Which match do you wish had happened at Wrestlemania?

[NegativeFeedback]

Sometimes WrestleMania matches are a total bummer and are followed by other PPVs with excellent matches and feuds that you just wish had been held at the big show instead o the lackluster main events. Which are your picks??

Don't be ashamed to use the magical gift of 20/20 hindsight, that's what this thread is for. There might have been things that WWE couldn't have possibly have known were going to fail, but we now do, so make any choice you want!

Now, here are my two choices, both of them fairly recent:

1. John Cena vs. Edge - Last Man Standing for the World Heavyweight Championship @ Backlash 2009

"Jesus turned water into wine, and I turned the WWE title into the World Heavyweight Championship" - Edge

Edge had steered away from John Cena for a long time, but at Elimination Chamber, he was eliminated first in his Chamber match, making him pull the awesome swerve later in the 2nd chamber when he took Kofi's spot and won Cena's WWE title. It was a natural way to put Cena and Edge back at each other's throats, and it would have been great for them to settle their rivalry once and for all at one final match at WrestleMania. But instead, WWE decided to add Big Show to the match, making it a lame Triple Threat which was then followed up by the great rematch at Backlash.

You keep Big Show off the card, and have him do the same run-in at the end of the night. You think he's going to assault Edge due to his relationship drama with Vickie, but he ends up putting Cena through the spotlight. Cena loses the match, but gets up afterwards and does the "thumbs up" stretcher spot, leading to his feud with Show while Edge moves on to Jeff Hardy one month earlier.

A Cena loss at Mania is probably unrealistic, but he could still win the match despite the interference. Still, with Triple H's big face win at the end of the night, I don't see a big deal in having Cena lose the bout at the show.

2. CM Punk vs. John Cena for the WWE Championship @ Money in the Bank 2011

"There’s one thing you’re better at than I am and that’s kissing Vince McMahon’s ass. You’re as good at kissing Vince McMahon’s ass as Hulk Hogan was. I don’t know if you’re as good as Dwayne though. He’s a pretty good ass kisser. Always was and still is..." - CM Punk

In this scenario, Orton dropped the title to Cena instead (or Wade and then Cena, whichever), and CM Punk went on to win the Rumble. The Rock and Cena continue their thing and Punk just feels like he's being overlooked for the new stupid host of the show. He then cuts his infamous promo and he decides he's leaving the WWE. The same build occurs as Punk smashes the fourth wall and insults everyone saying he'll be leaving with the WWE title at WrestleMania. And we have the same exact match at the show, but instead of Laurinitis, Vince comes out with Rocky himself, causing the Cena distraction which leads to Punk getting the huge win. Miz would have kept the briefcase saying he'd cash in at Mania, and instead of Del Rio, Vince would call in Miz to cash in after the match. Punk kicks him down, and runs through the crowd. It would have been amazing. Everyone would have marked out huge. Best WrestleMania ever especially with that 5-star match at the end.

Cena/Rock is announced the next night, Punk leaves the WWE, Triple H becomes COO, and we get a much longer build to the eventual rematch. WWE would hold Miz/Cena at Extreme Rules with the winner getting the new WWE title. Miz wins via shenanigans, and feuds with Cena while Punk tours the world with his WWE title. At MitB, Cena gets the title back and out comes Punk with his own title, doing the big stare-down that leads to SummerSlam.

So those are my two picks. I would also add honorable mentions to Cactus Jack/Triple H from NWO 2000, Bret/Bulldog from SummerSlam '92, Triple H/Punk from NOC 2011 and the Marty/HBK match from Raw in July '93.

Which ones are yours?

 

[relentless1]

Hogan vs Austin should have headlined Wrestlemania x8, they totally fucked up when they missed out on the two top dogs of all time in wrestling having a match and this was really the only place it could have happened. put the rock against scott hall, at least he could take the razors edge.

 

[MrGameTime]

Wrestlemania matches that I wished had happened you say???

3 come to mind....

1. HBK vs The Rock (02/03/04)
2 of the greats, this would have been an awesome spectacle. electrifying.

2. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Hulk Hogan (98/99/00/01/02)
The 2 biggest men in wrestling history never had the chance to go 1v1 on the big stage... this was a badly missed opportunity for ratings to go to the stars.

3. The Undertaker vs Sting (early to mid 2000's)
If Sting had the crow gimmick going on, the promo's alone would have made this match a must see. The staredowns and video packages would be iconic. A match of the ages for sure

 

[salopstick]

Hogan flair should have happened at WM8 although flair savage was good it deprived the fans of the match that should have happened

Was it because hogan did not want to job to flair on his way out

 

[Winds-Of-Change]

I'd go with,

Eddie Guerrero Vs Shawn Michaels - WrestleMania 22.

