.

An underwhelming, low-effort affair that was adversely affected by the circumstances surrounding it, the match at least had a reason for being lackluster, unlike the No. 1 choice for worst main event of the last two decades.

2. Best, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn vs. The Usos (WrestleMania 39)

The culmination of The Bloodline story as it was originally, the tag team championship match pitting The Usos against Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn was an emotional, story-driven contest that equal parts dramatic and physical.

It ended with Zayn delivering a barrage of Helluva Kicks to Jey Uso, the man he once considered a friend, before pinning him and taking the Undisputed Tag Team Championship from the twin brothers and Bloodline members.

The storytelling and intensity of the match combined to make a near-perfect example of professional wrestling at its best. The fans in Los Angeles ate it all up and by the time KO dropped Jimmy Uso with a Stunner and Zayn delivered one last kick, they were ready to celebrate with the new champions themselves.

A bout that relied heavily on the exchange of finishers, gradually escalating action and dramatic near-falls, it got a tremendous reaction from the audience and solidified its status as the greatest tag team match in WrestleMania history.

1. Worst, Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania 34)

What makes Reigns vs. Lesnar from 2018 worse than the other options on this list is the fact that WWE officials knew fans wanted nothing to do with it yet still force fed it to them, resulting in a match that was drowned out by boos.

It became clear that the audience did not want to see Reigns' Superman act when he kicked out of the first F-5 of the night to no reaction.

Lesnar continued to pummel The Big Dog, adding four more finishers, all of which Reigns kicked out of. By the time the babyface fired up and teased a comeback, The Beast had added a sixth F-5, which finally put him down for the count while fans rained down on the match with furious chants of "this is awful."

And it was. It was a poorly structured contest full of the same stuff we had seen out of the wrestlers countless times before. There was nothing fresh or unique about it and the performers themselves knew it, too.

It was after this match that a frustrated Lesnar walked through the curtain and threw the Universal Championship at Vince McMahon in a moment that was used multiple times to push the backstage documentary filmed for the WWE Network.

A bad match and annoyed fans are a potent, awful combination for the biggest show of the year, as evidenced by that reaction in New Orleans.

1. Best - Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns (WrestleMania 40)

So much was riding on the main event of the 2024 show.

Cody Rhodes had failed to finish his story and win the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship from Roman Reigns at the previous year's show, but fans had stayed loyal to The American Nightmare and his pursuit of the one title that had eluded his legendary father, Dusty. They chose him over a long-awaited dream match between Reigns and The Rock and would not be happy until he finally achieved his goal.

That the company was riding a wave of momentum in terms of profits and interest that it had not seen since the height of the Attitude Era, only made it that much more significant a match.

Sprinkle in its role in the larger Bloodline Saga and you had, arguably, the most significant WrestleMania main event since Rock returned to battle John Cena in 2012.

The participants did not disappoint. A dramatic match that built on spots from the previous year's encounter and told the story of Rhodes countering every attempted bit of interference from Reigns and his Bloodline, it captivated fans in Philadelphia.

With cameos from Jimmy and Jey Uso, Solo SIkoa, John Cena, The Rock, and The Undertaker, it kept the audience on the edge of its seat all the way through Seth Rollins hitting the ring and proving to be the "only man uniquely qualified to be your Shield" and taking the final blow from a steel chair courtesy of Reigns, which opened the door for Rhodes to deliver three consecutive Cross Rhodes and win the title.

The end of one era and the start of a new one, the match and the subsequent victory celebration that followed were generation defining and there is not a single other match on this countdown that can claim to be as significant as that, making the Bloodline Rules Match from WrestleMania 40 the best main event of the last two decades.