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Your support makes all the difference.What a night. One of the greatest Wrestlemanias came to an end with everybody who witnessed it left in awe of its brilliance. Hulk Hogan kicked things off, and while he mumbled his lines, the event exploded into life with the appearance of Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock who kept the audience enthralled. The event then escalated, and the matches were entertaining to say the least:
Triple H vs Daniel Bryan
The match that would start off Wrestlemania certainly didn’t disappoint, with the victor knowing that they would have the chance to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The Game’s entrance was grand to say the least, as he donned a gold mask to really advertise his standing in the company. It wouldn’t be entrances that would decide the fate of the match, however, and Bryan was victorious. Constant countering throughout kept the match lively but a Running Knee decided the outcome.
Match Rating: 7/10
The Shield vs New Age Outlaws and Kane
The next match perhaps wasn’t as entertaining, but outlined how dominant The Shield can be as a combined unit. One of the strongest factions in the WWE, they didn’t take long to win the match, with an impressive triple-double powerbomb (A triple powerbomb, delivered to Road Dogg and Billy Gunn) ended the affair.
Match Rating: 5/10
Andre the Giant Battle Royal Memorial Match
The new addition to Wrestlemania proved that it’s a worthwhile match, and will hopefully always be as enjoyable as it was on its debut. Alexander Rusev was initially dubbed as the favourite for the match, but wasn’t even part of the event. As a result, Big Show stood out as favourite, wearing an Andre the Giant type attire, in tribute of the man that the match is made in honour of. Kofi Kingston dazzled in his usual fashion by avoiding elimination in as entertaining a way as possible. Thrown out of the ring, Kofi landed on his back but as his feet stayed on the steel steps, he stayed in. He was to be eliminated shortly after however, and it match eventually was left with Big Show vs Cesaro. Cesaro incredibly Body Slammed the Big Show over the ropes (shades of Hogan-Andre) to grab the trophy.
Match Rating: 8/10
John Cena vs Bray Wyatt
A match that fully had the potential to be the ‘Match of the night’, the battle between Cena and Wyatt seemed to disappoint slightly. The tempo was slow throughout, and while it was clear that Cena was portrayed as having ‘finally cracked’ after weeks taunting from Wyatt, it failed to live up to it’s potential.
Wyatt had great control over the audience, and really demonstrated his popularity in the WWE Universe by making them sing throughout. He would lose the match, however, and fell victim to the Attitude Adjustment.
Match Rating: 6/10
Brock Lesnar vs the Undertaker
A match that definitely was a huge contender for ‘Match of the Night’, the clash of The Beast vs The Streak caused such a shock, and it took a good ten minutes for everyone viewing to get over what happened. WWE Fans have seen the Undertaker dominate every year at Wrestlemania, building a 21-0 streak. No-one anywhere would have thought Lesnar was going to win, but in one of the most shocking moments in WWE and Wrestlemania history, he F5’d the Undertaker for the third time in the match to break the streak.
The WWE, at times, has fallen short of delivering a shock, and often their PPV matches are fairly predictable. This was brilliance in terms of shock factor, and while most fans won’t be happy that the Undertaker was defeated, it was a truly amazing moment, where fans experienced a mix of devastation, shock and finally celebration as they clapped the Undertaker away.
A masterstroke, but truly unexpected
Match Rating: 9/10
Vickie Guerrero Invitational
The match struggled to really gain too much attention from the WWE Universe, but to be fair to the Divas involved, it was an entertaining clash. Being straight after such a shocking match that saw the Streak end, it was clear people weren’t paying too much attention as they recovered from the Undertaker’s loss.
It was definitely a good showcase of the Divas talent, with the likes of Natalya, Naomi and the Bella Twins standing out.
The match was won by Champion AJ Lee, who retained in a chaotic match-up.
Match Rating: 6/10
Randy Orton vs Batista vs Daniel Bryan
Everyone watching was hoping for the outcome that would see Daniel Bryan prove victorious and they were not let down. It that respect, it did not provide too much of a surprise.
What did surprise most watching was how good the match actually was. It of course had the potential, but in recent weeks, matches involving Orton and Batista have usually been poor and badly received. But the pair really turned up for this match, putting in a thrilling display that genuinely provided doubt as to who would win the match.
Triple H was involved briefly, before being attacked once again by Daniel Bryan, who launched himself at the COO and Stephanie McMahon at one point.
Bryan looked like his match was over, when he was being stretchered away after a stunning move that saw Batista and Orton teamwork combine their finishers to smash Bryan through a table.
He recovered, however, and won the match in a thrilling fashion.
Match rating: 9/10
It was certainly a brilliant night in New Orleans, with Brock Lesnar and Daniel Bryan stealing the limelight and sharing the honour of match of the night. While Lesnar’s match was so brilliant because of the intense nature of the shock factor, the WWE World Heavyweight match was a brilliant spectacle for the nature of the battle on show.
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