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WrestleMania 33 will take place later today and it will not only be WWE’s biggest night of the year but also for the fans. From Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker to Bret Hart making Stone Cold pass out, and The Rock taking on the immortal Hulk Hogan, we all have our favourite WrestleMania moments.
To celebrate 33 years of the ‘showcase of the immortals’, we take a look at WrestleMania’s past to pick out interesting stats and facts.
#33 Jerry Lawler’s astonishing career on commentary
Jerry Lawler commentated at 21 different WrestleManias, including commentating on the WrestleMania pre-show. Lawler’s first WrestleMania appearance on commentary came at WrestleMania X, all the way back in 1994.
Lawler’s latest WrestleMania appearance came last year at WrestleMania 32 when he was at the commentary table during the pre-show. Lawler has said that he will be on commentary for at least one match at WrestleMania 33, which will take his tally to 22.
#32 Different cities
WrestleMania 2 is the only WrestleMania to have taken place in 3 different venues in 3 cities.
The show took place at three venues: the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New York; the Rosemont Horizon in Rosemont, Illinois; and the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California.
WWE never went back to the multiple-venue setting again, making WrestleMania 2 the only WrestleMania to ever take place from different venues.
#31 Monday blues
Sticking to WrestleMania 2, it is also the only ever WrestleMania to have taken place on a Monday, instead of on a Sunday, like we are used to. Why was WrestleMania 2 held on a Monday? Well, WWE never gave an official reason for the decision so we’ll probably never know why.
#30 ‘Mania without a singles matches
WrestleMania 2000, the 16th annual WWE WrestleMania event has the distinction of being the only WrestleMania to not have a straight up one-on-one single’s wrestling match.
Yes, The Kat vs. Terri was a singles match on paper but the match was an overbooked fiasco. The Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young were at ringside during the match and got heavily involved in the match while Val Venis was the special guest referee.
#29 WrestleMania without a tag-team match
WrestleMania 21 has the unique distinction of being the only WrestleMania to not feature a tag-team bout on the card.
The card featured mostly singles matches except for the then-traditional Money In The Bank Ladder match and a Battle Royal. The show was headlined by Triple H and Batista but sadly for fans of Tag-Team wrestling, WWE found a spot for Big Show vs. Akebono but not for the WWE Tag-Team Championships to be defended at the very least.
#28 Oh, Dolph….
Believe it or not, Dolph Ziggler has not had a one-on-one singles match at WrestleMania….ever.
Ziggler competed at WrestleMania for the first time in 2010 at WrestleMania XXVI when he unsuccessfully took part in the Money In The Bank ladder match. Since then, Ziggler has never had a singles match at ‘Mania, which is a shame considering how talented Ziggler is in the ring.
The same story rings true for Ziggler once again this year as he will take part in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
#27 Dusty finishes
WrestleMania is arguably WWE’s biggest night of the year. However, for the first decade and a half of WrestleMania, the WrestleMania card saw a number of matches ending in dusty finishes.
In the first 15 WrestleManias, 33 matches ended in no-contests, count outs or draws.
# 26 Multiple personas
WWE Hall of Famer Charles Wright has appeared at WrestleMania under four gimmicks. Wright made his first WrestleMania appearance under his Papa Shango gimmick when he interfered in the main event of WrestleMania VIII between Hulk Hogan and Sid Justice.
Wright would go on to appear at ‘Mania under the monikers of Kama, The Godfather and his Right To Censor character – The Goodfather.
#25 The (winning ) streak
The longest winning streak at WrestleMania is unsurprisingly held by the ‘deadman’ himself – The Undertaker. ‘Taker holds the record for his undefeated run of 21 matches which was finally broken at WrestleMania 30 by Brock Lesnar.
Since then ‘Taker has beaten Bray Wyatt and Shane McMahon at WM31 and WM32. He will face Roman Reigns at this year’s WrestleMania in what could be his last ‘Mania match.
#24 On the poster, not on the card
Razor Ramon was featured in the poster for WrestleMania 12. However, he ended up not even featuring on the card. He was slated to face Goldust on the night but was eventually pulled from the show and replaced by ‘Rowdy’ Roddy Piper.
The reason for Razor being pulled from the ‘Mania card is probably the fact that he got suspended for six weeks because of ‘unprofessional conduct’ in February 1996.
#23 WrestleMania without a world title match
WrestleMania 1 is the only edition of the PPV where WWE’s top title hasn’t been defended. We’ll never know why WWE made the baffling decision to not have their top title defended at their first ever super show, but that’s the decision they went with.
The show was instead main-evented by WWE Champion Hulk Hogan teaming up with Mr T to take on the team of Rowdy Roddy Piper and Paul Orndoff. However, since WrestleMania 1 ended up doing blockbuster business, the decision to not have the WWE Championship defended didn’t really hurt WWE.