Just imagine this match! These two NEVER Faced off ever. One for the ages.

And Kurt Angle Vs The Undertaker, also WrestleMania 22.

 

[NegativeFeedback]

It seems like I wasn't clear with the point of the thread. Dream matches are great to think about, but this exercise is a little different. I'm asking which famous match that has happened and that you enjoyed do you think should have taken place at WrestleMania??

 

[Septumus]

You guys seem to be misunderstanding what Feedback means. He doesn't mean a match that never happened at Wrestlemania or anywhere, he means a match that happened but not at Wrestlemania. The only matches I can think of are the MITB matches, but that is because I prefer it at Wrestlemania. Trish Stratus' retirement(Unforgiven 06) but only if WM was in Canada. That it was in her hometown was huge factor. Rhodes Brothers winning the Tag Titles also an honorable mention for.

 

[Kris Benwa]

Holy shit dude I was gonna say CM Punk vs Cena too but I hadn't thought out the story but yours would have been awesome. To the ones that listed WM 22 those were the planned matches and they should have but unfortunate circumstances prevented it it's a shame. To the OP does it have to be matches that happened but just not at WM or can we just put dream matches? I assume matches that happened just not on WM.

Owen Hart vs British Bulldog to be the 1st ever European champion. That match was great I love it but I don't exactly remember what day it was exactly but that would have been a sick Mania match

Chris B****t vs. Eddie Guerrero I feel should have taken place at WM 21 even though they wrestled one another multiple times I think it would have been cool how they could have built it up using the hug and celebration from the previous year's mania.

This is a good thread I'm sure I'll think of more

 

[Blade]

Triple H vs. The Rock at Backlash 2000.

I will never understand why the main event of Wrestlemania 2000 was a fatal four-way. Triple H was the heel WWF champion, the Rock was the red hot face. That is the kind of match that is supposed to headline Wrestlemania.

I somewhat understand the inclusion of Foley. He was as beloved as the Rock, but he had also lost two WWF title matches in a row. His time as a challenger for the WWF title should've been over.

Then there's the fucking Big Show. He should have never been in the main event of a Wrestlemania. He's just been booked badly since his debut in WWE and just didn't fit in with those three huge stars. If you have to give Big Show a WWF title shot, wait until one of the smaller PPV's.

 

[#HELLNO]

Most may disagree with this but,
Randy Orton vs. Christian should have taken place at WrestleMania 28, their matches that they had throughout 2011 where some of the best for both men in my opinion & it was one of the most under-rated feuds of the last few years. These two men put on three great PPV matches, so they should have pushed their feud a bit longer (or rekindled it) & had the WM match for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Any Lita vs Trish Stratus match that had taken place, these two carried so much chemistry but never got to be on the big stage, one on one, they where in a 3 way with Jazz, but it just wasn't the same. These two should have had a one on one match, I believe this would have really set the bar higher, than they had already set it.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Most may disagree with this but,
Randy Orton vs. Christian should have taken place at WrestleMania 28, their matches that they had throughout 2011 where some of the best for both men in my opinion & it was one of the most under-rated feuds of the last few years. These two men put on three great PPV matches, so they should have pushed their feud a bit longer (or rekindled it) & had the WM match for the World Heavyweight Championship.

This one I have to STRONGLY disagree with. That feud was absolutely horrid. The matches were great, but the feud was utter garbage. All that feud did was destroy Christian's main event career just as it was getting started, by emphatically proving that he was incapable of winning at a main event level. That feud single-handedly destroyed Christian's career.


As for the original topic, I would have to say my pick would be Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero in a Steel Cage Match, which happened on SmackDown in September of 2005. Mysterio had beaten Guerrero roughly 45,000 times in a row at that point, so Eddie's victory in the cage meant absolutely nothing, his career was already dead, as he unfortunately would be shortly after. Guerrero should have decisively beaten Mysterio at WrestleMania and dominated the feud.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Triple H vs. The Rock at Backlash 2000.

I will never understand why the main event of Wrestlemania 2000 was a fatal four-way. Triple H was the heel WWF champion, the Rock was the red hot face. That is the kind of match that is supposed to headline Wrestlemania.

I somewhat understand the inclusion of Foley. He was as beloved as the Rock, but he had also lost two WWF title matches in a row. His time as a challenger for the WWF title should've been over.

