Change a Wrestlemania Match

[Little Jerry Lawler]

In keeping up with the many WM threads, if you could change one match at a previous WM, what would it be and why?

My choice is:
Kurt Angle v. Rey Mysterio v. Randy Orton- WM 22

This match was awful in every sense of the world considering you had Angle and Orton in it. The match that should have taken place was Kurt Angle v. Undertaker. They had one of the best matches I've ever seen at No Way Out and the way it finished led you to think a rematch was coming. It did and then Mark Henry interfered and you know the rest. Just think about the hype surrounding this match and if Angle broke Undertaker's streak since he was leaving for TNA later that year.

Changing this match means that Rey Mysterio would not have won the Royal Rumble so that honor should go to Triple H since he and John Cena would face at WM anyway. As with Orton and Mysterio, either they should have faced each other or be put in the MITB match.

 

[The Todd]

I'd change the Edge vs HHH match from this year to Edge w/ Matt Hardy vs Jeff Hardy and Jericho vs HHH in a cross branded match.

Seriously though, against all popular opinion probably, I wish someone else had ended Flair's career last year.

There have not been many new main event players in the last few years, realistically Jeff Hardy is the only new addition in last 12 months. Having HBK being the one to end the career, whilst emotional, was a waste. HBK s always going to be a face, he is always going to be main event (without having to go for title).

In my eyes, WWE missed an unbelievable chance to create a super heel, hated by everyone for ending Flair's career. But the best candidates, MVP and Kennedy, were both burried by an ageing, sloppy Flair. I just hated the whole storyline really.

SO that is my choice (I wouldn't change Mayweather vs Big Show, I just wouldn't have let it take place)

 

[Cena's Little Helper]

If I was able to, I would change Wrestlemania X. I would have had Bret Hart just face Owen Hart and Lex Luger winning the belt from Yokozuna.

As much flak as I will get, I have to say the following: I personally feel that Luger would have been a better option for the belt at this time than Bret Hart. Although rumor has it that Luger didn't win the belt at WM X because he was punished for drunkenly blabbing to a reporter that he was going to win it, I still would have given him the belt even if this rumor proved true. Luger was an option that WWE never fully explored, and it is my opinion that he could have been a better draw for WWE at this time than either Bret Hart, Bob Backlund, or Diesel/Kevin Nash.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

Hulk Hogan vs Sid Justice @ Wrestlemania 8.

For starters, I would not have had the run in done by Papa Shango. Mind you, I am not sure who I would have substituted, but Shango? And whoever did do the run in would not have been late to the ring, causing the botched finish. AND, Ultimate Warrior would have spent more time fighting off Hogan's attackers that running while pumping his fist, hitting Shango with a Clothesline, and taking a chair shot from Justice.

 

[NbR1Ch]

Well, if I could change one match it would have been at WM18. Instead of The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan, it definately should have been Stone Cold vs. Hulk Hogan, the dream match that never took place and now never will. Then they could have done The Rock vs. Hogan at WM19 or at Summerslam and saved Hogan vs. McMahon for the 20th anniversary of WM. Instead they put Austin in a shit match with Scott Hall.

 

[mattmcgee85]

You can call me crazy but I think they should of had Mcmahon vs. Austin at WM15. The feud was the highlight of the whole year and should have ended there. We also know now that vince has no problem sticking himself in high profile matches at Wrestlemania. You could 've easily had Michaels give Austin a shot at No Way Out, have Big Show screw Rock accidentally, and have Mcmahon ( the Rumble winner and rightful owner of the WM title shot) face Austin. You could add a stipulation that if Austin looses he can't fight for the title again but if Mcmahon looses he is out as owner. A Title vs. Job match.

 

[Blade]

I would've changed Bret Hart vs Yokozuna at Wrestlemania 9 to Bret Hart vs Hogan...

Ok, yeah, perhaps their styles would clash a bit. But it's Breth fricken Hart, he can have a great match with (almost) anybody.
Anyway, reasons!

