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Professional wrestling has never shied away from using celebrities to attract fans and media attention. This strategy has worked effectively in the past. The Rock ‘N’ Wrestling Connection of the 1980s was one of the best business moves in WWE history.
Long-time wrestling fans might also remember Mike Tyson's appearances in WWE and his involvement in the feud between 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels. It was one of the most exciting times in wrestling history, and Tyson's presence added a lot to their WrestleMania 14 feud.
Younger wrestling fans might remember Arrow star Stephen Amell, who appeared in WWE in 2015 and went on to have a tag match at SummerSlam. Political commentator Jon Stewart was involved with Seth Rollins and John Cena. Both celebrities were beloved by fans, and were used to make an impact in WWE.
Boxing star Tyson Fury is set to take on Braun Strowman at the upcoming Crown Jewel pay-per-view. The bout will certainly attract more eyes to the product and could potentially convert boxing fans into wrestling fans, which is the goal.
With all that in mind, we take a look at the five best celebrity matches in WWE history.
#5. Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos vs. Eve Torres and Beth Phoenix - WrestleMania 28
Lifelong wrestling fan Maria Menounos is arguably one of the most popular female celebrities to ever compete in WWE. She has wrestled quite a few tag team matches, but her match at WrestleMania 28 was arguably the best of her career. In 2011, she made her WWE debut and immediately began feuding with Beth Phoenix.
Over the next few months, the television star got the upper hand on Beth, which led to a match at WrestleMania 28. Menounos teamed up with Kelly Kelly to face the team of Eve Torres and Beth Phoenix. Celebrities usually don't wrestle for most of the match, but that wasn't the case here as Menounos was inside the ring longer than her partner.
Menounos was also willing to take more than a few bumps and in the end, won the match by pinning Beth Phoenix. It got fans excited, and Menounos proved herself worthy.
#4. WrestleMania 2 Battle Royal
At 1986's WrestleMania 2, WWE held a 20-man Battle Royal. This wasn't your ordinary 20-man Battle Royal, as it was billed as an inter-sport event. The match included NFL stars along with WWE stars. The inclusion of the football players was expected to bring in more eyes to the product and convert football fans to wrestling fans.
This proved to be one of the most popular matches in WrestleMania history, especially since the rest of the card failed to produce the memorable moments fans have come to expect at WrestleMania. Labeled as the battle between WWE and the NFL, fans were curious to see how their favorite football players would compete against the top stars in wrestling. While the wrestlers took most of the bumps, the footballers brought in most of the attention.
The match proved to be fantastic, and the standout performer was Chicago Bears star William "The Refrigerator" Perry. Despite being eliminated, the NFL star proceeded to pull Big John Studd out of the ring, eliminating him from the match. Andre the Giant would inevitably go on to win the Battle Royal.
The match served its purpose of bringing new fans into the world of pro wrestling and was quite different from anything the WWE Universe had ever seen before.
#3 Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Lawrence Taylor - WrestleMania 11
Bam Bam Bigelow attacked NFL legend Lawrence Taylor at the 1994 Royal Rumble. This set up a feud between the two leading up to a huge main event match at WrestleMania XI.
There was a lot of hype going into the match, as there were public workouts and press conferences. Taylor's famous NFL friends were in attendance at WrestleMania to support him. Since he had a sports background, fans were curious about how he would perform in a wrestling ring and that brought new eyes to the WWE product.
Taylor and Bigelow put on one of the best celebrity matches in WWE history, far exceeding expectations. The beloved NFL star won the bout defeating the heel Bigelow. Fans went home happy.
Lawrence Taylor showed a passion for professional wrestling and the fact that he trained and put in a lot of work was evident on wrestling's biggest stage. Taylor proved that he wasn't there exclusively for the money. He truly wanted to entertain the fans and earned their respect at WrestleMania XI.
#2. The Big Show vs. Floyd Mayweather - WrestleMania 24
Floyd Mayweather is one of the most famous boxers in the world. In 2008, he was involved in a feud with WWE Superstar Big Show. After being coaxed, Mayweather jumped the barricade and attacked Big Show. By doing so, Mayweather put himself on a collision course with a man three times his size.
Initially, Mayweather was a babyface, but after fans rejected him, showed impressive range by turning heel. Mayweather then agreed to face Big Show in a No DQ match at WrestleMania 24. This match dominated the headlines heading into the PPV, but there was also a lot of pressure on the two men to entertain the fans.
This was Mayweather's first wrestling match, but he knocked the ball out of the park. There were some questions regarding believability just because of the size difference between the two athletes, but 'Money' evened things up with a pair of brass knuckles and a steel chair. Size doesn't matter so much, when you know how to bend the rules.
This match set a high bar, as Floyd Mayweather took the match seriously and put forth maximum effort into entertaining the fans.
#1. Mr. T and Hulk Hogan vs. Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff - WrestleMania 1
In 1985, Vince McMahon took a huge gamble and spent a lot of money to bring in celebrities for the inaugural WrestleMania. The risk paid off, as the product attracted interest from fans and the mainstream media. One of those celebrities was Mr.T, who acted in Rocky III alongside Hulk Hogan.
Mr. T was a popular actor and was brought in to team up with Hogan. They faced the duo of Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff in a classic tag team match at WrestleMania. This was the main event of the biggest WrestleMania in history. A lot was at stake.
The match had fans on the edge of their seats and Mr.T fit in seamlessly. The babyface duo emerged victorious in the end, to the delight of the fans at Madison Square Garden. Mr.T continued to be a special attraction over the next year.
Roddy Piper commented that Mr. T wasn't liked backstage because he was an actor who took the main event spot away from a fellow wrestler. It's hard to argue against Mr. T, however, who excelled under the bright lights of WrestleMania. Considering that this happened in the mid-80s, Mr.T set the blueprint for all celebrities who would follow him into the wrestling business.
