As we inch closer to the top 100 WrestleMania matches of all-time, the list starts to turn from “why am I watching this?” to “hey, this is actually pretty good!”
Nothing in this group is enough to make you want to gauge your eyes out, which is a step in the right direction. It’s a mix of matches that either exceeded expectations, greatly faltered in that department or did everything they were supposed to do. Some good, some bad, very little ugly.
Here are the matches ranked 200-101 in WrestleMania history.
200. The Rougeau Brothers vs. Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake (WrestleMania III)
199. 20-Man WWF vs. NFL Battle Royal (WrestleMania 2)
It is absolutely wild that, at WrestleMania 2 in 1986, active NFL players stepped into the ring with the likes of Andre The Giant, Big John Studd and Tony Atlas for a legitimate Battle Royal. These weren’t no-name football players, either. We’re talking guys like William “Refrigerator” Perry just months removed from winning the Super Bowl with the Bears and Bill Fralic, who had just been the #2 overall pick in the NFL Draft the year prior. There was serious risk for injury with all of these massive bodies in the ring at the same time. The closest thing we’ll see now is Rob Gronkowski taking a two-foot fall from a platform to win the 24/7 Championship. And he wasn’t even under contract at the time! In the early days of WrestleMania, the company was even more obsessed with celebrity than it is now. In addition, WrestleMania 2 featured appearances from Elvira, Ozzy Osbourne and the Wendy’s “Where’s The Beef?” Lady (which, coincidentally, is always the names I list when asked what three people I’d want to have dinner with, living or dead). The WWF vs. NFL Battle Royal was categorically insane, but part of me wishes they would revert back to some of their old ways. Let’s get Patrick Mahomes inside Hell In A Cell! Lamar Jackson in a TLC Match! TOM BRADY COMPETING FOR THE MONEY IN THE BANK BRIEFCASE! The possibilities are endless.
198. Brutus Beefcake vs. David Sammartino (WrestleMania I)
197. Ted DiBiase vs. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan (WrestleMania IV)
196. Randy Savage and Queen Sherri vs. Dusty Rhodes and Sapphire (WrestleMania VI)
195. Ricky Steamboat vs. Hercules (WrestleMania 2)
194. Haku vs. Hercules (WrestleMania V)
193. Otis vs. Dolph Ziggler (WrestleMania 36)
192. The Undertaker vs. Kane (WrestleMania XX)
191. Mr. Perfect vs. Big Boss Man (WrestleMania VII)
190. Randy Savage vs. George “The Animal” Steele (WrestleMania 2)
189. Mr. Perfect vs. The Blue Blazer (WrestleMania V)
188. Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal (WrestleMania XXX)
187. Sami Zayn vs. Daniel Bryan (WrestleMania 36)
It feels like a fever dream that Sami Zayn and Daniel Bryan had a match at last year’s WrestleMania and it feels like even more of a fever dream that it was not good.
186. Sgt. Slaughter vs. Hulk Hogan (WrestleMania VII)
185. Ted DiBiase vs. Jake Roberts (WrestleMania VI)
184. Ted DiBiase vs. Brutus Beefcake (WrestleMania V)
183. Tito Santana vs. The Barbarian (WrestleMania VI)
182. The Undertaker vs. Mark Henry - Casket Match (WrestleMania 22)
181. Alundra Blayze vs. Leilani Kai (WrestleMania X)
180. Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins (WrestleMania 35)
179. The Godwinns vs. The Headbangers vs. The New Blackjacks vs. Doug Furnas and Phil LaFon (WrestleMania 13)
178. Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre (WrestleMania 35)
177. John Cena vs. JBL (WrestleMania 21)
176. Cody Rhodes vs. Big Show (WrestleMania 28)
Ah yes, just what I think about now when I see these two names in the same sentence: their match at WrestleMania 28!
175. CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio (WrestleMania 26)
174. Jazz vs. Lita vs. Trish Stratus (WrestleMania X8)
173. The Undertaker vs. Sycho Sid - No Disqualification Match (WrestleMania 13)
172. Diamond Dallas Page vs. Christian (WrestleMania X8)
171. Victoria vs. Trish Stratus vs. Jazz (WrestleMania XIX)
170. Mankind vs. Big Show (WrestleMania XV)
169. Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Goldust (WrestleMania 13)
168. HHH vs. Batista - No Holds Barred Match (WrestleMania 35)
167. The Nasty Boys, The Mountie and Repo Man vs. Sgt. Slaughter, Big Boss Man, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan and Virgil (WrestleMania VIII)
166. HHH vs. Booker T (WrestleMania XIX)
165. Koko B. Ware vs. Rick Martel (WrestleMania VI)
164. The Nation of Domination vs. The Legion of Doom and Ahmed Johnson - Chicago Street Fight (WrestleMania 13)
163. The Islanders and Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. The British Bulldogs and Koko B. Ware (WrestleMania IV)
162. The Rockers vs. The Orient Express (WrestleMania VI)
161. The Godfather and D’Lo Brown vs. Big Boss Man and Bull Buchanan (WrestleMania 2000)
160. Booker T vs. Edge (WrestleMania X8)
159. Billy and Chuck vs. The Dudley Boyz vs. The Hardy Boyz vs. The APA (WrestleMania X8)
Listen, there are many things to be said about Billy and Chuck. But for now, I’ll leave it at this: Billy and Chuck are undefeated at WrestleMania and that’s what? Gay rights!
158. Chris Benoit vs. MVP (WrestleMania 23)
157. Randy Orton vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Rusev vs. Bobby Roode (WrestleMania 34)
156. Lawrence Taylor vs. Bam Bam Bigelow (WrestleMania XI)
God, this company is addicted to football players. There are two truths in play here: (1) The fact that a retired NFL player headlined the biggest show of the year against Bam Bam Bigelow speaks to how dire things were in 1995 and (2) the match is actually better than it has any right to be. With that being said, you can see how the negative impact of the main event booking at WrestleMania IX is still being felt here. There’s absolutely no direction and, worse yet, Lawrence Taylor wins this match. A retired football player won the WrestleMania main event clean! LT deserves credit for avoiding complete disaster here, but the doldrums of WWF in the early 90’s were brutal.
155. Owen Hart and Yokozuna vs. The Smoking Gunns (WrestleMania XI)
154. Strike Force vs. Demolition (WrestleMania IV)
153. The Quebecers vs. Men On A Mission (WrestleMania X)
152. Ricky Steamboat vs. Greg Valentine (WrestleMania IV)
151. HHH vs. Roman Reigns (WrestleMania 32)
150. HHH vs. Sting - No Disqualification Match (WrestleMania 31)
149. Chris Jericho vs. William Regal (WrestleMania X-Seven)
148. Randy Savage vs. Ted DiBiase (WrestleMania IV)
I love pro wrestling! I love tournaments! So you’d think WrestleMania IV, which features a 14-man tournament for the vacant WWF Heavyweight Championship, would be right up my alley. Well, dear reader, it turns out that having eleven tournament matches in one night is overkill and leads to an overwhelming amount of bad, short matches. There would have been even more, but two tournament matches (including the very underwhelming Andre/Hogan rematch from ‘Mania III) ended in either double count-out or disqualification. Savage/DiBiase, which was the tournament final and main event of the evening, is a serviceable match, but it was the exhausting cherry on top of a mediocre sundae. They don’t even get ten minutes and it’s hard to muster up excitement after a SIXTEEN MATCH MAIN CARD. The tournament idea was bold, but it makes sense why they’ve never done it again.