#22 Five Intercontinental Champions have retained the title after losing
Through the history of WrestleMania, the WWE Intercontinental Championship has often been overlooked and badly booked despite being one of WWE’s most prestigious titles with a history going back to Pat Patterson.
Often booked as an afterthought, there have been five occasions in WWE history where the WWE Intercontinental Championship has been retained despite the champion losing. Five different IC champions — Shawn Michaels, Greg Valentine, The Honky Tonk Man, Mr Perfect and Jeff Jarrett — have retained their title after losing the match due to count out or DQ.
#21 Most WrestleMania losses
The WrestleMania record for most losses is surprisingly held jointly by both Triple H and Shawn Michaels, who have lost at the ‘Grand Daddy of Them All’ on 11 different occasions.
Triple H’s first WrestleMania loss came on his ‘Mania debut at WrestleMania 12 where he was promptly squashed by the Ultimate Warrior in 1 minute and 39 seconds. His latest loss came last year at WrestleMania 32 when Roman Reigns defeated him in the main-event.
Michaels’ first WrestleMania appearance came all the way back in 1985 when The Rockers lost to the Twin Towers (Big Bossman and Akeem) at WrestleMania 5. Shawn Michaels’ last ‘Mania match was his historic career vs. streak bout with the Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVI, which he lost and then retired.
#20 Evolution and The Undertaker
The Undertaker has defeated every member of Evolution at WrestleManias over the years.
Triple H was the first member of Evolution to challenge Undertaker and he was promptly defeated (HHH has lost to Taker a total of 3 times at WrestleManias). He was followed by the ‘Nature Boy’ Ric Flair, who stared at the lights for the ‘Deadman’.
Then came Randy Orton at WrestleMania 21 and Batista at WrestleMania 23, both of whom were also vanquished by ‘Taker as he completed a clean sweep of Evolution.
#19 Intercontinental blues
We head back once again to another stat on how the Intercontinental title was mistreated at WrestleManias over the years.
Over the course of 9 years, from WrestleMania 19 to WrestleMania 27, the Intercontinental Championship was only defended once at WrestleMania 25 where Rey Mysterio defeated JBL in just 21 seconds.
#18 Consecutive ‘Mania matches
The record for the longest run of consecutive matches is held by none other than, you guessed it, The Undertaker.
Undertaker has now competed at 16 WrestleManias in a row, a run that will extend to 17 in a couple of days when he meets Roman Reigns at Orlando in what could be the Deadman’s WWE swansong.
#17 The Divas Title
The WWE Divas title was never really taken seriously as a prestigious WWE title and we need to look no further than the history of the Divas Championship at WrestleManias as proof.
The WWE Divas title went undefended at WrestleMania for six straight years between WrestleMania 24 to WrestleMania 29. The abysmal record was broken at WrestleMania 30 when AJ Lee defeated Aksana, Alicia Fox, Brie Bella, Cameron, Emma, Eva Marie, Layla, Naomi, Natalya, Nikki Bella, Rosa Mendes, Summer Rae, and Tamina Snuka in the Vickie Guerrero Invitational match for the WWE Divas Championship.
Thankfully WWE takes women’s wrestling a lot more seriously in 2017 and both the RAW and SmackDown Women’s Championships will be defended at WrestleMania 33.
#16 Shortest WrestleMania main-event
When you think about a main-event for your biggest show of the year, you’d always want it to be a tense, back and forth affair that draws the fans in and not a short match.
However, that’s exactly what happened in the impromptu post-main-event main-event of WrestleMania 9 when Hulk Hogan came out to “aid” Bret Hart and challenge Yokozuna on his behalf after Yokozuna had beaten Bret thanks to interference from Mr Fuji.
After Hogan and Yokozuna’s match officially started, it lasted only 22 seconds until Hogan won the WWE Championship and completely destroyed Yokozuna’s credibility.
#15 Main-event changes
WrestleMania 30 was headlined by Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton and Batista. Incidentally, it is the first WrestleMania since Wrestlemania 19 to not have been to not have had John Cena, Triple H or The Undertake headline the show.
#14 An ending by submission
WrestleMania 20 has a unique distinction. In the then 20-year history of the event, it was the first WrestleMania to have ever ended with a submission finish.
The main event saw the incoming champion Triple H defend his title against Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels. After a nearly 25-minute long match, Benoit countered an attempted Pedigree from Triple H into a Crippler Crossface and made Trips tap to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Benoit was then joined in the ring by longtime friend Eddie Guerrero, who had himself won the WWE Championship earlier in the night, as they celebrated together. Sadly, a little over three years later, both men would pass away.
#13 One night only
At WrestleMania 9, Yokozuna became the only wrestler to have won and lost a title on the same night at a WrestleMania. We are not counting the Hardcore Championship, of course.
