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Follow @TheDocLOP Welcome back to the Road to WrestleMania 31. Hundreds of men and women have performed on the grandest stage over the course of its rich history. Over the last few months, we have celebrated them all…from worst to best. Anyone who has ever had the honor of competing on a Mania card has joined an elite group of pro wrestlers. I salute them all. Great performances, headlining positions, the fondness with which a wrestler is held in the memories of fans across the world, victories in major bouts with high stakes, and the like have shaped this list. And now we've arrived at the end of our journey. I want to thank you all for reads, shares, feedback, and discussion. It has been a blast, as usual. Enjoy the last day of the Countdown! QUESTION OF THE DAY (42): Who would you have put at #1 on the list of all-time WrestleMania-specific greats? 10. Edge 9. Bret Hart 8. Stone Cold Steve Austin 7. Macho Man Randy Savage 6. Triple H 5. The Rock 4. John Cena 3. Shawn Michaels 2. Hulk Hogan 1. The Undertaker 2. Hulk Hogan ”Hulkamania will live forever” The man who built the franchise, so to speak, was the Hulkster. We would not be sitting here conversing about WrestleMania and celebrating its entire roster of historic superstars if it were not for the Demandments – the prayers, the training, and the vitamins – that swept the world’s youth and their families into the undeniable, late 80s force that was Hulkamania. It has been said that it “ran wild.” That has become a cliché, but for those of us that lived it, it’s more a reminder of the past than a company line that sells modern merchandise. “The irresistible force meeting the immoveable object” was the sports announcing call of the decade to any of us that heard it. Gorilla Monsoon is iconic if for no other reason than for that one line to those of us that were caught up in the Rock ‘n Wrestling phenomenon and the red and yellow clad comic book character come to life that embodied it best. Hogan was the Babe Ruth of modern pro wrestling history. He is the enduring reason why wrestling remains on a pedestal, domestically and internationally, that was unheard of before him. Hogan, for me, essentially bridged the gap between my two eras of wrestling fandom. He helped build it from the ground up with his iconic series of early WrestleMania feuds with Roddy Piper, Andre the Giant, Million Dollar Man, Randy Savage, Ultimate Warrior, and Sgt. Slaughter. Then, a decade later, he solidified it for life in the nostalgia ride otherwise known as his WrestleMania X-8 match with The Rock from Toronto’s Sky Dome. To this day, I have still never seen anything like Rock vs. Hogan. A match may happen someday that is similar in its ability to play on the past and live in the present, but there will never be anything quite like it. Never will there also be a man who is the face seen in the final moments of nine straight WrestleManias. Each of the first nine Manias faded to black just seconds after Hulk’s last involvement of the night. Others have come close to some of his accolades, but no one will ever be able to trump him for the title of being the very first face of WrestleMania. 1. The Undertaker “Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.” The Deadman has done it all at WrestleMania. He has closed three “Showcases.” In just those bouts alone, he retired Shawn Michaels, won the World Championship twice, and had two classic matches. Of course, the bell tolled 21 times signaling Phenom victories before he finally suffered his only elusive loss last year. The Streak took on a significance in WrestleMania history that no one ever thought possible in an entertainment entity with pre-determined winners and losers. To many adult fans, his illustrious string of victories became the last remaining win/loss record that mattered. To young fans, The Streak endeared a whole new generation to the Undertaker’s iconic character. To me, personally, it was “The Streak within The Streak” that finally made me a fan of The Deadman. Prior to, Taker was just another top tier wrestler to me. I tolerated his presence more than embraced it. Unlike many of his peers, at least until “The Streak within The Streak” began, he had not had a plethora of yearly classic matches to keep me engaged. He was like his storyline brother, Kane. I marked for the gimmick, but was not overly excited to watch the performance. That all changed at WrestleMania 23 against Batista. The feud hooked me from the start and the match blew me away. Then, he knocked it out of the park against Edge in one my all-time favorites. In the five years that followed, the legend grew exponentially with each passing Match of the Year candidate. When all was said and done, I had personally witnessed, live, three of the seven iconic Streak matches that came to define Taker’s career in my mind. It’s