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The granddaddy of them all, WrestleMania is just about a month away. The anticipation for the extravaganza is sky high among the WWE Universe. And since the pay-per-view is richer than Richie rich when it comes to history, we have decided to take a look back at some of the best WrestleMania matches with this latest series.Over the last thirty years, WWE fans have witnessed some great WrestleMania matches. The ladder match between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania X ranks right up there as one of the bests.It was the first major ladder match in the WWE and it turned out to be the best one as well. With that said, here is another look at this classic between Michaels and Ramon.
#1 The buildup
Almost all the other matches in this series came because of WWE’s creative team but this one was different. This match was a direct effect of Michaels and his bad boy attitude back in the mid-90s.
Michaels decided to walk out of the company in 1994 when he was having a run as the Intercontinental champion. The reason for his walk out is still a paradox as there are many rumors out there. Some suggest that he was tested positive for steroids while others suggest that he did not want to drop the championship.
Either way, WWE booked a battle royal to determine the new champion. Razor Ramon went on to win the match and became the new champion. Michaels however returned eventually and claimed to be the champion.
He carried the gold around since he never lost it and ignored the achievement of Ramon. Since there were two champions, WWE decided to settle the dispute once and for all at WrestleMania.
And to raise the bar, the company made it a ladder match so that the rightful owner would reach out and grab the title in the end.
#2 The Match
This match has been dissected in every possible way in the past two decades. Rather than being the high flying affair that we’ve seen on the ladder matches that followed, this one was more realistic.
Both Michaels and Ramon used the ladder as a weapon intelligently instead of just throwing away high spots. Michaels’ bodyguard Diesel was initially ringside but once he clotheslined Ramon at one point of the match, referee Earl Hebner decided to send Diesel packing.
Once Diesel was out of the picture, the lime light was completely on Michaels and Ramon. Ladder marks started to appear all over the body of the superstars and the intensity rose as the match moved towards its end.
Ramon suplexing Michaels from the ladder, Michaels using the ladder to sandwich Ramon and the legendary splash from Michaels were all stand out spots from the match.
In the climax sequence, Ramon pushed Michaels off the ladder and the heart break kid got tangled in the ring ropes. He couldn’t free himself in time to stop Ramon from grabbing the gold and winning the match.
#3 The Fallout
Soon after Michaels failed to win the Championship, his bodyguard, Diesel challenged Ramon. Diesel would then go on to win the title with the help of Michaels. WWE tried to recreate the Ramon – Michaels magic at 1995 SummerSlam, but the match was nowhere near their WrestleMania outing.
At the end of the day, this WrestleMania showdown went down in history as one of the best WWE matches. Also, it was the reason why WWE went full throttle on the concept of ladder matches.
The fans saw a lot of TLC’s and Money in the Bank encounters with ladders as protagonists after this one, but this one on one encounter between Michaels and Scott Hall still is the benchmark that has to be broken.
