WWE WrestleMania 2017: Ranking the Top 25 Cards in PPV's History

WrestleMania.

The mere mention of the word ignites a fire inside of wrestling fans and an excitement that cannot be matched by any other spectacular or sporting event on the calendar.

The opportunity to see the men and women of WWE set foot on the grandest stage in professional wrestling, each one determined to deliver the most memorable and unforgettable performance of their careers, enthralls the audience and the stories that unfold in front of a worldwide audience are captivating.

For 32 years, Vince McMahon has been at the helm of The Showcase of the Immortals, working diligently to ensure the upcoming event surpasses its predecessor.

Sometimes he succeeds.

Other times? Not so much.

Above all, his promotion provides fans one night out of the calendar year in which they can disconnect themselves from reality and be engrossed in the grand morality play unfolding before them.

As the Superstars of WWE prepare to etch their names in the history books, right there alongside Austin, Rock, Hogan, Cena, Savage, Steamboat, Warrior and Undertaker, enjoy this journey through the annals of wrestling's most storied company and the 25 greatest match cards in WrestleMania history ranked based on overall quality and historical significance.

25. WrestleMania XXVII

Card

World heavyweight champion Edge defeated Alberto Del Rio.
Cody Rhodes defeated Rey Mysterio.
Big Show, Kane, Santino Marella and Kofi Kingston defeated The Corre.
Randy Orton defeated CM Punk.
Michael Cole defeated Jerry Lawler by DQ.
The Undertaker defeated Triple H.
John Morrison, Trish Stratus and Snooki defeated Michelle McCool, Layla and Dolph Ziggler.
WWE champion The Miz defeated John Cena.

WrestleMania XXVII is a show that has its undercard to thank for its involvement on this list.

An incredible letdown based on the most hyped matches of the night, it is a broadcast defined by the strong performances of Superstars like Cody Rhodes, CM Punk and Randy Orton.

The match between Punk and Orton was superb, a masterclass in in-ring psychology. While far from flawless, it was a great way to elevate a show that was dragging something fierce by the time it took to the ring in the fourth spot of the night.

Prior to that, Rhodes and Rey Mysterio delivered a quality midcard match representing the SmackDown brand. As was the case with Mysterio on the grand stage, it was a good match that never quite got over the hump and evolved into anything truly great.

The same can be said for Edge's World Heavyweight Championship defense against Alberto Del Rio. The two Superstars captivated the audience early, but much like the majority of the matches on the card, it hardly felt like an extraordinary war of attrition or, even, a particularly interesting match.

John Cena and Miz produced a miserable, sleep-inducing main event in which fans were more interested in the impending arrival of The Rock than they were the combatants themselves, and The Undertaker and Triple H wrestled a follow-up to the Taker-Shawn Michaels series that is either loved or hated by the audience, depending on who you talk to.

A major misstep from the historic Georgia Dome in Atlanta, the show ranks as one of the most disappointing in recent memory.

Even if there is just barely enough to get it on this countdown.

24. WrestleMania I

Card

Tito Santana defeated The Executioner.
King Kong Bundy defeated S.D. Jones.
David Sammartino and Brutus Beefcake fought to a draw.
Ricky Steamboat defeated Matt Bourne.
The Junkyard Dog defeated intercontinental champion Greg Valentine by count-out.
Nikolai Volkoff and The Iron Sheik defeated WWE tag team champions The U.S. Express to win the titles.
Andre the Giant defeated Big John Studd in a Bodyslam Challenge.
Wendi Richter defeated WWE women's champion Leilani Kai to win the title.
Hulk Hogan and Mr. T defeated Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff.

From an in-ring perspective, the inaugural WrestleMania is an abysmal show. It has little in the way of good wrestling and, realistically, is an overhyped house show with a media-friendly main event.

But that media and celebrity involvement is what helped set WrestleMania apart from its predecessors. Vince McMahon and Co. conducted a masterclass in promotion on March 31, 1985. It provided just enough to appeal to the casual fan and media alike while spotlighting the stars he would rely on going forward to carry his company.

He did not even have to promote a WWE Championship bout because he fully recognized that the presence of Mr. T in the main event would make up for it. He shined a light on King Kong Bundy, who he would prime to face Hogan a year later, highlighted the great Andre the Giant and put emphasis on both Tito Santana and Ricky Steamboat, two of his premier babyfaces.

It was a stroke of genius from McMahon and the first hint that the days of wrestling territories were numbered.

23. WrestleMania 13

Card

The Headbangers defeated The Godwinns, Phil LaFon and Doug Furnas and The New Blackjacks in a Fatal 4-Way Elimination match.
Intercontinental champion Rocky Maivia defeated The Sultan.
Hunter Hearst Helmsley defeated Goldust.
WWE tag team champions British Bulldog and Owen Hart vs. Mankind and Vader ended in a draw.
Bret Hart defeated Steve Austin in a Submission match.
Ahmed Johnson and The Legion of Doom defeated The Nation of Domination in a Chicago Street Fight.
The Undertaker defeated WWE champion Sycho Sid to win the title.

When one of the matches on an event's card is one of the best, most historically significant in wrestling history, one tends to forgive the crap that surrounded it when compiling lists of greatest event cards.

Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin in a Submission match is, by far, the most significant match of the 1990s. Not only was it a five-star classic that reestablished Hart's greatness and elevated Austin's star, it was home to a rare double-turn that saw Austin win over the fans and become the hottest babyface in pro wrestling while Hart became a crybaby heel.

It would catapult Austin to the top of the industry and help Vince McMahon understand the value of the star he had on his hands. Fans loved the blue-collar nature of the competitor and his penchant for swearing. They loved his toughness and grittiness.

He was them and they were him, a connection that establishes itself so infrequently throughout wrestling history that any intelligent promoter will jump on it the moment it presents itself.

McMahon did, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The images of a bloody Austin refusing to submit, despite tremendous pain in his legs from Hart's Sharpshooter, are iconic, too, and only added to the raw emotion fans felt after the bell.