Then there's the fucking Big Show. He should have never been in the main event of a Wrestlemania. He's just been booked badly since his debut in WWE and just didn't fit in with those three huge stars. If you have to give Big Show a WWF title shot, wait until one of the smaller PPV's.

I both agree and disagree with this. I agree that WWE's weird fetish with multi-man matches for that Mania was odd, but I disagree about Foley and Big Show. I think Big Show deserved to be in the match more, as you said Foley had already lost two consecutive PPV matches for the title, and he did NOTHING to earn his spot in the match, it was simply handed to him. Big Show on the other hand was the #2 heel in the company at that point, had beaten The Rock to earn a title shot, and deserved to be in the main event in my book. I could never buy Mick Foley, in any of his personas, as anything more than an upper midcard guy at best. Any PPV that had him in the main event, I couldn't pay money to see. Foley just didn't interest me and never did. Big Show was a main event talent, and even though he's drifted in and out of the main event spotlight through the years as most do, any time they put him back in there, it fits perfectly to me.

One other thing I want to mention is that I don't think the main event of WrestleMania ALWAYS needs to be a one on one match. When done right, a multi-man match works just as well. Personally I think one of this year's main events should have been a multi-man match, I think Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger vs. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus for the World Heavyweight Championship would have gone over better than just Del Rio/Swagger. The Del Rio/Swagger match was ok, but nothing special.

 

[MCMG]

Wrestlemania 2000 is arguably the worst of all time. Austin and Taker didn't feature which really didn't help. I personally thought it was poor, especially for a WM, but it wasn't the worst. The triangle ladder match, hardcore battle royal as well as Benoit/Jericho/Angle were all entertaining.

The main-event, however, was a real shame. HHH and The Rock had some amazing matches after and they could have had a Wrestlemania classic. Triple H was the champ and The Rock won the Rumble. It was perfectly set up. It would have ensured that no-one was longing for Austin and Taker because these two were that good. Triple H would win in a similar fashion (Vince screwing The Rock). Rocky could win the title at Backlash (they could have added The Big Show there) before the epic Iron Man Match at Judgement Day. It would then have become one of the best feuds of this century rather than a couple of decent matches. A real shame.

 

[Softcore Holly]

Since it technically counts as a match Dolph's MITB cash in. This is a little ironic for me since not that long ago I defended why him winning it on Raw the next night was the better idea, but with some retrospect him cashing it in at WM would've had great benefits like

1. Possibly being the last WHC cash-in ever, would've been a great WM highlight.
2. With the way Dolph's 2013 went at the very least he deserved that epic WM moment.

More a actual match though

Kurt Angle vs Brock Lesnar - Ironman Match WWF title. To this day I can't believe this was on free TV. It was more then deserving of being on a PPV, and would've made for a great WM main event.

 

[The Brain]

Kurt Angle vs. Edge at WrestleMania 18

These two began a feud with each other immediately after mania in 2002 and wrestled at both Backlash and Judgment Day that year. I think this feud should have started a month earlier so we could have seen them against each other at mania. Angle wrestled Kane in what I thought was a mediocre feud and Edge wrestled against Booker because they were feuding over that shampoo commercial. Neither of these seemed like a mania worthy feud and Angle and Edge could have done much better working with each other. They matched up pretty well together and already had a history as friends and occasional partners in 2000. Also mania was in Edge’s hometown in Toronto and it would have worked out for him feuding with a heel “American hero.” This would have been the good catch as catch can wrestling match that mania was missing that year.

 

[Wolf Pac]

CM Punk vs John Cena - Summerslam 2011

I agree a CM Punk/John Cena match should've been saved for Wrestlemania but not the Money in the Bank match, the rematch to determine the Undisputed WWE Champion. Money in the Bank is where it all began, not to mention the match helped Money in the Bank become a bigger PPV, the payoff should've been saved for Wrestlemania 28, and they could've just had Rock vs Cena I take place the next year. How TNA is booking their version of the storyline now with AJ Styles is pretty much how WWE should've booked theirs, with Punk taking the belt with him to indy shows and Cena showing up at the same events, chasing him around for the belt only for Punk to escape with the title every time, and then sometime during WM season, say Elimination Chamber, Cena winning an interim WWE Title and Punk returning to determine the true champion at Mania. The World Heavyweight Title could've been the main focus and main evented PPV's while the WWE Title was gone.

Edge vs. Triple H - Great American Bash 2008

It wasn't a great match, I know, but I've always felt that Edge & HHH should've been saved for Wrestlemania 25 instead and if it had it probably would've come out a better match than Orton vs HHH and the one they both had at The Bash. As for the build up, I think Edge would have been just as great and played it just as believable as Orton did as the maniac taking out the McMahon Family. Plus Vickie in the corner of Edge and Steph in the corner of Triple H might've made it a bit more interesting, I could see Vickie running out during the match to help Edge then Stephanie coming down and engaging in a wild catfight with Vickie. Oh and Cena could've faced Orton for the World Title.