going to be awfully strange watching WrestleMania without an Undertaker match someday. The first Mania that I ever watched on PPV was IX in 1993. Taker vs. Giant Gonzalez may have been awful match to critics, but it was larger than life to a 9 year old Doc. I did not watch on PPV again until Mania 13 – the night he won the title from Sycho Sid in the main-event. I watched 14 and 15 and then did not watch again on PPV until 18. I have not missed one since. Every single WrestleMania that I have ever watched live has featured an Undertaker match, including the four that I have attended in person. The Streak may have been broken last year, but if I have anything to say about it, then its legacy – and that of the greatest gimmick performer of all-time who produced it – will live on for generations to come. 5. The Rock ”Greatness is an evolutionary process that changes and evolves era to era” Those of you that read The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment know how I feel about The Rock’s legacy in WWE history. To me, he has become one of the definitive men to personify what WrestleMania means to the industry. He was the evolutionary step toward what has come to define the ideal pro wrestler, blessed with an unmatched combination of athleticism and charisma. There’s never been anyone quite like The Rock in wrestling history. It’s as if the wrestling Gods took Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan and blended them into one superstar. He is also an incredibly intelligent performer that was one of the first modern wrestlers to embrace the history of WrestleMania and attempt to take it to the next level. He came into the industry when “The Showcase” was already a decade old and set out on a journey to create the Attitude Era’s versions of the memories that he grew up watching first-hand as the son of a WWE star. From WrestleMania XV onward, he produced “WrestleMania Moment” after “WrestleMania Moment.” Though he never won the WWE Championship, he defended it three times in titanic main-events that drew record numbers of PPV buyrates. When he came back to the WWE after achieving A-list celebrity status in Hollywood via a lengthy wrestling hiatus filled with big screen acting roles, he provided WWE with three consecutive Manias that topped the one million buyer mark – an industry first – answering any remaining questions about his drawing power without Steve Austin around for an assist. As I’ve mentioned numerous times over the years, Rock’s match with Hulk Hogan brought me all the way back to wrestling after I was pushed to the brink of wrestling fan extinction. I hold his matches with Hogan, Austin, and Cena – the three other biggest stars in modern wrestling history – in the highest regard, citing each as a top 10 Mania classic and strong contender for greatest match of all-time (that book is in the works, as we speak, by the way). If you’re a fan that cares about wins and losses, then I’m not sure that there’s a better win/loss statistic in Mania history (outside of Taker’s Streak) than Rock’s wins over the three faces to join his on The WrestleMania Era Mount Rushmore. His Mania XIX match with Austin is a personal favorite, as well. Hollywood Rock was a brilliant character that could make a comeback some day if the situation is right. The Rock truly is “The Great One.” 4. John Cena ”Whether you like me or you don’t, I still dig showing up for work” Haters, you are really going to have to get used to seeing the name “John Cena” at the top of a lot of lists for the rest of your wrestling fandoms. He has the longevity with eleven consecutive performances at Mania, where he has been in a record-tying eight matches for the World title. Eventually, I believe that the critical community will come around to agreeing with me that his resume of stellar performances is longer than originally admitted. I have been firm in my stance that Cena vs. The Rock at WrestleMania XXVIII was one of the greatest matches ever, devouring the critiques in print and on the radio as anything from nitpicky to downright petty. His rematch with Rock a year later was ridiculously undervalued because of Cena’s camera-caught instruction giving, but that match was otherwise a lengthier version – from the storytelling to the format – of the heralded conclusion of the Austin-Rock Mania trilogy. Last year’s match with Bray Wyatt might be the most underrated “great” match I’ve ever watched. Just about every Cena match at Mania has garnered a level of criticism that does not translate to the rest of the roster, both current and historical. His peers seem to consider the Shawn Michaels bout at Mania 23 to be a turning point for Cena. Predictably, many fans disagree. I have never been a part of something like Cena vs. Triple H at Mania 22; I thought that was one of the most emotionally engaging matches in modern history. Predictably, many fans