22. WrestleMania 2000

Card

Big Boss Man and Bull Buchanan defeated Godfather and D'Lo Brown.
Hardcore Holly won a Hardcore Battle Royal to capture the WWE Hardcore Championship.
Test and Albert defeated Al Snow and Steve Blackman.
Edge and Christian defeated The Hardy Boyz and WWE tag team champions The Dudley Boyz in a Triangle Ladder match to win the titles.
Terri Runnels defeated The Kat in a catfight.
Too Cool and Chyna defeated Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko.
Chris Benoit defeated Chris Jericho and intercontinental champion Kurt Angle to win the title (fall No. 1).
Jericho defeated Benoit and European champion Angle to win the title (fall No. 2).
Rikishi and Kane defeated Road Dogg and X-Pac.
WWE champion Triple H defeated The Rock, Mick Foley and Big Show in a Fatal 4-Way Elimination match.

There was just enough about WrestleMania 2000 to land it on this list even if the overall product was not necessarily reflective of the incredible hot streak WWE was on as the new millennium arrived.

It featured an entertaining main event romp that saw Triple H retain his WWE Championship following a major swerve on the part of Vince McMahon, who reunited with daughter Stephanie and set in motion the intensification of the hated McMahon-Helmsley Era.

Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle established themselves as three of the most talented in-ring workers in the entire industry in a Two-Fall Triple Threat match in which Angle lost both the Intercontinental and European Championships without ever being pinned or made to submit.

The Hardcore Championship Battle Royal was fun and chaotic, but it was the Triangle Ladder match between The Hardy Boyz, Edge and Christian and The Dudley Boyz that upped the violence and death-defying risks to ensure the young tag teams again stole the show.

Jeff Hardy's Swanton Bomb from the top of a 20-foot ladder, in the middle of the entrance way, remains one of those WrestleMania moments indelibly etched in the memories of fans. It is replayed each year in promotional video packages hyping the annual spectacular and ensured his immortality.

As a whole, the event was disappointing, but when looking at its individual parts, there is more than enough to warrant its inclusion on this list.

21. WrestleMania XXXII

Card

Zack Ryder defeated Dolph Ziggler, The Miz, Stardust, Sin Cara, Sami Zayn and intercontinental champion Kevin Owens in a ladder match to win the title.
Chris Jericho defeated AJ Styles.
The League of Nations defeated The New Day.
Brock Lesnar defeated Dean Ambrose in a Street Fight.
Charlotte defeated Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks in a Triple Threat match to become the new WWE women's champion.
The Undertaker defeated Shane McMahon in a Hell in a Cell match.
Baron Corbin won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
The Rock defeated Erick Rowan.
Roman Reigns defeated WWE champion Triple H to win the title.

WrestleMania XXXII is a woefully mediocre event with a marquee match that was a foregone conclusion the moment it was made official.

Yet, for its many issues, it benefits from one extraordinary match that stood out: the Triple Threat between Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch that not only crowned a new WWE women's champion but also proved to the fanbase that the company was incredibly serious about pushing the female talent as something more than a sideshow act.

Those three women tore the house down in Dallas, generating as much heat as any other match on the card and wowing the 100,000-plus fans who filled the stands.

Each was treated with respect, enjoying special entrances before being allowed the opportunity to prove their worth to a worldwide audience.

Charlotte won the match in controversial fashion, setting up months of rematches and history-making bouts, but all three women showcased their skills and announced to the wrestling world that The Women's Revolution is real, and it is here to stay.

20. WrestleMania XXV

Card

CM Punk defeated MVP, Finlay, Kane, Christian, Shelton Benjamin, John Morrison, Mark Henry and Kofi Kingston in a Money in the Bank match.
Santina Marella won the Miss WrestleMania Battle Royal.
Chris Jericho defeated Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka and Ricky Steamboat in a Handicap Elimination match.
Matt Hardy defeated Jeff Hardy in an Extreme Rules match.
Rey Mysterio defeated intercontinental champion John Bradshaw Layfield to win the title.
The Undertaker defeated Shawn Michaels.
John Cena defeated world heavyweight champion Edge and Big Show in a Triple Threat match.
WWE champion Triple H defeated Randy Orton.

There are instances throughout wrestling history in which two veterans of the mat game come together for a match so seamlessly flawless that it instantly takes its place among the greatest matches of all time.

That was the case in April 2009 when Shawn Michaels and Undertaker met on the grand stage for the very first time. For 30 minutes, the Superstars took the audience on a wild ride of dangerous spots, inconceivable counters and dramatic near-falls that had many thinking The Phenom's undefeated streak at The Show of Shows may be in jeopardy.

It was not, of course, as he caught Michaels in the Tombstone off of a moonsault attempt and planted him for the victory.

Who won and who lost was not of the greatest importance, though. What was most significant was the classic match that had just unfolded before the eyes of millions of viewers around the globe. Two Superstars, respected above all others for their ability to rise to the occasion in big matches, once again added to their resumes with a five-star spectacular that had Chris Jericho refer to it as "the greatest match of all time, period," in the WWE documentary The True Story of WrestleMania.

Unfortunately, that match came in the middle of an otherwise underwhelming show.

While the match is almost enough to warrant a higher spot in these rankings for the event, the fact that there are so many more consistent productions ahead of it dooms it to the middle of the pack.

19. WrestleMania VIII

Card

Shawn Michaels defeated El Matador.
The Undertaker defeated Jake Roberts.
Bret Hart defeated intercontinental champion Roddy Piper to win the title.
Big Boss Man, Virgil, Sgt. Slaughter and Hacksaw Duggan defeated The Nasty Boys, The Mountie and Repo Man.
Randy Savage defeated WWE champion Ric Flair to win the title.
Tatanka defeated Rick Martel.
The Natural Disasters defeated WWE tag team champions Money, Inc. by count-out.
Owen Hart defeated Skinner.
Hulk Hogan defeated Sid Justice by DQ.

Hulk Hogan vs. Sid Justice in the main event of WrestleMania VIII ranks as one of the worst marquee bouts in the history of the event. WWE champion Ric Flair defended his title against Macho Man Randy Savage in an emotionally charged battle that still ranks as one of the best title bouts in event history.

Such a dichotomy at the top of the card created a scenario in which the undercard had to deliver in a big way to ensure the overall quality of the show.

It did, in different ways.

Bret Hart and Roddy Piper stole the show early in a classic war for the Intercontinental Championship. Shawn Michaels earned his first singles victory on the grand stage, defeating future Hall of Famer Tito Santana. It was The Undertaker, though, who was most impressive.

The Phenom was set up for future greatness in his victory over Jake Roberts. Not only did he dominate, he obliterated Roberts en route to one of the most one-sided matches on his WrestleMania resume. He kicked out of a DDT and proceeded to send The Snake packing with a Tombstone on the arena floor.

