WrestleMania is the biggest wrestling event of the year! Complete with the Hall of Fame ceremony and the more recent additions of NXT Takeover and the multitude of independent promotions that also run events during the week, the hosting city becomes a melting pot of wrestlers and fans. This year is the thirty-fifth anniversary of WrestleMania and we here at Pro Wrestling Journal thought it’d be fun to give you our top ten Mania Moments as we ramp up to the Show of Shows. Keep in mind that this is purely a personal list and not based on any real merits other than what I enjoyed. Let’s take a look!
10. The Shield’s WrestleMania debut-WrestleMania 30
If you follow me and my writings, you know just how much I love The Shield. I think this was one of their best entrances as a unit, coming through the massive crowd with their muzzles. They looked intimidating as they circled the ring, ready to take on Kane and the New Age Outlaws. The fact that they won their Mania debut match just makes this moment even sweeter.
9. Charlotte Flair’s entrance repeats history-WrestleMania 34
A few years prior to her match with Asuka, Flair was part of Triple H’s WrestleMania entrance alongside fellow NXT alumni Alexa Bliss and Sasha Banks. How fitting that in her own glamorous golden entrance, she would involve some male NXT talent. Everything in WWE comes full circle.
8. The Streak is broken-WrestleMania 30
As a child, the Undertaker was amazing. As an adult, he’s still just as amazing but I truly believed that he was going to retire with the Streak intact. I still have his 18-0 dvd and watch it when I feel nostalgic. To see the referee count to three and the titantron flash 21-1 was like being sucker punched in the gut. I was so shocked and upset. Even now I specifically avoid watching the end of that match and it’s been five years. I’m not over it; don’t judge me.
7. Charlotte Flair wins the new WWE Women’s Championship-WrestleMania 32
Not to take away from the women of the Divas Era, but there was something about watching a new champion be crowned with a new championship. The Divas title was officially gone, both the belt and the name of the division. It was now simply the women’s division, the women were called superstars, and we got a belt that was on par with the men’s top belt. It felt like the women were finally starting to get the respect they deserve, instead of being relegated to eye candy and sexualized five-minute bouts.
6. Seth Rollins becomes the Kingslayer-WrestleMania 33
I loved everything about the feud between Seth Rollins and Triple H. Rollins also had fantastic gear for this match. He had me worried a bit about his knee, but seeing him overcome Triple H, slaying the King of Kings, and officially becoming the Kingslayer was deeply satisfying in a way I hadn’t felt about a feud blowoff match in a long time.
5. Edge spears Jeff Hardy in mid-air in TLC 2-WreslteMania X-7
I think this is one of the most iconic visuals in WrestleMania history. I remember seeing Jeff dangling while holding onto the tag team belts and Edge launching himself from the ladder. I remember the sound their impact made on the match. It was awesome! Even now, I still go back and watch the whole match just for that one moment. I almost wish we could see a repeat of it.
4. Shawn Michaels’ career is over-WrestleMania 26
The whole build up to this feud was amazing and the contrasting color schemes of The Undertaker and Shawn Michael’s ring gear was just icing on the cake. The whole idea of Undertakers then-intact streak and Michaels’ career being on the line created a sense of importance. When the bell rung and it had sunk in that Michaels’ career was over, I was shocked. I remember just staring at my television in a sort of disbelief; it definitely left an impression on me.
3. Edge wins the first-ever Money in the Bank briefcase-WrestleMania 21
Edge was one of my absolute favorites growing up and the Money in the Bank ladder match is still one of my favorite gimmick matches to this day. This is another one of those iconic moments in WrestleMania history as it was the beginning of Money in the Bank. I still fondly remember Edge gripping the little black briefcase as the very first Mr. Money in the Bank.
2. The Hardys return-WrestleMania 33
I rarely use this phrase, but I marked out when the Hardys’ theme at WrestleMania 33. My roommate and I had just started on the latter portion of our Mania snacks when that familiar beat dropped. When the brothers actually stepped out onto the ramp, I almost cried. The Hardys have been a favorite team of mine since I was a little girl and though I had followed their career in other promotions, seeing them in WWE was like seeing them at home. Them winning he tag titles only sweetened the return.
1. Seth Rollins cashes in-WrestleMania 31
This will go down as one of the most iconic WrestleMania closings in history. You can still find videos and gifs of Rollins helicoptering the WWE belt pretty much all over social media. From the cash-in to aforementioned helicoptering, the closing moments of this WrestleMania were definitely some of the most memorable in a while. I hope to see this clip in Rollins’ eventual Hall of Fame induction video.