disagree. Throw in his match with Batista (underrated gem) and the two triple threats for the title (both very good) and you have an awesome career that has far too many naysayers for such an impressive body of work. I say, “Cheers to you, John Cena.” WrestleMania, as we know it, has been built on the back of this generation’s Hulk Hogan. People talk about a “Mount Rushmore of the WrestleMania Era.” John Cena’s face should be on that mountain. I have seen some try to separate Cena from the impressive heights to which Mania has risen since it all truly began again in 2005. That does not compute to me. Who was the WWE’s top star at every Mania since 21 went Hollywood? John Cena. He has done for WWE in the last decade what Hogan did in the 80s, providing the company (and the Mania franchise) the perfectly passionate professional spokesperson. He is as responsible as anyone or anything else for WrestleMania fulfilling its destiny as one of the world’s premiere annual events. 3. Shawn Michaels ”To catch a star and seize its brilliance…” Some people have a problem with the WWE machine that keeps pushing Shawn Michaels as the greatest performer to ever grace their ring. Those people need to open their eyes. More than anything, the DVDs and the Network specials are merely reminders to the fanbase that HBK was not Mr. WrestleMania because he said he was or because the WWE wanted to sell t-shirts – that’s just what he was. He’s revered for being the alpha male of big match performers in wrestling history. I described him in my book as the Michael Jordan of sports entertainment. I welcome the argument against the notion. When your worst match as a headliner at WrestleMania is arguably the gutsiest performance in the history of wrestling, then that says something. He put over Stone Cold Steve Austin to pass the torch in 1998 with herniated discs in his lower back. I have had that happen to me twice in my young life. When it has happened to me, I could barely walk. When I did walk, I had to use a cane until it healed. HBK wrestled a 20-minute match in that condition. You call John Cena Superman? HBK was Superman at Mania XIV. That was his least heralded match out of the twelve that he wrestled as one of the premiere talents in the WWE. His best matches at WrestleMania are, simply put, a collection of WrestleMania’s best matches. His match with Diesel at WrestleMania XI gets lost in the shuffle, as does his unbelievable carry of Vince McMahon at WrestleMania 22. He hoisted a 59 year old man on his back to end Ric Flair’s career. Has there been a better example of HBK’s brilliance? He painted the modern masterpiece against Undertaker, retired in glorious fashion a year later, helped John Cena earn his PhD in wrestling at the main-event level un-gimmicked, had what Bobby Heenan called “the greatest match I’ve ever seen” with Kurt Angle, was one third of the greatest triple threat match of all-time, stole the show with Chris Jericho in a common pick by many smarks as their favorite match, revolutionized the Ladder match, and won the WWE Championship in one of Mania lore’s most enduring moments in the iconic Ironman match. Nobody’s overall match list has been more critically acclaimed than HBK’s. As Vince best put it when HBK was gliding down from the rafters in Anaheim, “There’s only one HEARTBREAK KID, SHAWN MICHAELS…” 8. Stone Cold Steve Austin ”You won't have to follow me, only you can set me free” Any time you do a list of WWE’s top “XYZ” and don’t include Steve Austin at the very top of the list, wrestling fans tend to get a little uneasy. Questions abound, at that moment, about the list writer’s credibility (and sanity). Given that I’m one of the few writers on the planet willing to put Austin’s career under the microscope, I always feel the need to defend his lower ranking. I had to in my book and I’ll do it again, here. First, the caveat. There is no question that Stone Cold is one of the all-time greats and that his impact was arguably bigger than any one wrestler’s in history. He is, probably, the “biggest” star in pro wrestling lore. But biggest does not mean greatest in the historical ranking sense of the word. It also does not mean best. Now, the details. At WrestleMania, Austin had an unbelievable track record. He is one of the few stars in Mania history to have achieved two undeniable candidates for the top match that the event has ever had – against Bret Hart at Mania 13 and against The Rock at Mania X-Seven. He was the top star at Mania 14, 15, and 17. He started the trend of retiring at Mania, with his final bout standing the test of time as another unforgettable classic. He won the title at three different Manias during the most competitive period in sports entertainment (an underrated accomplishment if there’s ever been one). It’s unfortunate that I feel so compelled to defend Austin’s position rather than praise it, but that goes with