It was the most one-sided ass-kicking of Roberts' career and the start of a major babyface run by Undertaker that would last through 1998.

The show waved goodbye to the days of Hogan's dominance and said hello to the three stars who would ultimately become synonymous with WWE during the 1990s. 

18. WrestleMania XII

Card

Vader, Owen Hart and The British Bulldog defeated Ahmed Johnson, Jake Roberts and Yokozuna.
Steve Austin defeated Savio Vega.
The Ultimate Warrior defeated Hunter Hearst Helmsley.
Roddy Piper defeated Goldust in the Hollywood Backlot Brawl.
The Undertaker defeated Diesel.
Shawn Michaels defeated WWE champion Bret Hart in an Iron Man match to win the title.

"The boyhood dream has come true for Shawn Michaels."

Vince McMahon had many an iconic call as play-by-play commentator for his WWE, but that one stands out if only because it ushered in Michaels' main event run and forever shifted the balance of power in the company. Michaels would become a nightmare to deal with behind the scenes, but in front of the cameras, he would put on a show unmatched by any of his peers.

Including the main event of WrestleMania XII.

The first televised Iron Man match in WWE history, his classic with Bret Hart was a masterclass in pacing, storytelling, athleticism and drama. It took the audience on a roller-coaster ride of emotions and left them guessing as to which iconic star would leave the Pond with the WWE Championship around his waist.

When the match ended in a 0-0 tie after 60 minutes of competition, the bout was restarted under sudden-death rules and Michaels pounced, catching Hart with consecutive Sweet Chin Music superkicks to win the title.

The images of an emotional Michaels sitting in the center of the squared circle, staring at his new title, rank as some of the most unforgettable in WrestleMania history.

Also unforgettable is the Hollywood Backlot Brawl between Roddy Piper and Goldust, which introduced a touch of attitude to WWE, the likes of which would become essential to the company's comeback in the Monday Night Wars with WCW.

It was a brutal, violent fight plagued only by the ridiculous and unnecessary play on O.J. Simpson's epic car chase from years earlier. Once the action returned to the arena, Piper and Goldust took the fight before the fans, where Hot Rod humiliated his bizarre opponent by stripping him down...to women's lingerie.

The angle was highly controversial and further blurred the lines between what was acceptable and what was not as McMahon planted the seeds for the groundbreaking television his company would begin producing in the months that followed.

17. WrestleMania VI

Card

Rick Martel defeated Koko B. Ware.
Demolition defeated The Colossal Connection to win the WWE Tag Team Championships.
Earthquake defeated Hercules.
Brutus Beefcake defeated Mr. Perfect.
Roddy Piper and Bad News Brown fought to a double count-out.
The Hart Foundation defeated The Bolsheviks.
The Barbarian defeated Tito Santana.
Dusty Rhodes and Sapphire defeated Randy Savage and Sensational Sherri.
The Orient Express defeated The Rockers via count-out.
Jim Duggan defeated Dino Bravo.
Ted DiBiase defeated Jake Roberts via count-out.
Big Boss Man defeated Akeem.
Rick Rude defeated Jimmy Snuka.
Intercontinental champion The Ultimate Warrior defeated WWE champion Hulk Hogan.

If ever there was an example of a one-match show, WrestleMania VI may be it. It is a largely dreadful show up until the main event.

That main event, though, is a defining one.

For the first time in event history, the two biggest babyfaces in sports entertainment squared off, the WWE and Intercontinental Championships up for grabs in a winner-takes-all match. Hulk Hogan, the reigning franchise star of Vince McMahon's promotion, battled the frenzied fury of The Ultimate Warrior, who arrived at Toronto's SkyDome for the biggest match of his career riding a wave of momentum.

Would the newest threat to Hogan's continued supremacy be able to do what no bad guy could and put an end to Hulkamania's stranglehold on the pro wrestling world?

The answer was a resounding "yes."

After 20-plus minutes of battle, Warrior rolled out of the way of a leg drop and caught a stunned Hogan with the big splash to win the match and both titles. In a passing-of-the-torch moment, Hogan handed over the WWE title, essentially anointing Warrior the new face of the promotion.

It was an unforgettable match and a moment emblazoned in the minds of fans.

While it was not a match or moment as vividly remembered as "The Ultimate Challenge," Dusty Rhodes unveiling Miss Elizabeth as his secret weapon against Macho King Randy Savage and Sensational Queen Sherri was a moment that paid the First Lady of Professional Wrestling's story arc off and let her enjoy that happy ending she deserved after the Savage-Hogan drama of a year earlier.

Demolition's victory over The Colossal Connection's Andre the Giant and Haku for their third tag team titles helped ensure the sixth incarnation of the event would be fondly remembered by fans.

16. WrestleMania XXVI

Card

World tag team champions The Miz and Big Show defeated R-Truth and John Morrison.
Randy Orton defeated Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes in a Triple Threat match.
Jack Swagger defeated Kane, Christian, Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler, Evan Bourne, Shelton Benjamin, MVP Matt Hardy and Drew McIntyre in a Money in the Bank ladder match.
Triple H defeated Sheamus.
Rey Mysterio defeated CM Punk.
Bret Hart defeated Mr. McMahon in a No Holds Barred Lumberjack match.
World heavyweight champion Chris Jericho defeated Edge.
Michelle McCool, Layla, Vickie Guerrero, Maryse and Alicia Fox defeated Beth Phoenix, Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres and Gail Kim.
John Cena defeated WWE champion Batista to win the title.
The Undertaker defeated Shawn Michaels.

One year after their epic encounter in Houston, Undertaker and Shawn Michaels took to the squared circle in the main event of WrestleMania 26 and wowed the Phoenix fans with another classic contest. While it failed to live up to the lofty expectations set by the original, it was another example of two Superstars with an innate understanding of the business delivering a match unlike any their fellow competitors could dream of.

An emotionally charged bout with Michaels' career on the line, it kept fans guessing as to whether or not they were witnessing the last go-round of ol' HBK.

They were.

A defiant Michaels used Undertaker's body to hoist himself up, then mocked and slapped his rival. He ate one last Tombstone, a move he had dared The Phenom to execute, before riding off into the sunset, his legendary career at its close.

The event featured solid wrestling from top to bottom and just as many stars.

It was a show with a plethora of strong stories but not enough time to suitably tell them all, meaning some matches were cut short. One such bout was CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio, which should have been a lengthy and grueling grudge match based on the events that led to it but was instead a sprint.

Sometimes too much can be a curse, and that was the case with the 2010 event, which had (to quote an old Jim Ross line) "plenty of sizzle but not enough steak."

15. WrestleMania X8

Card

Rob Van Dam defeated intercontinental champion William Regal to win the title.
European champion Diamond Dallas Page defeated Christian.
Hardcore champion Maven vs. Goldust ended in a no-contest.
Kurt Angle defeated Kane.
Steve Austin defeated Scott Hall.
WWE tag team champions Billy and Chuck defeated The Hardy Boyz, The Dudley Boyz and The APA in a Fatal 4-Way Elimination match.
The Rock defeated Hollywood Hogan.
Women's champion Jazz defeated Trish Stratus and Lita in a Triple Threat match.
Triple H defeated WWE undisputed champion Chris Jericho to win the title.

Who says you can't go home?

Nine years after last appearing at WrestleMania, Hulk Hogan stepped through the curtain and was greeted with a thunderous ovation by fans in Toronto's SkyDome, the site of his epic encounter with The Ultimate Warrior in 1990. Those fans had not forgotten Hogan's contributions to professional wrestling and Vince McMahon's company.

No, they welcomed him back with open arms, cheering him over The Rock, who had rightfully anointed himself The People's Champ as he carried WWE out of the abyss and into the promised land during the Monday Night Wars.

The two Superstars, icons in the sports entertainment industry, stood across the ring from each other in a staredown that generated goosebumps and left fans eagerly anticipating the action that was about to unfold.

For just over 16 minutes, the Superstars held the 68,000-plus fans in the palms of their hands, manipulating crowd reaction with every dramatic near-fall and cleverly executed spot. In the end, The Rock dropped The People's Elbow, pinned Hogan and established himself the superior star.

But his night was not over.

He joined Hogan in a post-match sign of respect just moments after rescuing The Hulkster from a two-on-one beatdown at the hands of Scott Hall and Kevin Nash. It was a passing-of-the-torch moment and one that told fans it was okay to still like The Great One even if he did beat The Hulkster.

If that match had capped off the show, the show would probably rank higher than it does on this list. As it is, though, there was still an Undisputed Championship match to get to.

After months of melodrama involving Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, the two most powerful people not named Vince McMahon or Kevin Dunn took to the squared circle for the main event, which saw Chris Jericho defend his Undisputed Championship against The Game

Unfortunately for Jericho, who was in the top spot on the WrestleMania card, it was a bittersweet moment. He had been an afterthought throughout the marquee storyline, a mere peasant to the lead characters. The match played out very much the same way as fans eagerly anticipated the moment Triple H got his comeuppance on his soon-to-be-ex-wife and sat on their hands for everything else.

A quiet, heatless match that only served to intensify sentiment that Hogan-Rock should have headlined, it ensured WrestleMania X8 would end not with a bang but rather a whimper.

14. WrestleMania 21

Card

Rey Mysterio defeated Eddie Guerrero.
Edge defeated Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, Kane, Shelton Benjamin and Christian in a Money in the Bank ladder match.
The Undertaker defeated Randy Orton.
Women's champion Trish Stratus defeated Christy Hemme.
Kurt Angle defeated Shawn Michaels.
Akebono defeated Big Show in a sumo match.
John Cena defeated WWE champion John Bradshaw Layfield to win the title.
Batista defeated world heavyweight champion Triple H to win the title.

Two young stars, destined for greatness, began their journey to immortality at WrestleMania 21.

John Cena and Batista, tapped by management to lead the Raw and SmackDown brands for the next decade, captured the WWE and World Heavyweight Championships, respectively, on wrestling's biggest night.

Cena, the self-proclaimed Doctor of Thuganomics, ended JBL's eight-month reign with the title in impressive fashion. He overcame an offensive onslaught and downed the New York businessman with the F-U to end his oppressive rule over the SmackDown brand.

For Batista, it was much more personal.

The Animal had sat under Triple H's learning tree, gaining knowledge and experience from The Game as he evolved into a credible WWE Superstar. He trusted The Cerebral Assassin to guide him to greatness but along the way realized The Game was out only for himself.

He understood that to Triple H he was merely a pawn.

When he won the 2005 Royal Rumble, Batista made the decision to challenge Triple H but strung his mentor along for weeks. When he finally revealed his decision, it was sent shockwaves throughout WWE and left fans eagerly anticipating the ass-kicking he would deal Triple H.

On that night in Los Angeles, with celebrities like Adam Sandler sitting in the front row, Batista overcame everything Triple H threw at him, bloodied the world champion and finished him off with the Batista Bomb to score his first major singles title.

Confetti fell, pyro exploded and the era of Ruthless Aggression was finally in full effect.

13. WrestleMania 22

Card

World tag team champions Kane and Big Show defeated Chris Masters and Carlito.
Rob Van Dam defeated Matt Hardy, Finlay, Bobby Lashley, Ric Flair and Shelton Benjamin in a Money in the Bank ladder match.
John Bradshaw Layfield defeated United States champion Chris Benoit to win the title.
Edge defeated Mick Foley in a Hardcore match.
The Boogeyman defeated Booker T and Sharmell in a Handicap match.
Mickie James defeated women's champion Trish Stratus to win the title.
The Undertaker defeated Mark Henry in a Casket match.
Shawn Michaels defeated Mr. McMahon in a No Holds Barred match.
Rey Mysterio defeated Randy Orton and world champion Kurt Angle in a Triple Threat match to win the title.
Torrie Wilson defeated Candice Michelle in a Playboy Pillow Fight.
WWE champion John Cena defeated Triple H.

Eddie Guerrero's untimely passing and a crushing injury to Batista left the SmackDown brand's WrestleMania 22 plans in shambles. Enter Rey Mysterio, who won the Royal Rumble match by lasting longer than any man in the history of the event and suddenly found himself headed to The Showcase of the Immortals to compete for the World Heavyweight Championship.

His opponents were titleholder Kurt Angle and Randy Orton, the conniving villain who had wormed his way into the match via chicanery. Mysterio had dedicated his performance to his late friend Guerrero and was determined on capturing his first world title.

He did, delivering a snap headscissors into a roll-up for the pinfall on Orton.

As Mysterio knelt down in the center of the ring, tears rolling down his cheeks, he appreciated the enormity of the match. After all, he was told from the start that he was too small to succeed at the highest levels in America. He would never get over in the land of the giants that was WWE.

