Every WrestleMania match ranked: 300 - 201

When you look at every match in WrestleMania history, there are a bunch of all-timers, some absolute atrocities, and then you’re left to deal with the rest.

Most of the matches in this group have one thing in common: they are completely and utterly forgettable. And on the Grandest Stage of Them All, isn’t that the worst thing to be?

With that being said, even the characterless breeds conversation.

So, without further ado, matches 300-201 in WrestleMania history.

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300. Money Inc. vs. The Natural Disasters (WrestleMania VIII)

299. Dino Bravo vs. Ronnie Garvin (WrestleMania V)

298. John Cena and Nikki Bella vs. The Miz and Maryse (WrestleMania 33)

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297. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan vs. Dino Bravo (WrestleMania VI)

296. Owen Hart vs. Skinner (WrestleMania VIII)

295. Bayley vs. Lacey Evans vs. Naomi vs. Sasha Banks vs. Tamina (WrestleMania 36)

294. Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton (WrestleMania 33)

The only WrestleMania match to feature live projections of worms and cockroaches on the ring apron, Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton’s WrestleMania 33 match is a mess. It’s a failure, however, that showed they were willing to dip their toes into some adventurous, outside-the-box stuff. It’s also a failure that they managed to learn from, which is rare. They didn’t give up on making Bray weird, even leaning further into things with the creation of The Fiend and the Firefly Fun House Match at WrestleMania 36. So, while their match at ‘Mania 33 was a stinker, it laid the groundwork for what was to come, and what we can hopefully expect from the two at WrestleMania this year.

293. Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania 33)

292. Team Hell No vs. Dolph Ziggler and Big E (WrestleMania 29)

291. Alexa Bliss vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella vs. Naomi vs. Mickie James vs. Natalya (WrestleMania 33)

290. The Miz, Mark Henry, Drew McIntyre, Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler and David Otunga vs. Kofi Kingston, The Great Khali, R-Truth, Zack Ryder, Booker T and Santino Marella (WrestleMania XXVIII)

289. The Undertaker vs. Big Show and A-Train (WrestleMania XIX)

288. Jeff Jarrett and Owen Hart vs. Test and D’Lo Brown (WrestleMania XV)

287. Tazz and The APA vs. Right To Censor (WrestleMania X-Seven)

286. Bobby Lashley vs. Umaga - Hair vs. Hair “Battle of the Billionaires” Match (WrestleMania 23)

Former reality television star Donald J. Trump is a looming presence over WrestleMania. ‘Manias IV and V were hosted at Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, he makes an appearance at ‘Mania VII in Los Angeles and shakes hands with Chuck Norris (seriously) and, perhaps most ominously, he is interviewed ringside at WrestleMania XX where Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler speculate that he would make a great Vice President one day. It’s hard not to view WWE through a political lens sometimes, and while Trump’s appearances at WrestleMania were never explicitly political, it’s difficult not to feel a little icky about the company’s complicity in his rise and sustained public persona.

It all came to a head (glorious pun intended!) at WrestleMania 23 in Detroit, with Trump in the corner of Bobby Lashley and Vince McMahon in the corner of Umaga in a Battle of the Billionaires Match. The stipulation stated that whichever billionaire’s guy lost had to shave their head. Spoiler: Donald Trump does not get his head shaved in front of over 80,000 people. The match itself is a total bore, but this is all about the extracurriculars.

The entire charade is almost redeemed by the fact that, post-match, guest referee Stone Cold Steve Austin hits Trump with a Stunner. Trump, unsurprisingly, takes the Stunner terribly and is left to sort of crumple to the ground, which is covered in shaving cream. It’s cathartic. It’s also hard to say which is more surprising: the fact that Trump allowed himself to be embarrassed in the first place, or the fact that, nearly 15 years later, ol’ Bob Lashley finds himself prominently in the WrestleMania picture again.

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285. Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos vs. Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres (WrestleMania XXVIII)

284. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin vs. Savio Vega (WrestleMania XII)

283. Razor Ramon vs. Bob Backlund (WrestleMania IX)

282. The Undertaker vs. King Kong Bundy (WrestleMania XI)

281. Bret Hart vs. Yokozuna (WrestleMania IX)

Do you want to see how one bad booking decision can lead to years of turmoil and negative reverberations throughout an entire company? Let me direct your attention to the main event of WrestleMania IX! The year was 1993 and WWF was already in trouble. They were stuck between eras, there was no real direction and star power at the top of the card was severely lacking. So, what did they do? They had Yokozuna win the belt to only, inexplicably, lose it immediately to a recently-returned Hulk Hogan in an impromptu match following the main event (#343 if you’re scoring at home, or even if you’re by yourself). Just when it looked like Hogan’s handprints wouldn’t be all over WrestleMania, there he was. The Bret/Yoko match itself is also bad, so it all becomes a sum of its parts. It would take years for WWF to regain its footing.

280. The Legion of Doom vs. Power and Glory (WrestleMania VII)

279. Tito Santana vs. The Executioner (WrestleMania I)

278. Don Muraco vs. Dino Bravo (WrestleMania IV)

277. Hulk Hogan vs. Sid Justice (WrestleMania VIII)

276. Bad News Brown vs. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan (WrestleMania V)

275. Jake Roberts vs. Andre The Giant (WrestleMania V)

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274. Harley Race vs. Junkyard Dog - Loser Must Bow Match (WrestleMania III)

273. Adrian Adonis vs. Uncle Elmer (WrestleMania 2)

272. Money Inc. vs. The Mega-Maniacs (WrestleMania IX)

271. The Big Show vs. Floyd Mayweather - No Disqualification Match (WrestleMania XXIV)

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270. Hulk Hogan vs. King Kong Bundy - Steel Cage Match (WrestleMania 2)

269. Rocky Maivia vs. The Sultan (WrestleMania 13)

268. Nikolai Volkoff vs. Corporal Kirchner - Flag Match (WrestleMania 2)

267. Paul Orndorff vs. The Magnificent Muraco (WrestleMania 2)

266. King Kong Bundy, Little Tokyo and Lord Littlebrook vs. Hillbilly Jim, Haiti Kid and Little Beaver (WrestleMania III)

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265. Jake Roberts vs. George Wells (WrestleMania 2)

264. Ted DiBiase vs. Don Muraco (WrestleMania IV)

263. The Undertaker vs. Jimmy Snuka (WrestleMania VII)

262. Earthquake vs. Hercules (WrestleMania VI)

261. The Ultimate Warrior vs. Hercules (WrestleMania IV)

260. Randy Savage vs. One Man Gang (WrestleMania IV)

259. Al Snow and Steve Blackman vs. Test and Albert (WrestleMania 2000)

258. The Honky Tonk Man vs. Brutus Beefcake (WrestleMania IV)

257. Randy Savage vs. Butch Reed (WrestleMania IV)

256. Sable vs. Tori (WrestleMania XV)

255. Randy Savage vs. Greg Valentine (WrestleMania IV)

254. Bam Bam Bigelow vs. One Man Gang (WrestleMania IV)

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253. Big Show and Kane vs. Carlito and Chris Masters (WrestleMania 22)

252. The Bushwhackers vs. The Fabulous Rougeaus (WrestleMania V)

251. Rick Rude vs. Jimmy Snuka (WrestleMania VI)

250. The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff vs. The Killer Bees (WrestleMania III)

249. Billy Jack Haynes vs. Hercules (WrestleMania III)

248. Lex Luger vs. Mr. Perfect (WrestleMania IX)

247. JBL vs. Finlay - Belfast Brawl (WrestleMania XXIV)

246. Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns (WrestleMania 34)

245. HHH vs. Sheamus (WrestleMania XXVI)

Hunter Hearst Helmsley has competed 23 times at WrestleMania, the second-most matches in history. Despite the plethora of options and opportunities, he’s never really had a ‘Mania classic. In fact, most of his matches are relatively indistinguishable from one another. If you see his name on the card, you can pretty much count on a plodding affair involving some kind of stipulation, shenanigans and the fact that a sledgehammer is getting involved somehow.

Sometimes it works better than others, but this singles match against Sheamus smack dab in the middle of the WrestleMania XXVI card is not one of those times. While it’s short on weaponry, it’s a slog surrounded by matches that do a much better job of rising to the occasion. HHH’s best ‘Mania moments come at the expense of putting somebody else over (Daniel Bryan at XXX, for example, or the Undertaker sagas at 27 & 28, if those are your cup of tea), which he never really gets enough credit for. As a complete WrestleMania resume, however, it’s lacking much depth and something undeniably memorable that’s all his own.