Well it's simple. If it had been Hart vs Hogan, it would've just cut out the middle man (i.e. Yokozuna), there wouldn't have been that horrible ending with Hogan coming in to "save the day" with a ridiculous 20 second match and taking the title from the big guy.
No wrestlemania should end that way, it's insulting to the legacy of wrestlemania, even if it was only 9 years old at that point. And how weak did it make Hart and Yokozuna look? Hart loses to Yokozuna, then Yokozuna gets his ass handed to him in 20 seconds? Ok, there was the whole heel-manager-cheating-then-backfiring thing, but still!
Also, it wouldn't have been the best match ever, but on name power alone, Hogan vs Hart could've saved what was a poor Wrestlemania.

 

[klunderbunker]

I would change the Michaels-Austin match to a face Bret Hart vs. a tweener Steve Austin with Austin winning the titile from Hart. What better way to launch Austin into the stratosphere even higher than he already went than by beating Bret Hart clean with a stunner to win the world title at Wrestlemania? Shawn's back was messed up at WM 14 so it's hard to say what could have happened had he been healthy. It was a good match, but there was no history there other than what had been done since the Rumble. Bret had beaten Austin every time, so what better way to push Austin than to finally get the win?

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

I would have changed the outcome of the Summerslam 93 match. I would have preferred a Bret vs. Hogan match which was what was rumored to happen but since it didnt I would have changed the Luger/Yoko match. They were pushing Luger BIGTIME that summer and pushing that match big time so it happens and how does it end? With a freakin count out. What a huge letdown. I would have liked to see a clean Luger win and have him run with the title setting up a possible face vs. face showdown at WM10 with him and Hart. I always think that Face vs. face matches are big payoffs so what better than to have the two biggest faces in the company go at it at the 10th anniversary of Wrestlemania?

Edit: Sorry completely forgot it was only for Mania. In that case I would change the WMX main event. I would have just had Luger beat Yokozuna so it would have been him vs. Bret for the belt. If they kept the same match and it was Bret vs. Yoko I would have liked for it to end differently. I didnt like how Bret one with Yokozuna falling off the top rope. Yes it was a win but I really wouldnt consider it a clean win since it had nothing to do with Bret. It was just Yokozuna screwing up. I would have liked for Bret to go over clean, whether it be by a quick rollup style pin or even winning with the Sharpshooter(Bret showed at IX he could lock it on him), it may have not changed much in the grand scheme of things but I just thought it made Bret look kinda weak. It made it look like he couldnt beat him on his own he needed Yoko to screw up to beat him.

 

[d_henderson1810]

If I was able to, I would change Wrestlemania X. I would have had Bret Hart just face Owen Hart and Lex Luger winning the belt from Yokozuna.

As much flak as I will get, I have to say the following: I personally feel that Luger would have been a better option for the belt at this time than Bret Hart. Although rumor has it that Luger didn't win the belt at WM X because he was punished for drunkenly blabbing to a reporter that he was going to win it, I still would have given him the belt even if this rumor proved true. Luger was an option that WWE never fully explored, and it is my opinion that he could have been a better draw for WWE at this time than either Bret Hart, Bob Backlund, or Diesel/Kevin Nash.

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I thought that even if WWF wanted to put the title on Hart at the end of WMX, they could have had Luger beat Yokozuna earlier in the night (to bring a final outcome to that feud) and then had Luger defend his newly-won World Title against Bret Hart later in the night. The WWF would have punished Luger, somewhat, Luger would still have been recognised as a WWF World Champion, and Bret Hart would have ended up as champion at the end of the night (who the fans wanted to see as champion). Having Luger and Hart in the main-event would have decided who is the better (since they tied in the Royal Rumble), and would have given an extra thing to talk about from a great Wrestlemania.

Well, if I could change one match it would have been at WM18. Instead of The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan, it definately should have been Stone Cold vs. Hulk Hogan, the dream match that never took place and now never will. Then they could have done The Rock vs. Hogan at WM19 or at Summerslam and saved Hogan vs. McMahon for the 20th anniversary of WM. Instead they put Austin in a shit match with Scott Hall.

