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In 1985, Vince McMahon started a pro wrestling phenomenon: WrestleMania. The WWE chairman put everything on the line when it came to creating WrestleMania. If the first one in 1985 had tanked, then WWE likely would have along with it.
Lucky for Vince, WWE, and the fans, it was a huge success. Now, almost 33 years later, the event gets bigger every year and we're not too far away from the 34th edition of The Showcase of The Immortals. It's the biggest date in the pro wrestling calendar and marks the beginning and end of a new year in WWE.
More often than not Vince wants to give the fans some feel-good moments at WrestleMania each year. That means most of the time babyfaces win at the pay per view. That's not always the case though and here are ten times that heels stood tall at The Show of Shows.
#10 The Miz (WrestleMania XXVII)
On paper, The Miz versus John Cena isn't exactly the blockbuster match you would expect to close out the biggest show of the year. It wasn't that great a bout in reality either. That's probably why WWE felt the need to interject The Rock into proceedings.
The match actually ended in a double count out, but Rock — the WrestleMania host that year — came to the ring and wouldn't let that happen. The People's Champion restarted the match under no disqualification rules.
Turns out he did that so he could gain revenge on Cena for an AA he received six nights earlier. The Massachusetts native received a Rock Bottom and was covered by Miz who picked up the win. Despite a heel winning the Mania main event, fans were still given their feel-good moment. The Rock returned to the ring and delivered a People's Elbow to the victor.
#9 Kurt Angle (WrestleMania 21)
Throughout a Superstar's career, they are likely to be called upon to play both a babyface and a heel. Very few are afforded the opportunity to play one or the other for their entire run. Most prefer or are better at being one or the other, but there are a select few who can do both to perfection.
Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle are two of those select few who can play the role of a face or a heel equally well. At WrestleMania 21 the two of them clashed in what was always going to be a terrific match. At the time, HBK was a babyface and Angle was more of a heel.
In keeping with this list, it was, of course, the Angle who won this one. The Olympic gold medallist synched in his patented ankle lock and made Michaels tap. HBK would get his win back later that year at Vengeance, however.
#8 Evolution (WrestleMania XX)
Nowadays when you think of WrestleMania you think of stadiums filled with tens of thousands of people. Well for the 20th edition of The Showcase of the Immortals WWE returned to its spiritual home, Madison Square Garden.
The marquee event called for some marquee matches, and one of those occurred in the form of a handicap bout. Three-quarters of Evolution (Randy Orton, Batista, and Ric Flair) took on the reformed Rock N Sock Connection.
WWE went against giving the fans a feel-good moment in this one in favour of having the guys who would be sticking around for the long haul pick up a win. Orton hit an RKO on Mick Foley for the win and, a month later, the two would have their famously brutal hardcore match at Backlash 2004.
#7 Edge (WrestleMania 22)
Sticking with the Mick Foley theme, Mrs Foley's Baby Boy may have had a Hall of Fame career but his WrestleMania record leaves a lot to be desired. Two years after he lost to Evolution alongside The Rock he did battle with Edge, and he lost again.
Foley went up against a heel Edge at WrestleMania 22 in his speciality, a hardcore match. Even though Foley lost the match, it added another unforgettable moment to his long and storied career. The Rated-R Superstar speared Foley off the ring apron and through a flaming table.
Before that Lita, who was with Edge at the time, had hit the Hardcore Legend between the legs with his own patented barbed wire bat. That turned the tide in the match and thus led to a heel Edge going on to pick up the win.
#6 The Rock (WrestleMania XIX)
The rivalry between The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin will forever go down as one of the greatest in pro wrestling history. The careers of the two megastars were very much intertwined and they helped define a generation in WWE.
The sheer greatness of the pair's feud meant that across five years they headlined three WrestleManias against one another. Something that no two Superstars have done before and likely a feat that will never be replicated.
The final showdown came at WrestleMania XIX. Austin had won both the previous bouts between the two and this time it was Rock's turn, who was a heel at the time. Fans didn't know it when it happened but it would be Austin's last outing as a professional wrestler.
#5 Yokozuna (WrestleMania IX)
The ending to WrestleMania IX was a pretty unique one. The main event featured Bret Hart and Yokozuna battling it out for the WWE Championship. Yoko won and became the youngest WWE Champion in history at the time.
Not only did a heel win the main event, but he won it in typical heel fashion. Yokozuna's manager, Mr Fuji, threw salt into the eyes of The Hitman thus handing his client the win. That wasn't all she wrote though.
The biggest babyface in WWE history, Hulk Hogan, was not too happy about Yokozuna and Mr Fuji's antics.The Hulkster came to the ring and demanded a title match, which was granted. So a heel may have won initially but there was still a good guy leaving WrestleMania with the WWE Championship that year.
#4 Triple H (WrestleMania XIX)
The match between Booker T and Triple H at WrestleMania XIX is one that was marred by controversy. The Game was the heel, as he so often has been throughout his career, and was accused of bringing Booker's race into the equation during the build to their match.
With that in mind, it was assumed by many that Booker would get the win when they finally faced off. That was not the case of course otherwise this match wouldn't have made the list. Triple H won the bout and retained his World Heavyweight Championship.
Like Yokozuna The Cerebral Assassin needed the heel help of a friend to ensure he left with the championship. Ric Flair was at ringside and it was him slamming Booker's knee into the steel steps that started the ball rolling on Triple H's win that year.
#3 Seth Rollins (WrestleMania 31)
While the main event for WrestleMania 34 hasn't been confirmed, it's highly likely that it will be a rematch of Brock Lesnar versus Roman Reigns. A main event we've seen before as the two behemoths did battle at the close of WrestleMania 31.
We never found out who was the better man though. Just as the match started to enter its closing stages Seth Rollins interrupted and cashed in his Money In The Bank contract, meaning that he was added to the bout.
The Architect ultimately ended up winning what became a triple threat, and at the time Rollins was a fully fledged heel. Less than a year removed from his infamous betrayal of The Shield he managed to screw Reigns over for a second time on The Grandest Stage Of Them All.
#2 Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania XXX)
WrestleMania XXX will go down as one of the most memorable nights in WWE history. Daniel Bryan had his crowning moment by becoming WWE World Heavyweight Champion, and Brock Lesnar shocked the wrestling world by ending The Undertaker's streak.
The Undertaker's WrestleMania streak was the most sacred thing in WWE. Someone was given the opportunity to break it every year but it seemed an unwritten rule that no one would ever bring it to an end. Then in 2014, The Beast Incarnate did exactly that.
The moment that Lesnar got that pinfall was probably the quietest a packed stadium has ever been. For months after, Paul Heyman bragged about his client's achievement and it will forever be the biggest shock in WrestleMania history.
#1 Stone Cold Steve Austin (WrestleMania X-Seven)
As mentioned earlier on in this list, the epic rivalry between The Rock and Stone Cold led the two icons of WWE to three headline slots together at WrestleMania. Arguably the best of those three matches came at WrestleMania X-Seven.
Stone Cold Steve Austin went into the match as the challenger and a babyface, but during the closing stages of the epic match, the unthinkable happened. Austin sold his soul to the devil himself and had Vince McMahon help him take the belt from The People's Champion.
It was a heel turn that nobody saw coming, and one that Austin says he regrets all these years later. On his podcast, the Rattlesnake has admitted that he didn't think he should have turned heel that night in Houston and that it was one of the biggest regrets of his illustrious career.
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