Hello everyone, and welcome the 25th edition of WrestleMania Rewind. As the edition suggests, we will be looking at WrestleMania 25 today, which was the Silver jubilee edition of WrestleManias, and hence, was a big deal. The WWE pulled out all the stops for this one, and had also arranged one of the biggest, and best matches in the company’s history, which we will see as we go along. This WrestleMania followed last year’s event, which saw Taker defeating Edge to win the World Heavyweight title, and Orton retaining his title against Cena and Triple H.
WrestleMania 25 came to us from Reliant Stadium, in Houston, Texas. The main card featured Randy Orton challenging Triple H for the WWE title. The other main event featured Edge defending his title against John Cena and the Big Show in a triple threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship. The other main match featured two legends, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, as Shawn challenged the Deadman and vowed to break his WrestleMania streak. This WrestleMania again broke the record for the highest grossing PPV in WWE history! Without further ado, let us jump right into the action.
The show opened with The Fink welcoming us, and giving way to Nicole Sherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls. Good way to begin the show.
Under card:
CM Punk defeated Kane, Mark Henry (With Tony Atlas), Montel Vontavious Porter, Shelton Benjamin, Kofi Kingston, Christian and Finlay (With Hornswoggle)
The show opened with the Money In the Bank ladder match, which saw some MITB veterans like Punk, Kane, Benjamin, MVP and Finlay. It also included Mark Henry, which I thought was a mistake. Going into the match, Punk claimed he’d win the MITB ladder match for the second year in a row. The bout saw some good athletic action from Kingston and Benjamin, which was why they were included in the match. Christian got back to the WWE after his run with TNA, so that was nice to see. The match went on for 14 minutes, and the end came when Punk pushed Kane away to grab the brief case for the second year straight! The crowd popped big for him, as no one saw it coming. A good bout to open the show.
Santina Marella won by last eliminating Beth Phoenix and Melina in a 25 diva battle royal to be crowned Miss WrestleMania
A comedy match which involved all the divas of the past and present. A horrible battle royale, and I’m not sure whose idea it was. Bad 6 minutes which ended when Santino, who dressed up as a girl and changed his name to ‘Santina’, threw Beth and Melina to the outside to win the battle royal, and thus becoming ‘Miss WrestleMania’. Okay, moving on.
Chris Jericho defeated Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat and Jimmy Snuka (With Ric Flair) in a Handicap elimination match
You had three legends who were three of the best in pro wrestling, period, taking on Chris Jericho. It was supposed to be a Jericho-Mickey Rourke feud, while he was promoting his movie ‘The Wrestler’, but Mickey didn’t want to get involved physically. Anyway, Flair was in the corner of the legends, as he retired the year before. The match went on for 9 minutes, as Jericho eliminated Snuka and then Piper. The end came when Jericho pinned Steamboat after the codebreaker for the win. Post match, Mickey came into the ring and punched Jericho out, thus celebrating with the legends. Steamboat looked great in the match for a guy who was 56. A bad match, but it was never a point to put on a good one.
Matt Hardy defeated Jeff Hardy in an Extreme rules match
This was the culmination of the Matt-Jeff feud. It all started when Matt cost Jeff the WWE title by turning on him, because he was jealous of his younger brother. This set up their match at WrestleMania, which went on for 18 minutes. The match saw some bumps from these daredevils as we expect, and turned out to be a good bout, as the crowd was firmly behind Jeff Hardy. The end came when Jeff missed a leg drop, and Matt took advantage of it, wrapping a chair around Jeff’s neck and giving him a Twist of Fate for the pin and the win. Ouch, that had to hurt.
Mid card:
Rey Mysterio defeated John “Bradshaw” Layfield for the WWE Intercontinental Title
It wasn’t a match, but more of an angle. As soon as the match started, Rey gave JBL an Enjiguiri, followed by a 619 and a top rope splash to win the WWE IC Title in about 22 seconds! Post match, JBL said he was quitting the WWE. This was his retirement match.
The Undertaker defeated Shawn Michaels
The match everyone was waiting for. They had a great build up, with Shawn getting under Taker’s skin. The entrances were amazing as well, as one portrayed to be an angel descending from the heavens while the other coming up from the pits of hell. This is one of my favourite matches of all time, as these two legends showed the guys in the back just how to put on a classic. I could rewind this match again and again, and see it without getting bored. Great spots by the two, as Taker did his leaping dive over the top rope for Shawn to avoid it. It seemed like Taker fell on his neck. Ouch! What a series of reversals and counter reversals. The crowd was ecstatic seeing these two legends give their all. Both of them were from Texas, so it was ‘home’ for both of them. Both the guys kicked out of their finishers as the crowd kept chanting ‘This is Awesome’, and it indeed was. After a 30 minute classic, Taker caught Shawn during his moonsault and came down with an emphatic Tombstone for the pin and the win. The crowd was on its feet for majority of the match. Post match, Shawn left while Taker posed inside the ring. Wow, an amazing match to say the least.
John Cena defeated Edge and The Big Show in a Triple threat match for the World Heavyweight championship
The crowd didn’t seem to be interested in this match, which was following an amazing bout. Your typical three-way which saw all the guys getting their offense in. In a memorable spot, Edge speared Show through the security wall which woke up the crowd. The end was also nicely done, as Cena lifted Show for an AA with Edge on his back with the sleeper hold still locked on. John then covered Show for the pin and to win the World Heavyweight Championship. An average match with a memorable ending.
Main event:
Triple H defeated Randy Orton for the WWE Championship
No matter which match followed, it suffered due to the quality of Taker – HBK match. Ideally, that should have closed the show. Anyway, this was an all out brawl, following a personal feud between Triple H and Randy Orton. A very slow paced, boring match that the crowd didn’t care much for, except for their signature moves. The match went way too long for anyone’s liking, nearing the 25 minute mark. The end came when Triple H hit Orton with sledgehammer and then the pedigree for the pin and the win.
Analysis: *** ½ (Out of 5 stars)
That’s way too less considering the 5 star match between Shawn and The Undertaker. That was once in a lifetime match in the truest sense. They both showed just why they’re considered to be the best in the history of the business. The crowd went nuts for the entire match. The rest of the card was very underwhelming, and the main events didn’t deliver. Anyway, that does it from me for now. Join us again as we move along in our series, on our way to WrestleMania 29!
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