WWE WrestleMania 2016: Most Underrated Matches in History of PPV

The titanic clashes and emotion-rich classics throughout WWE WrestleMania history make it easy to underappreciate some mighty powerful performances.

When one thinks back on Shawn Michaels' stellar contributions to WrestleMania, some of his less famous works are forgotten. When fans recall Undertaker's masterpieces, a great match gets discussed far less than others.

Matches like Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage or Undertaker vs. Michaels have become part of WrestleMania lore. Meanwhile, a number of strong tag matches and fluid battles between top-notch athletes often don't get the attention they deserve.

Those bouts are celebrated here. These are the WrestleMania matches that featured the most combined action and drama while earning the least amount of acclaim today.

Honorable Mention

• The Steiners vs. The Headshrinkers (WrestleMania 9)
• Crush vs. Randy Savage (WrestleMania 10)
• Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon (WrestleMania 19)

The Steiners were no strangers to high-quality tag team action, so it's not surprising they excelled at WrestleMania in 1993.

This collision didn't boast much story or build. It was just a case of good workers performing well on a big stage. Even so, one would think fans would buzz about it more, putting it up there with contests like the Dumpster match at WrestleMania 14 and Evolution teaming against The Rock and Sock Connection six years later.

WrestleMania X will forever be known for the Owen vs. Bret Hart classic.

Savage's quest for revenge on that same night was certainly not as enthralling as that battle, but it was a well-told story with a good amount of memorable action. The Falls Count Anywhere matchup offered a more violent, brutal alternative to the night's other contests.

It doesn't get nearly enough praise.

Hogan and McMahon delivered a bloody brawl, blood that is surprisingly forgotten often. The fight was no wrestling clinic surely, but it was a captivating instance of the audience watching the villain get his comeuppance. Strong performances by both men powered this.

Fans will more often talk of Hogan's early matches and clash with The Rock a year before this.

10. Big Boss Man vs. Mr. Perfect (WrestleMania 7)

Big Boss Man's upcoming Hall of Fame induction will surely have fans digging through old clips. Should they discover this matchup against Mr. Perfect, it will likely leave them wondering why this isn't mentioned more often.

The narrative leading up to it is partly to blame. This feud was built on Bobby Heenan insulting Boss Man's mother and Perfect suffering the rage that resulted from that.

While the story was silly, the wrestling was excellent. A classic heel-face dynamic and a juxtaposition of bruiser and technician led to the big man having one of his finest bouts ever. An Andre the Giant cameo elevated the excitement.

A disqualification finish didn't help this match's cause to be one of WrestleMania's best. Other bigger, more-storied matches have long pushed this away from the audience's collective memory. But Perfect and Boss Man's theater on the canvas deserves to be discussed more.

9. Junkyard Dog and Tito Santana vs. The Funks (WrestleMania 2)

Time is partially responsible for washing away memories of Terry and Dory Funk Jr. taking on Junkyard Dog and Tito Santana; The matchup is now 30 years old. That has helped keep this out of conversations about the best of The Show of Shows.

Note that it's not on the WWE.com playlist of WrestleMania's top tag team matches, for example.

The emotional ride these four men took fans on, though, should earn it more praise. A fun energy permeated the whole contests as the heroes wailed on the heels to the crowd's delight. A bit of chaos at the end involving Jimmy Hart and his trademark foreign object added to the action.

This is no snubbed classic, but a strong match that has long been undervalued.

8. The Rockers vs. Haku and Barbarian (WrestleMania 7)

An electric opener, with The Rockers at their double-teaming, high-flying best is oddly not celebrated much.

When one thinks of Shawn Michaels' claim of being Mr. WrestleMania, it's his singles work that comes up first. This tag match gets shafted despite its quality.

The bout produced the best stuff The Barbarian did during his WWE run. It kicked off WrestleMania with a full-throttle contest. It had the typical emotional highs and lows of a classic tag team clash.

Michaels' masterpieces in the years following this have pushed this aside. And so has time, surely. After 25 years, WrestleMania VII is most known for Sgt. Slaughter's controversial American turncoat gimmick, not the midcard fare that came before his collision with Hulk Hogan. 

7. Chicago Street Fight (WrestleMania 13)

Credit: WWE.com

It would be hard not to be overshadowed by Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin's classic; That bout helped launch Stone Cold's rise to the top. Ahmed Johnson and The Legion of Doom clashing with The Nation of Domination didn't have that kind of lasting impact.

But, boy, was it fun.

Trash cans and right hands powered a knock-down-drag-out affair. This gets skipped over far too much when discussing WrestleMania's best.