But he had both gotten over and captured the top prize on SmackDown on the most significant stage in professional wrestling. When he headed up the ramp to celebrate the win with Guerrero's widow, Vickie, and nephew Chavo, the emotion of the moment intensified tenfold.

Somewhere, looking down on him, was the man who never hesitated to put him over or work as hard as he could to convince the world Mysterio belonged in the ring with the best.

The win was for Mysterio and his family, but more importantly, it was for Eddie.

12. WrestleMania XIV

Card

L.O.D. 2000 won a Tag Team Battle Royal.
Light heavyweight champion Taka Michinoku defeated Aguila.
European champion Triple H defeated Owen Hart.
Sable and Marc Mero defeated Luna Vachon and Goldust in a Mixed Tag Team match.
Intercontinental champion The Rock defeated Ken Shamrock via reversed decision.
Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie defeated WWE tag team champion The New Age Outlaws to win the titles in a Dumpster match.
The Undertaker defeated Kane.
Steve Austin defeated WWE champion Shawn Michaels to win the title.

And so The Austin Era began.

Or so Jim Ross exclaimed on commentary as Stone Cold held the WWE Championship high overhead after defeating Shawn Michaels and ending The Heartbreak Kid's epic first run with the company. As the attitudinal riffs of Austin's theme song played, he joined Mike Tyson in the center of the ring, camera bulbs flashing incessantly as mainstream media captured the moment for all eternity.

It was a moment in time that reestablished WWE's connection with fans and with that mainstream media, something it had not always had over the five years that preceded it.

For Vince McMahon personally, WrestleMania XIV was not only the changing of the guard from his failed New Generation era to a hipper, cooler, more badass Attitude Era, but it was a defiant stance in the face of overwhelming opposition in the form of World Championship Wrestling and its New World Order storyline.

From Austin's title win to Undertaker and Kane's brotherly war of attrition, right down to Sable's breakout performance that established her as a sex symbol and leader of a female movement within the company, the event was a hearty "screw you" to anyone who though his promotion was treading water or that he did not know what to do to save it.

With Tyson bringing coverage from mainstream outlets across the country, more people than ever would know what happened at his premier event and become familiar with his new top star.

It was a promotional tactic that may have been a pricey one given Tyson's star at the time but one that worked wonders for WWE as it re-entered the conscious of fans unaware of the new, edgier product.

While it lacked that defining match, the action throughout the night was consistently good and reaffirmed McMahon's ability to come through when pressure was at its highest.

11. WrestleMania XXXI

Card

Daniel Bryan defeated intercontinental champion Bad News Barrett, Dolph Ziggler, Stardust, R-Truth, Dean Ambrose and Luke Harper to win the title in a Ladder match.
Randy Orton defeated Seth Rollins.
Triple H defeated Sting in a No Disqualification match.
AJ Lee and Paige defeated The Bella Twins.
John Cena defeated United States champion Rusev to win the title.
The Undertaker defeated Bray Wyatt.
Rollins defeated Roman Reigns and WWE champion Brock Lesnar in a Triple Threat match to win the title.

Seth Rollins' surprise cash-in of Money in the Bank and subsequent WWE Championship victory to close out WrestleMania XXXI is one of the most well-orchestrated swerves in event history.

The Architect went down in defeat at the hands of Randy Orton so early in the night that it was almost easy to forget about him and his magical briefcase as Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns took to the squared circle. After all, it was a certainty that Reigns would be leaving San Francisco's Levi's Stadium with the title around his waist, so why would fans have any reason to suspect anything controversial would come out of the match?

WWE and Vince McMahon had made a fortune out of building up monstrous bad guys for babyfaces to knock down, and that was the case with Lesnar and Reigns.

So when Rollins interrupted the match later and demanded to cash in his guaranteed opportunity right there and then, fans erupted, excited and intrigued all at the same time.

When he delivered a Curb Stomp to Reigns and won the title, they erupted, overjoyed at the unexpected outcome that had just played out before them. In a day and age where WWE had reasonably taken the approach of logical, well-built conclusions to stories it had set up months in advance, Rollins' win shocked the all-knowing audience and created legitimate excitement heading into the following night's Raw.

10. WrestleMania VII

Card

The Rockers defeated Haku and Barbarian.
Texas Tornado defeated Dino Bravo.
The British Bulldog defeated The Warlord.
The Nasty Boys defeated WWE tag team champions The Hart Foundation to win the titles.
Jake Roberts defeated Rick Martel in a Blindfold match.
The Undertaker defeated Jimmy Snuka.
The Ultimate Warrior defeated Randy Savage in a Retirement match.
Genichiro Tenryu and Koji Kitao defeated Demolition.
Big Boss Man defeated intercontinental champion Mr. Perfect by DQ.
Earthquake defeated Greg Valentine.
The Legion of Doom defeated Power and Glory.
Virgil defeated Ted DiBiase by count-out.
The Mountie defeated Tito Santana.
Hulk Hogan defeated WWE champion Sgt. Slaughter to win the title.

WrestleMania VII is, without shadow of doubt, the most underappreciated event ever produced by WWE.

That sounds like a loaded statement, but given the fact that the moments most talked about from the show include Sgt. Slaughter's Iraqi sympathizer character and the company necessitating a move from the 100,000-person Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to the smaller sports arena, it is fair to say the greatness of the card goes unnoticed.

The Ultimate Warrior vs. Randy Savage in a Retirement match is an all-time classic that demonstrates the significance of storytelling in wrestling. The closing moments of the match, and its immediate aftermath that saw Savage reunite with Miss Elizabeth, remain some of the most emotional television Vince McMahon's promotion has ever produced.

A near-flawless effort from all involved, it is a fantastic display of sports entertainment done correctly.

The main event, a battle for the WWE Championship and national pride between Slaughter and Hulk Hogan, is a bloody brawl between two old-school vets who understood the value of doing less for a greater reaction. Nothing they did during their main event match was over the top or risky whatsoever. Yet the fans in Los Angeles responded favorably because of the facial expressions and body language of the performers, and the result was a red-hot headliner that reestablished the greatness of both men.