147. Rick Rude vs. Jake Roberts (WrestleMania IV)
146. The Can-Am Connection vs. Bob Orton and The Magnificent Muraco (WrestleMania III)
145. Randy Orton vs. Kane (WrestleMania XXVIII)
144. Demolition vs. The Powers of Pain and Mr. Fuji (WrestleMania V)
143. The Rockers vs. The Twin Towers (WrestleMania V)
142. The Steiner Brothers vs. The Headshrinkers (WrestleMania IX)
141. The Ultimate Warrior vs. Rick Rude (WrestleMania V)
140. The Colossal Connection vs. Demolition (WrestleMania VI)
139. Jeff Jarrett vs. Razor Ramon (WrestleMania XI)
138. Shawn Michaels vs. Tatanka (WrestleMania IX)
137. Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger (WrestleMania 29)
136. William Regal vs. Rob Van Dam (WrestleMania X8)
135. Cruiserweight Open (WrestleMania XX)
134. The Miz vs. John Cena (WrestleMania 27)
People forget that The Miz successfully defended the WWE Championship against John Cena in the main event of WrestleMania! (Just kidding, The Miz never stops talking about it). What some people might actually forget, however, is that he was gifted the victory by Hollywood’s Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, which set up Rock vs. Cena as the main event for the next two ‘Manias. The Miz winning via shady means isn’t really a problem, but using the WrestleMania main event to start an angle for next year’s WrestleMania main event? Well, that’s tough. It makes everything feel insignificant. I think it’s also pertinent, while we’re here, to discuss John Cena’s WrestleMania legacy. Cena has competed 15 times at WrestleMania, the 7th most all-time, and while I’m not a Cena hater (please don’t dox me, Cenation!), I don’t think he’s ever managed to have a truly memorable ‘Mania match. MILD SPOILER ALERT: Despite 15 attempts and being the face of the company for the better part of a decade, he doesn’t land a match inside the top 40. Something tells me the writing of that legacy is far from over, though.
133. The Bella Twins vs. Paige and AJ Lee (WrestleMania 31)
132. The Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns - No Holds Barred Match (WrestleMania 33)
131. Gallows and Anderson vs. The Hardy Boyz vs. Enzo and Cass vs. Sheamus and Cesaro - Fatal 4-Way Ladder Match (WrestleMania 33)
130. The Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt (WrestleMania 31)
129. The Miz vs. Shane McMahon - Falls Count Anywhere Match (WrestleMania 35)
128. Bobby Lashley vs. Finn Balor (WrestleMania 35)
127. Test vs. Eddie Guerrero (WrestleMania X-Seven)
126. The Funk Brothers vs. Junkyard Dog and Tito Santana (WrestleMania 2)
125. Sasha Banks and Bayley vs. Nia Jax and Tamina vs. The IIconics vs. Natalya and Beth Phoenix (WrestleMania 35)
124. Edge vs. Randy Orton - Last Man Standing Match (WrestleMania 36)
123. Shawn Michaels vs. Tito Santana (WrestleMania VIII)
122. Marc Mero and Sable vs. Goldust and Luna Vachon (WrestleMania XIV)
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The pop for Sable in this match is one of the loudest in WrestleMania history. In fact, it might be the loudest. I’m not kidding. Go back and watch it. Sable had about a year where she was one of the popular wrestlers, if not human beings, in the entire world. As a man who was once a sexually confused ten-year-old boy at the 1999 Royal Rumble with a sign that read “Hey Sable, call me” with my phone number listed (she never called), I get it! Sable was great! This mixed tag is nothing to sleep on, either. Sable’s athletic ability is fully on display, which is a treat to watch. Things would eventually tumble off the rails for Sable and WWF, but for a brief, electric moment at WrestleMania XIV, she was untouchable.
121. Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax (WrestleMania 34)
120. The Street Profits vs. Angel Garza and Austin Theory (WrestleMania 36)
119. Kane vs. HHH (WrestleMania XV)
118. HHH vs. Batista (WrestleMania 21)
117. Owen Hart and The British Bulldog vs. Vader and Mankind (WrestleMania 13)
116. The British Bulldog vs. Warlord (WrestleMania VII)
115. The Hart Foundation vs. Greg Valentine and The Honky Tonk Man (WrestleMania V)
114. Ric Flair, Randy Orton and Batista vs. The Rock ’N’ Sock Connection (WrestleMania XX)
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113. John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt (WrestleMania XXX)
112. Jeff Hardy vs. Matt Hardy - Extreme Rules Match (WrestleMania 25)
111. Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes (WrestleMania XXVII)
110. Batista vs. John Cena (WrestleMania XXVI)
109. Edge vs. Alberto Del Rio (WrestleMania XXVII)
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108. Drew McIntyre vs. Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania 36)
107. AJ Styles vs. Randy Orton (WrestleMania 35)
106. The Kabuki Warriors vs. Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross (WrestleMania 36)
105. Daniel Bryan vs. Bad News Barrett vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth vs. Stardust vs. Luke Harper vs. