What is considered to be the “Christmas” of the wrestling community, many people geared up to watch Wrestlemania and cheer on their favorite Male and Female superstars. The two different brands (Raw and Smackdown) are both represented on this night as each brand had titles on the line. With over 75,000 in attendance and millions watching around the world, tonight would surely be a night to be remembered
The ultimate thrill ride officially started at 7pm but there was some preshow excitement with the preshow which featured the cruiserweight championship match, the Andre the Giant Battle Royal, and finally the Intercontinental championship match.
The hosts of this year’s Wrestlemania (the New Day) officially kicked off the show and the action started.
The first match of the night featured two Smackdown (SD) superstars Shane McMahon (The Commissioner of Smackdown) and AJ Styles. This match was pretty good, and when I say both AJ and Shane pulled off some epic moves, they did. Even though the commissioner lost, him and Styles pulled off a really good and it was a great way to start of the show.
The next match of the night was between two friends turned frenemies from the Raw brand. This match was for the United States Championship. This match was ok and it had some cool moves in it, but I didn’t find it as entertaining as the match before. The crowd also didn’t seem as involved in this match as they were in the Styles/McMahon match. To be honest this match probably could have been on the preshow. This match ended with the first title change of the night as Kevin Owens beat Chris Jericho and become the NEW WWE United State Champion.
We then moved to the Women’s division and had our first Women’s match of the night. For the Raw Women’s Championship there a fatal four-way elimination match consisting of four Female Superstars. These superstars were Nia Jax, Sasha Banks, Charlotte Flair, and the champion Bayley. The women’s division has come a long way since last year’s Mania and it’s great to see that both Women’s titles will be defended on the main card. Nia Jax dominated the match from early, but was the first one eliminated as the other three superstars worked together to eliminate her. Charlotte used some of her high flying maneuvers including a Corkscrew Moonsault from the top rope. This match moved quickly and the final two left in the ring were Charlotte and Bayley. Bayley retained her title after pinning Charlotte for the 1,2,3.
Up next we had a ladder match for the Raw Tag Team championship. What was originally supposed to only involve three tag teams, was then changed to a fatal four way. Team Extreme (Matt and Jeff Hardy) made their comebacks; the Citrus bowl erupted as the Hardy’s Music hit. Team extreme I known for their ladder matches and their high flying skills. After a twist of fate from the top of a ladder and a Swanton bomb that broke a ladder, Matt Hardy scaled the ladder and grabbed the titles to make them the New Tag Team Champs.
We then moved back to the Smackdown brand for a mixed tag team match consisting of two power couples, The Miz & Maryse and John Cena & Nikki Bella. Nikki and Cena picked up the win after both Nikki and John delivered simultaneous five knuckle shuffles to their opponents. John Cena picked up a mic after the match was over and proposed to his long-time girlfriend Nikki in the middle of the ring.
The “unsanctioned” anything goes match between Triple H and Seth Rollins was up next. As the storyline goes, it is called an unsanctioned match because “Seth Rollins was not cleared to compete”. Triple H entered the arena on a motorcycle accompanied by his wife Stephanie McMahon, and Seth Rollins entered carrying a torch. Triple H went immediately after Seth’s injured knee. This match was really good and ended with Seth Rollins delivering a pedigree to Triple H after Stephanie McMahon went through a table.
A match that was thought to be the main event actually occurred next. From the Smackdown brand was the WWE Championship match where Randy Orton challenged the champ Bray Wyatt; “Fireflies” lit up the arena as Wyatt entered. This match was pretty good and after an RKO out of nowhere, Randy Orton pinned the champ to become the New WWE Champion.
With only three matches left, our next match featured two superstars from the Raw brand and it was for the WWE Universal Championship. Brock Lesner challenged the champ Goldberg for the title. The challenger inflicted damage by putting Goldberg through 10 German Suplexes, won the title after hitting Goldberg with the F5. It’s safe to say the Brock Lesner brought Goldberg to Suplex City.
The second to last match of the night was saved for the Smackdown Women’s Title Match. The champion Alexa Bliss was tasked with facing all the available women on the Smackdown women’s roster. Her competitors included Becky Lynch, Mickie James, Carmella, Natalya, and Naomi. This match was pretty short, and the women of the Smackdown roster deserved more then they got, but a new champ was crowned tonight. Naomi became a two time SD Women’s Champ.
The main event of tonight’s ultimate thrill ride included a legend. The final match of the night featured Roman Reigns and the Undertaker. The Undertaker, who is 23-1 at Wrestlemania, entered the stadium in a cloud of smoke. This is the Undertaker’s yard, and Reigns was here to challenge him for it in a “No-Holds-Barred” match. The deadman dominated the match from the beginning and even yelled “get out of my yard” as he threw Reigns out of the ring. A match that involved steel chairs, pile drivers, and plenty of near falls ended with Roman Reigns beating the deadman.
As “Thank you Taker” chants broke out in the Citrus Bowl it’s safe to say that overall Wrestlemania was really good this year and just like every year it ended with a bang...of some gongs.