The Hart Foundation battled The Nasty Boys in a quality tag team title defense, and The Rockers kicked the night off by scoring a win over Barbarian and Haku in one of WrestleMania's more underrated battles ever. Sprinkle in a solid match between The Big Boss Man and Mr. Perfect for the Intercontinental Championship and a brilliant Blindfold match between Jake "The Snake" Roberts and Rick Martel that is criminally undervalued, and you have a show that, from top to bottom, is as solid as they come.

9. WrestleMania 23

Card

Ken Kennedy defeated CM Punk, Finlay, Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, King Booker, Randy Orton and Edge in a Money in the Bank ladder match.
The Great Khali defeated Kane.
United States champion Chris Benoit defeated MVP.
The Undertaker defeated world heavyweight champion Batista to win the title.
The ECW Originals defeated The New Breed in an 8-Man tag team match.
ECW champion Bobby Lashley defeated Umaga in The Battle of the Billionaires.
Women's champion Melina defeated Ashley Massaro in a Lumberjill match.
WWE champion John Cena defeated Shawn Michaels.

The 2007 edition of WrestleMania may forever be known for The Battle of the Billionaires and the night future President of the United States Donald Trump shaved Vince McMahon's head then ate a Stone Cold Stunner for his troubles.

The Donald, though, gets enough press as it is.

For the enormity of the event, and the incredible mainstream media attention it generated, it was an old-school gladiator regaining championship gold that remains one of the most vivid memories of the night.

The Undertaker won the 2007 Royal Rumble match and earned a World Heavyweight Championship match against Batista at The Showcase of the Immortals. Unfortunately, what would have been a main event-quality match any other year was shoved to the midcard by The Battle of the Billionaires farce.

Determined to flip a figurative middle finger to management, the man most closely associated with WrestleMania took his undefeated streak into Detroit's Ford Field and willed his way to another classic on the grand stage.

Together, The Phenom and Batista tore the house down, positioning every major spot just right to ensure the most dramatic match possible. They broke announce tables, kicked out of finishers and had the 80,000 fans erupting with every false finish.

By the time he delivered the Tombstone piledriver and ended Batista's reign, the audience came unglued. The sight of Undertaker knelt down in his signature pose in salute to those Creatures of the Night, the world title in his hands at the grand event for the first time since 1997, was a magical one that should have closed the show.

Instead, John Cena and Shawn Michaels did.

Their match, another fantastic showing, may have matched Undertaker-Batista in terms of quality but failed to possess the raw emotion of its predecessor, leaving fans to wonder what may have been had the SmackDown brand received the main event slot.

8. WrestleMania XXIV

Card

John Bradshaw Layfield defeated Finlay in a Belfast Brawl.
CM Punk defeated MVP, John Morrison, Ken Kennedy, Shelton Benjamin, Chris Jericho and Carlito in a Money in the Bank ladder match.
Batista defeated Umaga.
Kane defeated ECW champion Chavo Guerrero to win the title.
Shawn Michaels defeated Ric Flair.
Beth Phoenix and Melina defeated Maria and Ashley Massaro in a Playboy BunnyMania match.
WWE champion Randy Orton defeated John Cena and Triple H in a Triple Threat match.
Floyd "Money" Mayweather defeated Big Show in a No Disqualification match.
The Undertaker defeated world heavyweight champion Edge to win the title.

WWE ventured outdoors for the first time since 1993 as it rolled into Orlando's Citrus Bowl for WrestleMania 24.

Big Show, returning after a year away from the squared circle, took on his most monumental match to date: a showdown with undefeated boxer Floyd "Money" Mayweather. Their battle, dubbed "The Biggest vs. The Best," was the focal point of promotion and meant a wealth of sports media would be in attendance for the event.

The match did not disappoint.

Expertly laid out to protect both men, highlighting their strengths and disguising their weaknesses, it was an example of what sports entertainment can be when executed to perfection. The crowd popped every time the giant got his hands on his smaller, cockier, pain-in-the-ass opponent and booed when Mayweather resorted to cheating via brass knucks to win the match.

The performers manipulated the crowd through high spots to react exactly as they wanted it to, and the result was a match significantly better than it had any right to be and, arguably, the best example of celebrity involvement to date at WrestleMania.

A superb main event that saw Undertaker leave WrestleMania with the world title for the second consecutive year and CM Punk's first WM victory en route to a world title win himself helped make the 24th event a memorable one at a time when creative was far from steady.

7. WrestleMania XX

Card

John Cena defeated United States champion Big Show to win the title.
World tag team champions Rob Van Dam and Booker T defeated Garrison Cade and Mark Jindrak, La Resistance and The Dudley Boyz in a Fatal 4-Way match.
Christian defeated Chris Jericho.
Randy Orton, Ric Flair and Batista defeated The Rock and Mick Foley in a Handicap match.
Sable and Torrie Wilson defeated Stacy Keibler and Miss Jackie in a Playboy Evening Gown match.
Cruiserweight champion Chavo Guerrero retained his title in a Cruiserweight Open.
Goldberg defeated Brock Lesnar.
Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty defeated The World's Greatest Tag Team, The Basham Brothers and The APA in a Fatal 4-Way match.
Women's champion Victoria defeated Molly Holly in a Hair vs. Title match.
WWE champion Eddie Guerrero defeated Kurt Angle.
Undertaker defeated Kane.
Chris Benoit defeated world heavyweight champion Triple H and Shawn Michaels in a Triple Threat match to win the title.

WWE returned to Madison Square Garden for an unforgettable WrestleMania XX headlined by a Triple Threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship. Chris Benoit would defeat Triple H and Shawn Michaels in an unforgettable battle, a five-star classic that culminated in the Edmonton, Alberta, native winning his first world title under the WWE umbrella.

His win, tainted by tragic events at the end of his life that would forever define him, had been years in the making. Long one of the most respected and celebrated in-ring workers, he was always criticized for his size or his perceived lack of charisma. What no one really understood was Benoit's charisma was in the way he tenaciously and ruthlessly picked his opponents apart en route to victory.

After years of wowing fans and earning the respect of every man he ever worked with, he stood on the biggest stage the sport had to offer, one of WWE's most prestigious titles in his hand. It was a reward for his years of service and an honor he absolutely deserved.

When he was joined by an emotional Eddie Guerrero, a man he had ridden up and down the roads with in Mexico, Japan, WCW and WWE, the moment became even more of a tearjerker.

Guerrero himself was fresh off a superb wrestling match in which he successfully retained the WWE Championship against Kurt Angle. A thinking man's wrestler, he had loosened his boot to relieve pressure in his ankle following one of the former Olympian's dreaded ankle locks then managed to slide his boot off when the Pittsburgh native went back to the submission hold.