 

[d_henderson1810]

Hogan v Flair WM8
Stone Cold v Hogan WMX8
Rock v Randy Orton (Third Generation Match)
Austin v Mankind v Rock (WM15)
Rock v HBK
Triple H v The Rock (WM16, this is what it should have been, not "A McMahon in Every Corner")
The Rock v John Cena (WM27, with few really big WM matches, they should have booked their first match at WM 27, instead of WM28).
Chris Jericho v Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat (WM25) (Instead of a messy 1 v 3 match, this one-on-one match would have been better. But since WWE didn't know that Steamboat would "still have it", they booked it one-on-one at "Backlash" instead).
Ricky Steamboat v Randy Savage (WM4, Rd 2 of WWF World Title Tourney. Instead of having Valentine beat Steamboat, have Steamboat win, and have much anticipated WM3 rematch in the second round. This would have put the tourney OTT).
Floyd Mayweather, Akebono, Snookie, Maria Menounous or Lawrence Taylor not getting WM matches at all. (only Mr T was a believable celebrity in the ring).
Any Divas matches based on "Playboy" should have been scrapped.
Cactus Jack v Randy Orton "Hardcore Rules" should have been at WMXX, rather than next month's "Backlash". If you need the Rock, have him fight Ric Flair instead.
Daniel Bryan v Sheamus (Wrestlemania 27).

 

[CrunKSinatrA]

I've got a few that haven't been mentioned...

Mr. Perfect vs Bret Hart from Summerslam 91 was a great start for Bret's singles career. Have this match at Wrestlemania 7 or 8 and the great start becomes a launching pad.

Undertaker vs Mankind Hell in a Cell at Wrestlemania would've been so awesome professional wrestling would need an off season afterwards.

Hardy Boys vs Edge and Christian the first ladder match would have had them all in the main event spotlight years earlier.

Chris Jerico vs the Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin in one night at Wrestlemania to unify the WCW and WWE titles. If this happened at a Wrestlemania, Stephanie McMahon would've divorced HHH and married Jericho on the spot because if she didn't Vince McMahon would've had to.

Bret Hart vs Owen in the big blue steel cage would've stolen the show and guaranteed Owen an eventual run with the strap.

Also, can you imagine if the Montreal Screwjob happened at Wrestlemania?

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Wrestlemania 25- Edge VS John Cena for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Strange how Cena's never had that one on one match with his top three rivals (Punk, Orton, Edge) at Wrestlemania. Anyway, Big Show felt like a third wheel in the match, because Show as a legit option to walk out as champion wasn't believable. Yeah, it was cool to see Cena lift Edge and Big Show at the same time for the AA, but Edge and Cena would've delivered a better (and potentially memorable) one on one match. I have no doubts about it. Edge and Cena had more than enough history together to build a Wrestlemania feud, but they went with another forgettable triple threat match instead.

 

[Killercam]

Back in Feb of 93 Mr Perfect beat Ric Flair in a loser leaves match on Raw, and I've always felt that match should have been saved for WM IX because it would have drastically improved the match quality of the card and it could hav given Perfect his well deserved Mania moment and really given him a wave of momentum for the rest of 93 that could have made things more interesting. Plus, even though Flairs first WWF run wasn't all that good he deserved better than to go out on Raw (which I'm sure didn't have great ratings back then)

 

[spaldoni]

Not a main event but would of been a great opener for WrestleMania 6. Rick Martel vs Tito Santana. They broke up at Mania 5, had a couple TV matches but I felt the feud never had proper closure. These two defined workhorse. I think it would of been nice for the WWF to give them a proper blow off at WrestleMania.

 

[thebarber]

Kurt Angle vs Brock Lesnar Iron Man match from Smackdown in 2003, that would have been better suited to the Wrestlemania 19 match.

The nWo vs Austin and Rock should have been on Mania instead of Raw. Hogan vs Austin didnt happen because Austin point blank refused to work Hogan, and is well publicised his issues with WWE creative in 2002, so much so he walked out the night after Mania, returned and then left again in June after finding out creative wanted him to lose to Lesnar in the first round of King of the Ring quals on Raw.