the territory when attempting to be more objective on this subject. The main thing holding Austin from a top 5 position is longevity. When you see the guys ahead of him, you’ll understand. We’re talking an average of ten-plus for the top 7. An average! Austin was a top star at 13, XIV, XV, X-Seven, and XIX. That’s five. A very important five, no doubt, but just five as compared to at least nine for the majority of the rest of his peers on this list. Some can ignore that. I cannot. I give all the credit in the world to Steve Austin and enjoy his top matches at Manias much as anyone else’s, but this is the right spot for him. 7. Macho Man Randy Savage ”The world is like a ride in an amusement park…” In WWE history, there have been a lot of incredible personalities that jumped off of the television screen. Perhaps nobody in the industry’s history, though, was as adept at taking the viewer on an emotional thrill ride quite like Macho Man. He was a man amongst boys, in that regard. He could do it all. His interviews were so impassioned and powerful, with an inflection in his voice unrivaled in the entertainment business. His matches redefined what it took to achieve critical success. For WrestleMania, he was the pioneer in the ring as much as Hogan was to the financial bottom line. The original “Mr. WrestleMania,” Savage’s performances through the first nine years of “The Showcase” may not have always been the reason why people bought tickets or ordered the PPV, but he was regularly the reason why people became repeat customers of the WWE product. The fact that he accomplished what he did as both a conquering hero and the most evil of villains made his resume all the more impressive. Rewind the clock to WrestleMania III. The WWE was a different entity before that event. Some would suggest that it was Hogan vs. Andre that signified the shift. I would counter that it was Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat. Just as many people became wrestlers because of the IC title match. At the same time, Macho and Dragon designed the blueprint for how to steal the show. The concept existed before Mania III, but it never had a name or a face. Macho would steal the show again and again through 1992’s WrestleMania VIII classic against Ric Flair. In between ’87 and ’92, he won the WWE Championship tournament, gave us one of the biggest matches in history when “The Mega Powers Exploded,” and offered up yet another blueprint – the format for the modern day main-event - in his match with Ultimate Warrior. I wrote in my book and I’ll reiterate it now that there will be another Rock, another Austin, another Cena, another Hogan, and even another HBK, but I truly do not believe that there will ever be another Macho Man. He was one of a kind. His WrestleMania career was as good as any of his peers when you take into account the headlining matches, the championships won or defended, and the unforgettable memories provided. 6. Triple H ”The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has no limits” He will be the first of two controversial choices, in all likelihood, mostly due to his ranking ahead of Austin. However, the resume does not lie for Triple H. WrestleMania history is jam packed with notable happenings involving The Game. He is the first heel to walk away from “The Showcase of the Immortals” as champion (and he did it again to become the second). He is the first superstar to have won the Undisputed Championship at WrestleMania, where he has been involved in a record-tying eight World Championship matches. The only more consistent presence at Mania over the last twenty years has been Undertaker. He was “The Man” during an important transition period that did far better business than people tend to give it credit for, bridging the gap nicely between the Attitude Era and the John Cena Era. His classic match list has grown substantially in recent years, as well. Some would say that his first epic Mania match was in 2001 against Taker. The critical community is divided on that, but not on the other acclaimed bouts on his resume. His work with HBK and Benoit at XX, the other two Taker matches, and his most recent performance against Daniel Bryan were all superbly rated. I’ll throw in his match against John Cena as a great one that few too many talk about, along with several really good bouts with Owen Hart at XIV, the main-events at 2000, X-8, and XXV, the World title defense against Booker T at XIX, and the triple threat at XXIV. There was also a commendable outing against a green Batista at 21 and a very physical match against Brock Lesnar that just so happened to have a concussed opponent and a dead crowd. For many years, Triple H was the unfortunate participant in one of the top matches from which the show was stolen, so to state. I think that has tarnished his legacy in the eyes of a few. Most people that hate on Trips do so for