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They didn't have Austin v Hogan at WMX8, because Austin played politics to get out of it. He was afraid that he would be overshadowed by Hogan. Austin threatened to walk out if he fought Hogan. So they stuck him with Hall, had him win, and he still walked. So much for that.

I would've changed Bret Hart vs Yokozuna at Wrestlemania 9 to Bret Hart vs Hogan...

Ok, yeah, perhaps their styles would clash a bit. But it's Breth fricken Hart, he can have a great match with (almost) anybody.
Anyway, reasons!

Well it's simple. If it had been Hart vs Hogan, it would've just cut out the middle man (i.e. Yokozuna), there wouldn't have been that horrible ending with Hogan coming in to "save the day" with a ridiculous 20 second match and taking the title from the big guy.
No wrestlemania should end that way, it's insulting to the legacy of wrestlemania, even if it was only 9 years old at that point. And how weak did it make Hart and Yokozuna look? Hart loses to Yokozuna, then Yokozuna gets his ass handed to him in 20 seconds? Ok, there was the whole heel-manager-cheating-then-backfiring thing, but still!
Also, it wouldn't have been the best match ever, but on name power alone, Hogan vs Hart could've saved what was a poor Wrestlemania.

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This wouldn't have ever happened, because Hogan never agreed to any match against Bret Hart. Even when both were in WCW, Hogan wouldn't do a match. I think that Hogan was afraid that Hart would show him up in the ring. Hogan also never fought Chris Benoit and others in WCW for the same reason.

I would change the Michaels-Austin match to a face Bret Hart vs. a tweener Steve Austin with Austin winning the titile from Hart. What better way to launch Austin into the stratosphere even higher than he already went than by beating Bret Hart clean with a stunner to win the world title at Wrestlemania? Shawn's back was messed up at WM 14 so it's hard to say what could have happened had he been healthy. It was a good match, but there was no history there other than what had been done since the Rumble. Bret had beaten Austin every time, so what better way to push Austin than to finally get the win?

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Austin v HBK was at Wrestlemania 14 in 1998. Bret Hart left in 1997, and vowed never to appear on WWF television again (after SS '97). So Hart v Austin wouldn't have happened then.

 

[klunderbunker]

Which is why it would have been changed. I would have changed it so that the Screwjob never happened, then have Hart stay with the company long enough to drop the belt to Austin and then leave. It would set up Austin vs. Michaels at Backlash I guess or whatever the next PPV was. Better net result, Michaels never gets his back crushed, Bret leaves happy, Austin is the champion. After teh war they had the year before, imagine Bret as the tweener since it wasn't in Canada and Austin as the rapidly rising face. Could have been perfect.

 

[DeadmanInc.]

I definitely agree with the topic starter's choice. Angle vs Taker was too good to waste at No Way Out and the Triple Threat was way too short to be a WM main event.

Anyways, the match I would change would be Hogan vs The Rock at WM18 to Face Hogan vs Austin. We all know that was the intended match but Hogan/Austin couldn't put aside their egos for what would have been the most historic match ever.

I also would have changed the main event of WM13 to a Hart vs Michaels rematch of their epic Iron Man match a year earlier. Michael's injury and the confusing situation around the Royal Rumble made the title scene really messed up heading into Wrestlemania. Austin won the rumble yet Taker ended up in the main event. I would have rather seen Bret Hart win the Rumble and had him face Michaels at WM. Yeah, that would mean we wouldn't have seen the Submission match with Hart and Austin, but that could have waited. It's a shame there hasn't been a real rematch between Hart and Michaels.

The final match that I would change would be the Hell in a Cell match in WMXV between Undertaker and Boss Man. In it's place would go Mankind vs Undertaker from KoTR1998. That was one of the most historic matches ever. It should have been on a big PPV such as WM, not KoTR.