Stunned that he had pulled off Guerrero's boot, Angle ran right into a small package and was beaten in comical, embarrassing fashion.

Those two matches, featuring the workrate specialists once dubbed "vanilla midgets" by Kevin Nash during their days in WCW, sobbingly embraced as confetti fell from the ceiling, signifying the end of another WrestleMania.

Key victories by Randy Orton and Batista, as well as John Cena, also set the stage for every WrestleMania to come.

But more on those men in a little bit.

6. WrestleMania X

Card

Owen Hart defeated Bret Hart.
Bam Bam Bigelow and Luna Vachon defeated Doink and Dink in a Mixed Tag Team match.
Randy Savage defeated Crush in a Falls Count Anywhere match.
Women's champion Alundra Blayze defeated Leilani Kai.
Men on a Mission defeated tag team champions The Quebecers by count-out.
WWE champion Yokozuna defeated Lex Luger by DQ.
Earthquake defeated Adam Bomb.
Intercontinental champion Razor Ramon defeated Shawn Michaels in a ladder match.
Bret Hart defeated WWE champion Yokozuna to win the title.

Never before had WrestleMania produced two legitimate five-star classics. As the event celebrated its tenth birthday, though, four Superstars who would carry WWE on their back for the better part of the next three years were bent on erasing all doubts about the New Generation's crop of Superstars by delivering some of the most impressive and unforgettable performances in the long and illustrious history of the annual extravaganza.

On any other night, Bret and Owen Hart would have set the bar impossibly high right out of the gate. Their match, the show's opener, was months in the making and featured unmatched in-ring psychology and storytelling.

It also featured a shocking conclusion as Owen cleanly pinned his brother's shoulders to the mat on the same night The Hitman was slated to challenge for the WWE Championship. Later, when Bret defeated Yokozuna to capture said title, Owen watched from the aisle, disgusted that his big win was minimized by his older sibling's triumph.

The narrative told across the show was superb and set up months of rematches between the brothers, though none were able to reach the extraordinary quality of the original.

Their all-timer may not have been the best match on the card, though.

Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels revolutionized the industry later in the show, introducing a worldwide audience to the ladder match. Devoid of the high-risk spots that would later define the match, it was an expertly crafted bout that kept the fans inside Madison Square Garden on the edge of their seats.

It was brutal, captivating and in the end, Ramon established himself the undisputed intercontinental champion. It was Michaels, though, who sowed the seeds for his reputation as Mr. WrestleMania.

5. WrestleMania XXVIII

Card

Sheamus defeated world heavyweight champion Daniel Bryan to win the title.
Kane defeated Randy Orton.
Big Show defeated intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes to win the title.
Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos defeated Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres.
The Undertaker defeated Triple H in a Hell in a Cell match.
Team Johnny defeated Team Teddy in a 12-Man Tag Team match.
WWE champion CM Punk defeated Chris Jericho.
The Rock defeated John Cena.

The landscape of pro wrestling in the 21st century does not necessarily lend itself to many dream matches. So many of the iconic stars of yesteryear are either retired or no longer with us, making any chance they have of clashing with the current crop of Superstars impossible or unlikely.

In 2012, the wrestling world was shaken by a mammoth main event.

John Cena, the franchise player of WWE, would battle The Rock, wrestling's most electrifying star and a legitimate A-list Hollywood celebrity, in a match dubbed "Once in a Lifetime."

Heavily promoted as the one and only time fans would witness the Superstars do battle, it split the audience in ways only schoolgirls obsessing over Twilight's Team Edward and Team Jacob could fully understand. The hype was unheard of, the excitement at an all-time high and anticipation through the roof.

Two mini-concerts preceded the action, but once the bell sounded, Rock and Cena brought every ounce of blood, sweat and tears they had to delivering on the promise of an epic encounter. While not a perfect match by any stretch of the imagination, it was every bit the epic contest between industry giants fans expected.

And in the end, the arrogance of Cena proved his demise.

He tried to mimic Rock's People's Elbow but ran right into a Rock Bottom that ended his night and left him seated on the ramp, watching The Great One celebrate his victory as pyro exploded and fans erupted.

A strong undercard featuring another Undertaker classic involving Triple H and Shawn Michaels, a smartly wrestled title bout between Chris Jericho and CM Punk and an unforgivable 18-second match between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan helped catapult WrestleMania 28 near the forefront of this discussion.

4. WrestleMania XXX

Card

Daniel Bryan defeated Triple H.
The Shield defeated Kane and The New Age Outlaws.
Cesaro won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
John Cena defeated Bray Wyatt.
Brock Lesnar defeated The Undertaker.
Women's champion AJ Lee won the Vickie Guerrero Invitational match to retain her title.
Bryan defeated WWE world champion Randy Orton and Batista to win the title.

WrestleMania XXX may have started with an epic gathering of Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan and The Rock and ended with babyface hero Daniel Bryan finally capturing the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, but the event will forever be recognized as the end of an era.

After 21 straight WrestleMania victories, The Streak came to an end as The Undertaker lost to Brock Lesnar in the most unforgettable moment in the long and illustrious history of Vince McMahon's annual showcase.

Even writing "Brock Lesnar defeated The Undertaker" felt weird. Wrong, even.

The uncertainty of the official's hand slapping the mat for the third time. The stunned silence that filled The SuperDome in New Orleans seconds after the bell sounded. The looks on the faces of the tens of thousands of fans as they listened in awe as Lesnar was announced the winner.

It was a moment in time that will forever resonate with fans.

Mainstream media outlets picked up on the outcome of the match, and it became front-page news for sites looking to cash in on the WrestleMania buzz.

Undertaker, the most iconic star to ever grace the ring at the biggest event of the year, had finally lost, and fans were not at all prepared for it.

In a day and age where secrecy is impossible thanks to the internet, the company pulled off the biggest and most shocking surprise of all time.

The match may not have been the spectacle the performers themselves deserved, but there was enough elsewhere on the card, from Bryan's wins in two phenomenal matches and Cena's victory over Wyatt in a strong piece of storytelling, to help the 2014 event move up this countdown at an alarming rate.

