5 stellar WrestleMania matches that were a Superstar's first Mania match

#3 Diesel vs Shawn Michaels, WWF Championship Match at WrestleMania XI

Like Brock Lesnar, Diesel's first match at the Show of Shows was for the company's biggest prize

The Wrestlemania Debut

Diesel, who had appeared at Wrestlemania X as Shawn Michaels's bodyguard during the Ladder Match but did not compete until the following year

It's Memorable Because

Wrestlemania XI was the WWF's full reboot of their brand, the first event in its history featuring neither Hulk Hogan nor Randy Savage, the two men on whose backs the company built their biggest show. The in-ring product was largely de-emphasized on this card, with celebrity guests like Pamela Anderson, Jenny McCarthy, and current and former stars of the National Football League getting top billing (among literally dozens of others).

This match stands out mightily on a card full of half-hearted and largely subpar wrestling. It's not without its faults, like the infamous spot where Diesel kicks out of Shawn Michaels' Sweet Chin Music after a mere count of one, but it was a crucial ingredient in the Shawn Michaels babyface turn which would come the following night and begin HBK's path back to the main event and to his first WWF Championship the following year.

Diesel is just barely the focal point of his own WWF Championship victory celebration.

One of only two Wrestlemania contests using his Diesel gimmick, Kevin Nash ups his game pretty well to wrestle his real-life best friend, and puts on one of his three best matches during his first run with WWE.

How It Ranks

The match won Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Match of the Year for 1995 (and helped make Diesel's case for his Wrestler of the Year award); Meltzer gave the match four stars, putting it at least a star and a half over every other contest on the card.