Yokozuna won the title in the advertised main event against Bret Hart, thanks to Mr Fuji and the salt he threw into Bret’s eyes. After the match, the valiant (sarcasm) Hulk Hogan came out to challenge Yokozuna and won back the belt in 22 seconds.
#12 The influence of The Kliq
We’re all familiar with The Kliq – Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall and Sean Waltman – and the influence they’ve had in the WWE over the last three decades.
What’s truly astonishing is the fact that every member of The Kliq has appeared at a WrestleMania since WrestleMania V in 1989, where Shawn Michaels took on Big Bossman and Akeem along with his Rockers partner Marty Jannetty.
#11 Longest & Shortest
WrestleMania, over the years, has matches of varying lengths from squashes to long timeless classics. The longest WrestleMania match of all time was the classic between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XII which lasted 1 hour 1 minute and 52 seconds.
The shortest WrestleMania match ever came last year, at WrestleMania 32, when The Rock pinned Erick Rowan in 6 seconds. That’s longer than some sneezes.
#10 Shane McMahon’s connection to Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania XX
It’s fair to stay that Goldberg and Brock Lesnar stunk up the joint at WrestleMania XX. The two behemoths were both on the verge of leaving the WWE and the New York crowd let them have it.
One person who was caught on camera booing along with the New York crowd was none other than current SmackDown GM Shane McMahon, as noted by Dave Meltzer. No wonder the fans love Shane the most out of all the McMahons.
#9 A ‘Mania without a title change?
You would think that there would be at least one title change at WWE’s biggest PPV of the year. That was true for most WrestleMania’s except one – WrestleMania 27. Surprisingly, WWE only booked three title matches on the night with the WWE Championship, WWE World Heavyweight Championship and the WWE US Championship being defended.
#8 Most world titles
John Cena holds the record for the most world title wins at WrestleMania’s with 4.
Cena’s first world title win at WrestleMania was also his first WWE world title. It came at WrestleMania 21 against JBL. He went on to win WWE world titles again at WrestleMania 25, 26 and 29.
#7 Main-Eventers under 30
Headlining WrestleMania 31, at the age of 29, Roman Reigns was the first man under 30 to main event a WrestleMania since Randy Orton. Technically, Seth Rollins (who cashed in his Money In The Bank during the match) aged 28, also headlined the WrestleMania.
#6 Double duty
The only two WWE Superstars to have ever done double duty at two consecutive WrestleMania’s are Yokozuna and Cesaro.
Yokozuna’s came at WrestleMania 9 and 10. At WrestleMania 9 he won the WWE Championship from Bret Hart before losing it back to Hulk Hogan right after. At WrestleMania 10 he beat Lex Luger before losing to Bret Hart in the main event.
Cesaro did double duty at WrestleMania 30 and 31. He participated in Tag-Team matches with Tyson Kidd on both occasions as well as the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
#5 Four decades of WrestleManias
The history of WrestleMania has spanned over four decades from WrestleMania 1 in 1985 to the WrestleMania 33, which will take place later today.
Only one WWE Superstar has appeared at a WrestleMania in every one of those four decades – the ‘Showstopper’ Shawn Michaels. Michaels appeared in his first WrestleMania in 1989 and has continued to appear at WrestleMania’s even after his retirement. He did a special cameo last year at WrestleMania 32.
#4 The Miz
This stat actually shocked me. The Miz has never been pinned or submitted at a WrestleMania. He has lost, but he has never himself been pinned or submitted. He has been eliminated from Battle Royals, though.
The Miz made his WrestleMania debut at WrestleMania 24 where he competed in a Battle Royal where he was eliminated by Jamie Noble. This year, he teams up with his wife Maryse to face John Cena and Nikki Bella.
Will Miz be pinned or be made to submit this year?
#3 Submissions
WrestleMania matches ending in a submission is actually sort of an abnormality when you look at it statistics-wise. As we noted, 2004 was the first time a WrestleMania ever ended with a submission.
As far as submissions are concerned, only 20 matches in the history of WrestleMania have ended in a submission.
#2 Cena and his championship calibre
John Cena is undoubtedly one of the greatest WWE Superstars of all-time, regardless of what your personal opinion might be.
As far as Cena and ‘Manias are concerned, John has competed for a title or went on last at every WrestleMania except for WrestleMania 30 in 2014. This ‘Mania will be the second time that Cena isn’t defending a title or going on last, as he teams up with Nikki Bella to face The Miz and Maryse.
#1 ‘Taker
The Undertaker’s career will always be intertwined with WrestleMania. His streak will never be replicated. However, ‘Taker has never successfully defended his title at a WrestleMania. Furthermore, the Deadman has never defended a title at the PPV.
All three of his title wins at WrestleMania came when he was the challenger.
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