The Shelton Benjamin vs HBK match, 2004 I believe was a ppv calibre match, if they had a storyline built that led to Mania, it would have been a super Mania match

 

[justtxyank]

I know it's a weird one, but I wish the Jake Roberts/Jerry Lawler feud had played at Wrestlemania 12. I really liked that feud as I like both as storytellers. Would have been a good thing for Lawler, getting his WM match in 96 instead of against Michael Cole and the Snake was enjoying a nice return at the time.

 

[King Patrick Star]

Wow!! This is a great topic!! Here is my pick.

WrestleMania X8
Undisputed WWE / World (WCW) Championship Title Unification match
WWE Champion, Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. World (WCW) Champion, Chris Jericho

A few things would have needed to change in order for this to work.

Vengeance 2001
First off, the Undisputed WWE / World (WCW) Championship Title Unification tournament at Vengeance 2001 wouldn’t take place. Instead, I would have Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock both successfully defend their Championships against Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho respectively. Then to substitute the 3rd and final tournament match of the night, I would have Christian defend his European Championship, instead of placing him in a Tag Team match at the show’s opener, against Albert and Test in a Triple Threat match. They could even tease a T&A reunion at that point. Then, to substitute the opening Tag Team match I just removed, I would have Tajiri defend the Cruiserweight Championship against Scotty 2 Hotty.

Royal Rumble 2002
After Vengeance 2001, Angle and Jericho form an alliance in the weeks leading up to the Royal Rumble. At the Royal Rumble, I would have Kurt Angle defeat Stone Cold Steve Austin for the WWE Championship with help from Jericho and have Chris Jericho defeat The Rock for the World (WCW) Championship with help from Angle. Triple H wins the Royal Rumble.

No Way Out 2002
With both Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock having a clause in their Championship contract, they both get rematches for their respective lost Championships. Triple H decides he's going to cash in at No Way Out instead of WrestleMania, but doesn’t announce which Championship match he’s going to insert himself in. At No Way Out, Jericho successfully defends against The Rock with help from the Un-Americans. At the start of the WWE Championship Title match, after Stone Cold and Kurt Angle make their entrances to the ring, “Time to play the game” blares over the sound system. Towards the end of the match, the New World Order make their WWE debut and tease helping Triple H, only to turn on him and take him out of the match. This distracts Kurt Angle and allows Stone Cold to win. Kurt gets his rematch the next night on Raw, only to lose, thus leaving him open for his match with Kane at WM X8.

WrestleMania X8
On the Raw after No Way Out, because of the actions of the New World Order, Triple H demands a match against the trio of Hollywood Hogan, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall. Who does Triple H get as his partners?? Shawn Michaels and X-Pac!! This frees up both Austin and The Rock from their respective matches that actually took place. Here’s where I believe it gets interesting, if it wasn’t already. Instead of having Ric Flair face the Undertaker, I would have Vince McMahon pick the Undertaker as his representative and have Ric Flair pick The Rock as his representative, with both owners in the corners of their selections. Of course Taker wins, but that’s neither here nor there. Now this brings us to the Main Event, I’d have Chris Jericho walk out of WrestleMania X8 as the first ever Undisputed WWE World (WCW) Champion.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Davey Boy Smith vs Bret Hart part 2...

We all know the first one was at Summerslam 92 and their eventual rematch, with the big belt on the line didn't come until In Your House 5, some 3 years later. By then Davey was the heel and Bret the World champion.

The Warrior roid bust did for Davey and that's why this match didn't take place when it should have done... Wrestlemania 9... Assume Davey Boy isn't fired...

He goes through to Survivor Series 92 where he drops the IC to Shawn Michaels but he is furious that his "#1 contendership" as IC champion wasn't honored, allowing Bret to win the World title from Flair, this is compounded when Shawn is selected to face Bret at the Rumble 93... Davey Boy wins the Royal Rumble to finally get his shot at the big belt at Wrestlemania 9. eliminating Yokozuna impressively and finally eliminating Razor Ramon for the win.

In the lead up to Mania he and Bret become more tense with each other leading to a 6 man tag match where Bret, Randy Savage and Davey team against Yokozuna, Shawn and Crush. Davey Boy let's Yoko Banzai drop both his partners and peels Bret up to hit a Powerslam... Davey is now full heel and takes on Jim Cornette as his manager leading to the Mania main event.

He and Bret have another epic bout, this time Bret comes out the victor when Hulk Hogan prevents Cornette's interference and Bret is able to turn the Powerslam into a cradle for the pin. Davey Boy is furious and gets in Hogan's face, setting a match up the first King of The Ring between them.

They then have a rubber match down the line... that's when I'd have put the belt on Davey... but hey... they went with the clusterfuck of Yoko/Hogan winning...