3. WrestleMania III

Card

The Can-Am Connection defeated Bob Orton and Don Muraco.
Billy Jack Haynes and Hercules fought to a double count-out.
Hillbilly Jim, Little Beaver and Haiti Kid defeated King Kong Bundy, Little Tokyo and Lord Littlebrook by DQ.
Harley Race defeated Junkyard Dog.
The Dream Team defeated The Rougeau Brothers.
Roddy Piper defeated Adrian Adonis.
The Hart Foundation and Danny Davis defeated The British Bulldogs and Tito Santana.
Butch Reed defeated Koko B. Ware.
Ricky Steamboat defeated Randy Savage to win the Intercontinental Championship.
The Honky Tonk Man defeated Jake Roberts.
The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff defeated The Killer Bees.
WWE champion Hulk Hogan defeated Andre the Giant.

93,173 fans journeyed to Pontiac, Michigan, for the biggest WrestleMania of all time in March 1987.

The main event: Hulk Hogan defending his WWE Championship against the undefeated "Eighth Wonder of the World," Andre the Giant. Two icons of their generation, two Superstars instantly recognizable by fans and mainstream media alike, they came together for the highest-profile main event in pro wrestling history, and the world watched.

Hogan dropped Andre with a monumental bodyslam and finished him off with a leg drop to retain his title in a match that was dominated by his larger opponent. The match, a staple of any legitimate "Best of WrestleMania" compilation, was less about quality of the in-ring product and more about the story told by the all-time greats.

Speaking of greatness, the Intercontinental Championship match between Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat and Macho Man Randy Savage is among the greatest in the history of the sport. A five-star classic featuring some of the greatest exchanges and sequences ever, it was the first truly great WrestleMania match.

More significantly, it elevated Savage in the eyes of fans and management alike. Considering how important he would become to the success of the event going forward, the significance of his match with Steamboat increases exponentially.

A fun, underrated undercard featuring entertaining stories and solid wrestling, not to mention the grand spectacle that would become synonymous with the extravaganza, helped make WrestleMania III the original measuring stick for pro wrestling spectaculars.

2. WrestleMania XIX

Card

Cruiserweight champion Matt Hardy defeated Rey Mysterio.
The Undertaker defeated Big Show and A-Train in a 2-on-1 Handicap match.
Trish Stratus defeated Jazz and women's champion Victoria in a Triple Threat match to win the title.
WWE tag team champions Team Angle defeated Chris Benoit and Rhyno and Los Guerreros in a Triple Threat Match.
Shawn Michaels defeated Chris Jericho.
World heavyweight champion Triple H defeated Booker T.
Hulk Hogan defeated Mr. McMahon in a Street Fight.
The Rock defeated Steve Austin.
Brock Lesnar defeated WWE champion Kurt Angle to win the title.

There may never, ever be another WrestleMania as star-studded as the 19th edition.

With seven Hall of Famers and several industry icons making their presence felt throughout the card, it was the very definition of The Showcase of the Immortals. On that April night in Seattle, though, it was one immortal gearing up for one last match on wrestling's grandest stage.

After 13 years in the industry he helped grow beyond belief, Stone Cold Steve Austin walked the aisle one last time for a third and final war with The Rock under the brightest lights the business had to offer.

The two Superstars most responsible for the success of The Attitude Era waged war in a dramatic encounter that saw each man kick out of the other's finishing maneuver...then proceed to use their own finishers against them.

The crowd popped for the in-ring mastery and storytelling of the grizzled veterans, both of whom knew the shape the company was in before them and could celebrate the lengths to which they had brought it as its lead stars.

At the end of the epic, Rock delivered three straight Rock Bottoms and scored a rare, clean and decisive pinfall on Austin.

Then it happened.

The Great One leaned over Austin, the cameras on him, and exchanged a few words with his longtime co-worker. It was clear something was going on, that what fans were witnessing was not part of the script. As Rock exited stage left, not sticking around to celebrate his win, what just occurred became apparent: The selfless icon, an international movie star now, had left the stage to Austin for one last goodbye to fans.

The Texas Rattlesnake limped up the lengthy aisle and stood atop the WrestleMania stage, flipping his middle finger in a salute to the fans who had been with him and the Austin 3:16 movement from the beginning.

That match, that beautifully wild and spectacularly unpredictable match, was for them.

On a night in which Shawn Michaels returned to the stage he helped build and Kurt Angle risked another broken freaking neck to deliver in the main event, it was Austin's emotional farewell that resonates with fans, historians and analysts alike.

1. WrestleMania X-Seven

Card

Intercontinental champion Chris Jericho defeated William Regal.
Tazz and The APA defeated The Right to Censor.
Kane defeated hardcore champion Raven and Big Show to win the title in a Triple Threat match.
Eddie Guerrero defeated European champion Test to win the title.
Kurt Angle defeated Chris Benoit.
Chyna defeated women's champion Ivory to win the title.
Shane McMahon defeated Mr. McMahon in a Street Fight.
The Iron Sheik won a Gimmick Battle Royal.
Edge and Christian defeated The Hardy Boyz and WWE tag team champions The Dudley Boyz to win the titles in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match.
The Undertaker defeated Triple H.
Steve Austin defeated WWE champion The Rock to win the title.

Our countdown brings us to this, the greatest WrestleMania of all time.

WrestleMania X-Seven was not only a celebration of WWE's outstanding previous year but the conclusion of a magical ride through the Attitude Era.

While some will argue that the era continued on for quite some time after it, the event summed up everything great about that period in sports entertainment and concluded with Steve Austin, the ultimate rebel, aligning himself with the dastardly Vince McMahon for the sake of regaining his precious WWE Championship.

This came after a three-hour thrill ride that saw Undertaker and Triple H deliver the first of three extraordinary matches on the grand stage, Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle wrestle the most understated and awesome match in event history and the McMahon family drama come to a head in a Shakespearean performance masked as a Street Fight.

There will be arguments for other shows being better, the most common being WrestleMania XIX.

While that show is itself extraordinary, it fails to capture everything an entire generation of fans loved about the sport the way WrestleMania X-Seven did. On that April night in 2001, the Superstars of WWE came together to produce the most perfect card the company had ever witnessed under the most scrutiny and pressure imaginable.

With WCW dead and out of the way, McMahon's company could have loosened up a bit and taken the night off, doing just enough to provide an entertaining show. It did not rest on its laurels, though, and proceeded to produce the pro wrestling equivalent to Citizen Kane, Casablanca or Goodfellas: a masterpiece in spectacle, storytelling and athleticism that is unlikely to be eclipsed.

At least for the time being.