 

[Chainz322004]

One match I can't stand is the Wrestlemania 2000 main event....The Rock won the rumble, so why did he have to face three people in HIS main event? It goes against mania tradition and the match was just kinda boring...you could have still had the Game beat the Rock, but I like the Iron man match between the two at Judgment day that year, so that could have been the 'Mania main event....the two best (because no austin or 'taker that year) going at it for the best title in the business...that's what 'Mania is all about....but instead they had a pretty un-talked about main event, that was WAY outshined by a great triangle ladder match at WM2000

 

[klunderbunker]

Another that I would change would be the main event of WM 1. Orndorff and Mr. T took away from what should have been the culmination of Hogan and Piper's feud. If you want to have T and Orndorff on the side that's fine but you need the main event of the biggest show of all time to be a one on one showdown.

 

[Mighty NorCal]

Ive long said it, and hopefully this becomes a lighting rod.

I wouldve swapped the Austin-Rock match from WM19 with the match from WM17. Swapping the winner, and ending sequences, of course, before anyone decides to be an idiotic twat and bring up that point.

A match based around weapons and gimmicks, that is muddled with a weak, uneffective, confusing heel turn , should NOT end WM. A match that saw a small amount of brawling, and a shit ton of wrestling, stolen finishers, and fantastic showmanship, SHOULD end off WM . Of course, you end the WM 19 contest with Austin winning after a ton of stunners, and the Rock winning the "final meeting" at WM 19 with a fuck ton of chair shots. Like I said, just invert the winners/finishes.

 

[Mr. TM]

Brock Lesnar vs Goldberg

I think this is an obvious choice due to the fact that it is usually considered one of the worst matches of all time at Wrestlemania. Maybe if it was moved out of New York where there are less smarks to have ruined the match, that might have helped. Maybe if both men where not wrestling in their last match in the WWE that would have helped. I would go with the later. This match should have been a lot better than it was. Both men are true bull wrestlers of their time, and fans love to see bull wrestlers go at it. They were screwed out of a good one here.

 

[d_henderson1810]

A Wrestlemania match I was always disappointed didn't take place was Hulk Hogan v Ric Flair at "Wrestlemania 8". I believe that this was going to happen, and that is why WWF had Ric Flair win the title at the "Royal Rumble". He was going to defend it at Wrestlemania against Hulk Hogan , in the first-ever match of the two biggest names in wrestling of the 80's. It was to be the ultimate dream match. For years, it was disputed who was the "wrestler of the 80's", Hogan or Flair?

However, like Austin-Hogan and other touted Wrestlemania matches, politics stood in the way of this one. Hulk Hogan wanted time off after Wrestlemania. Vince was willing to grant it, but it meant that Hogan couldn't win the title, if he wasn't around to defend it. Hogan refused to job to Flair, and only wanted to win if he got the title. Vince, not wanting to have Hogan win, only to vacate it, had to pull the match. It was even suggested that Hogan win by DQ, but Hogan wanted to win the title, and Vince knew the fans didn't want to see an indecisive finish to the "Match Of The Decade", so Hogan v Sid Vicious, and Flair v Savage happened instead.

Of course, one thing that WCW can always brag about that WWE can't, is having the first-ever Hogan-Flair showdown at "Bash At The Beach" 1994. I bet this irritated Vince, who knew that the match could have occurred at Wrestlemania, if Hogan hadn't played politics.

So, I would have had Hogan v Flair for the WWF World Title, and start a feud between Savage and Sid Vicious, to give them matches since they wouldn't be fighting Flair or Hogan respectively.

 

[realblackhart]

If I was able to, I would change Wrestlemania X. I would have had Bret Hart just face Owen Hart and Lex Luger winning the belt from Yokozuna.

As much flak as I will get, I have to say the following: I personally feel that Luger would have been a better option for the belt at this time than Bret Hart. Although rumor has it that Luger didn't win the belt at WM X because he was punished for drunkenly blabbing to a reporter that he was going to win it, I still would have given him the belt even if this rumor proved true. Luger was an option that WWE never fully explored, and it is my opinion that he could have been a better draw for WWE at this time than either Bret Hart, Bob Backlund, or Diesel/Kevin Nash.