reasons that I don’t think even they understand. It’s a long-standing IWC tenet that “thou shalt not like Triple H.” Recent years have served him well and, though he’s unlikely to ever move up the list even with several more top notch performances, he has a good chance to maintain his position. As it stands, there may not be a more underrated contributor to WrestleMania lore. 10. Edge ”The fear of not proving the people wrong who think you can't emerge from a franchise and do well, that's a very strong driving force.” I believe that Edge had one of the most underrated WrestleMania careers. There are not many superstars that can say that they wrestled for the World Heavyweight Championship at four consecutive WrestleManias or managed to make tag team wrestling a multi-Mania headlining division or won three Ladder matches or wrestled the likes of Mick Foley, Undertaker, and Chris Jericho in singles matches at “The Show of Shows.” I wrote in my book that Edge was the St. Louis Cardinals of WWE. He may not be the Yankees or Red Sox – glamorous franchises who get the majority of the publicity in Major League Baseball – but he is as successful. Any of you have that were regular readers of my column during the time that Edge was still active know how big a fan of the guy that I was/am. He was a tremendous big match performer, yet I never felt like he got the credit for that as have many of his peers. Maybe it was because he split much of his early success with five other men, but shouldn’t the fact that he rose above them all be enough to stamp his legacy as a major part of what made the TLC era so tremendous? He, along with Christian, were the personalities that carried the tag team scene when it reached its Attitude Era peak. Then, it was his hunger, drive, and skill that led him to be such a dynamic presence in the first six years of the John Cena Era. It might well be fair to argue that Edge was the shining example of how the brand extension worked. He would have been a star regardless of the split between Raw and Smackdown, but is it any coincidence that his retirement and the soon-after (quiet) dismantling of the brand system were less than six months apart on WWE’s historical timeline? The Rated R Superstar deserves to be remembered right alongside the men that will be listed above him. It would be easy to say that he belongs right behind them, but not in the black and white sense of the phrase. Flat out, Edge may be a step back from the men you will see ranked #9 through #1…it’s just a tiny step back, though. No wrestler that was not asked to be “The Franchise” accomplished more in his career. 9. Bret Hart ”The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential” From WrestleMania VII until 1997, it was difficult to think about WrestleMania without Bret Hart involved. He was stellar in the Hart Foundation’s unsuccessful Tag Team Championship defense in 1991, continuing a Match of the Night competition that continued throughout the event. He prompted a similar competition with the WWE Championship match the following year when he and Roddy Piper tore the house down at Mania VIII for the Intercontinental Championship. That match remains one of the most underrated in Mania lore. At Mania IX, he was the defending WWE Champion. At Mania X, he had the greatest curtain jerker in wrestling history with his brother, Owen, and ended the night as WWE Champion again. Mania XI was a dud, but I’m not sure any of his peers can claim to have had the caliber of matches at back-to-back “Showcases” that did Bret at Manias XII and 13, respectively. The Ironman match has its modern critics, but back then the Bret-Shawn classic was thought to be the finest pro wrestling match in WWE history. Mania 13’s Bret vs. Stone Cold bout doesn’t really have critics from what I’ve seen. It has universally been praised as a 5-star match that helped bring about a new era in WWE. So, overall, few have had a better Mania track record than The Hitman. Frankly, Bret begins the truly elite class of Mania lore. It begins with Bret at #9, ends with our #1. Others, like Angle, Edge, Jericho, and even Punk are somewhat close, but the final nine are the top 9 for a reason. Bret is an icon. There really is not an in-ring storyteller that can rival what he could do. He was all wrestling. He had the little things mastered so well that they were the driving force behind his rise to the top. Basic concepts like selling and execution were what set him apart. Others had to accentuate intangibles; Bret could merely outwork people using the simpler things that make wrestling an art form. WrestleMania (and Summerslam) was his canvas and he painted many a masterpiece – four of them by my count. Tim Duncan of the National Basketball Association has been lauded over the years as “Mr. Fundamental.” Bret Hart was WWE’s “Mr. Fundamental.”
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