244. The Usos vs. The New Day vs. The Bludgeon Brothers (WrestleMania 34)

243. John Cena vs. Rusev (WrestleMania 31)

242. Greg Valentine vs. Junkyard Dog (WrestleMania I)

241. Roddy Piper vs. Mr. T - Boxing Match (WrestleMania 2)

240. Wendi Richter vs. Leilani Kai (WrestleMania I)

239. Chris Jericho vs. Edge (WrestleMania XXVI)

238. Jake Roberts vs. The Honky Tonk Man (WrestleMania III)

237. Ricky Steamboat vs. Matt Borne (WrestleMania I)

236. Victoria vs. Molly Holly - Hair vs. Title Match (WrestleMania XX)

235. Bret Hart vs. Bob Backlund - I Quit Match (WrestleMania XI)

234. Sheamus and Cesaro vs. Braun Strowman and Nicholas (WrestleMania 34)

233. 15-Team Battle Royal (WrestleMania XIV)

232. Hulk Hogan vs. Andre The Giant (WrestleMania IV)

231. The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff vs. The U.S. Express (WrestleMania I)

230. Roddy Piper vs. Adrian Adonis - Hair vs. Hair Match (WrestleMania III)

229. Road Dogg vs. Val Venis vs. Goldust vs. Ken Shamrock (WrestleMania XV)

228. The Miz and Big Show vs. R-Truth and John Morrison (WrestleMania XXVI)

227. Chris Jericho vs. Fandango (WrestleMania 29)

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226. HHH vs. Randy Orton (WrestleMania XXV)

225. Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty vs. World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. The Basham Brothers vs. The APA (WrestleMania XX)

224. Batista vs. Umaga (WrestleMania XXIV)

223. The New Day vs. The League of Nations (WrestleMania 32)

222. Chris Jericho vs. Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka and Ricky Steamboat (WrestleMania 25)

221. Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg (WrestleMania XX)

220. Rob Van Dam and Booker T vs. The Dudley Boyz vs. Garrison Cade and Mark Jindrak vs. La Résistance (WrestleMania XX)

219. Raven vs. Kane vs. The Big Show (WrestleMania X-Seven)

218. Chris Benoit vs. JBL (WrestleMania 22)

It’s time to reckon with Chris Benoit. If you’re reading this and you aren’t familiar with the story of Chris Benoit; first of all, who are you? Secondly, uh...look it up! Benoit competed seven times at WrestleMania and the matches range from great to inoffensive. This match against JBL for the United States Championship at ‘Mania 22 is the worst of the bunch, but it’s more bland than it is bad. The worst part comes when JBL hits Benoit with the Three Amigos suplexes in the style of Benoit’s friend Eddie Guerrero, who had passed away just months prior. The entire thing is uncomfortable.

Regardless of quality, watching a Chris Benoit match is difficult. It’s nearly impossible, at least for me, to separate the wrestler from the man and his actions. The circumstances and causes for those horrific few days inside the Benoit household is a discussion for a different day, but in the interest of being a completist, I think ranking his matches here makes sense. It might not be easy, but his contributions to WrestleMania throughout the years (especially as we inch closer to the top of the list) are undeniable, despite the apprehension and confliction.

217. The Radicalz vs. Chyna and Too Cool (WrestleMania 2000)

216. The Allied Powers vs. The Blu Brothers (WrestleMania XI)

215. The Rock vs. Ken Shamrock (WrestleMania XIV)

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214. Billy Gunn vs. Hardcore Holly vs. Al Snow (WrestleMania XV)

213. Tatanka vs. Rick Martel (WrestleMania VIII)

212. Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase Jr. (WrestleMania XXVI)

211. Ted DiBiase vs. Virgil (WrestleMania VII)

210. The Undertaker vs. Jake Roberts (WrestleMania VIII)

209. Big Show vs. John Cena (WrestleMania XX)

208. Bayley vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax (WrestleMania 33)

207. Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose - No Holds Barred Street Fight (WrestleMania 32)

206. The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania XXX)

Ah yes, the end of The Streak™. In discussing this match, you’re really talking about two separate things: the decision for Brock Lesnar to end The Undertaker’s WrestleMania winning streak and the quality of the match itself. When it comes to the winner here, I’d argue that it was undeniably the right decision. It was a legitimately shocking outcome that firmly established Lesnar as a dominating, formidable force in the years to come. I don’t think The Undertaker’s legacy was harmed with the loss here, and hey, surprises are fun! Not fun, however, was watching the nearly 50-year-old ‘Taker stumble through this fight with The Beast. It makes the verdict look even better. WrestleMania is an institution founded on bad decision-making. They made a good one here.

205. Vince McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels - No Holds Barred Match (WrestleMania 22)

204. Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon - Street Fight (WrestleMania XIX)

203. Yokozuna vs. Bret Hart (WrestleMania X)

202. Jake Roberts vs. Rick Martel (WrestleMania VII)

201. 20-Man Battle Royal (WrestleMania IV)

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We’re not even halfway done! But we’ll hit the midway point next time.

Where will Triple H’s best non-classics land? What mega-star has an even less impressive resumé than The Game? Keep coming back to find out!

If you missed the 56 worst ‘Mania matches, you can find those here.