Would you still have had Owen beat Brett that night? I don't know if I agree though, if this would have happened it might have changed the course of history. He would have won it later on and then the Wrestlemania 12 match would have probably had a different main-event, furthermore it would have not only changed Wrestlemania XII but Survivor Series 1997 as well.

 

[hman V1]

I would change Triple H vs The Rock vs Mick Foley vs The Big Show I would only take out the big show, Id replace him with someone like Kurt Angle, that would make a much more interesting match

 

[Deadman]

JBL vs. John Cena I would change the whole feud between JBL VS. Cena to Kurt Angle VS. Cena I think Kurt would've better option to give Cena the WWE title. Mostly because Angle is a way better wrestler than JBL and can give Cena a better feel in the main event than JBL who was just entering it himself.

 

[thewrestlinghero]

well i would not change any matches at wrestlemania 24 well maybe axcept the batista/umaga match i would of actually switch spots i would have the retirement match with ric flair and shawn micheal as the last match on the ppv since it would make sense and it would be the last wrestlemania match and have have taker/edge right befor the raw main event since the winner of the rumble match should be the main event title match of the ppv

 

[Slowdude]

The only changes I can think of are for WM24

First of i would change Orton vs Cena vs HHH to just Orton vs Cena with Orton retaining
I would keep the fatal four way with HHH winning at Backlash though. Now this year if Cena (c) vs Orton happens (Which seems likely). It would be a epic rematch from last year.

Then instead of Batista vs Umaga I would of had Batista vs HHH. Doesn't really matter who won, HHH probably.

Also, Since Jeff Hardy was removed from the MITB making it a 7 man MITB, I would of added Miz or Umaga to the MITB match just because the it being 7 man just didnt sound right. Would of made no difference in the end but 8 man MITb sounds better then 7 man MITB (Evens > Odds)

Finally, I would of changed the Finlay vs JBL match to Finlay vs Vince McMahon. I've always thought that Finlay vs JBL was put together for no reason at such a random moment. JBL still could of announced The midget wasn't vince's making Vince want a match against finlay for lying to him.

 

[RATEDRKO4LIFE]

WrestleMania Changes:

In My Opinion half of WrestleMania Matches have been amazing too watch, but there's been some sloppy matches along the way.

1. Triple H vs Booker T (WrestleMania 19)
Triple H looked amazing in this match. It was the start of Evolution with this Reign. But too make him Face a midcard wrestler liked Booker T Who should've been challenging for the Tag Team or Intercontinental title. It Just didn't work for me.....

2. Bobby Lashley vs Umaga (WrestleMania 23)
I'm gonna say straight off, worst Mania match since Hulk Hogan vs Sid Vicious. It was crap from start too finish. The only descent thing was austin. The Billionaires should've choosen too legends like Stone Cold vs The Rock.

3. Kurt Angle vs Rey Mysterio vs Randy Orton (WrestleMania 22)
Good solid match with every bit of it exciting too watch. But they should've straight off had Rey Mysterio vs Kurt Angle. Randy Orton lost at Royal Rumble and beat Mysterio at No Way Out. They should've made Mysterio work over Orton giving him the Chance. But he could'nt beat Orton and yet beat Orton and Angle in a triple threat. I Don't get it. I Hate Mysterio and love Orton but the angle was sooo wrong......

 

[Pimpin]

Triple H vs Booker T from Wrestlemania 19

From what I read on different sites. Booker T was originally supposed to win but Triple H had to use politics cause he didn't want to give Booker T the rub, lose to a former WCW guy & not making Booker look good. Personally if I was in control I would have just told Triple H fuck you & keep the decision to let Booker T win the match.

 

[PiperUndertakerStoneCold]

Wrestlemania 6: I would've had Hogan win instead of the Warrior. Hulk's post WM6 career turned out to be far greater than the Warrior's.