The odd pairing of LOD and Johnson surely contributed to that. The same goes for this not being the culmination of a great story. It was just a whirlwind, violent affair that should be rewatched and applauded more often. 

6. Tatanka vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 9)

Shawn Michaels first showed fans a taste of why he would later be called Mr. WrestleMania when he led Tatanka to the best match of his career.

The intercontinental champ was the perfect showboat heel. Tatanka produced his most compelling action as he chased down Michaels and looked to chop his chest red. 

A lot of top-notch storytelling made for a standout match. Tatanka kept zeroing in on Michaels' arm, looking to soften up the titleholder. The two men made simple moves like armdrags exciting points of the tale.

The fact this ended in a count-out hurt its chances of being something even better.

The stigma of WrestleMania 9 doesn't help this match enter the all-time best conversation. Unfortunately, the togas and the wooden performance of Giant Gonzalez that night are remembered more than the IC title clash.

5. Roddy Piper vs. Bret Hart (WrestleMania 8)

Roddy Piper will forever be remembered as Hulk Hogan's adversary at the first WrestleMania, and for his part in the terrible boxing match against Mr. T the next year.

Later in his career, he and Bret Hart put on a stellar showing. In a well-worked, fluid fight for the Intercontinental Championship, Piper put on a career performance. Hart was again a master technician and came through on the big stage.

An ideal juxtaposition of grace and brutishness, brawling and grappling made for a must-see match.

As good as it was, it deserves to be in the top WrestleMania matches more often. Had it been for the world title or slotted in the main event, that wouldn't be an issue. Tucked away in the middle of the card, Hart vs. Piper doesn't get its due. 

4. Chris Jericho vs. Christian (WrestleMania 20)

Had Chris Jericho and Christian been involved in a narrative less like a soap opera, we may be talking about their WrestleMania showdown as one of the event's best battles.

Instead, a melodramatic story about jealousy and romance made this match feel like midcard filler. It seems to have made WWE fans take this less seriously than matches like CM Punk vs. Randy Orton or Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat.

It's a highly underrated showdown where everything clicked in the ring. Jericho and Christian had great chemistry, produced fast-paced action and stepped it up come WrestleMania time. This was a lesser version of Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XIX, a crisp and compelling non-title contest.

Even better matches top in this list, each generating surprisingly low buzz.

3. Mickie James vs. Trish Stratus (WrestleMania 22)

When a WrestleMania bout features the best female performer in company history and was the peak of arguably the best story told in the women's division, it's shocking it remains undervalued.

Trish Stratus and Mickie James bucked the trend of middling women's matches at WrestleMania with a stellar showing. The story of a fan turned stalker made this unique, intense and crackling with energy.  

Yet, one doesn't see Stratus vs. James in videos like this one about the history of WrestleMania. Instead, Andre the Giant, Shawn Michaels and John Cena pop up in famous bouts. And as good as this was, bar room debates on WrestleMania's best offerings won't bring up these women's names nearly enough.

2. Ric Flair vs. Undertaker (WrestleMania 18)

Undertaker's WrestleMania history is revered. Beyond just his undefeated streak at the event, he developed a reputation for delivering classics each year. The one he produced against Ric Flair doesn't garner the acclaim it should.

On WWE.com's list of the 30 best WrestleMania matches, Undertaker appears six times. His bloody masterpiece with Flair didn't make the cut.

This bout kicked off a career resurgence for Flair. He and The Deadman deftly worked the crowd in a hard-hitting, sometimes-savage contest. But his battles with Triple H, Shawn Michaels, CM Punk and others are the ones placed onto a pedestal, not this one despite its excellence. 

1. Shawn Michaels vs. Vince McMahon (WrestleMania 22)

Even with Shawn Michaels' reputation of producing at WrestleMania, expectations weren't exactly sky high for his showdown with Vince McMahon. Vince was over 60 years old at the time.

But what could have been a throwaway, middle-of-the-card bout turned out to be a thrill ride. Credit Michaels for leading the dance and putting on yet another fantastic performance at The Showcase of the Immortals. Credit a wildly booked bout that saw Shane McMahon and Spirit Squad interfere, and big spots highlight the action.

A bout that was violent, gimmicky fun won't be thrown into the best-of-WrestleMania conversation. Michaels has too many other displays of excellence to talk about first. And the idea of Vince being part of a classic is hard to swallow for him, despite how often he has pulled out showings like this.

The biggest gap between quality and recognition at WrestleMania belongs to Michaels vs. McMahon.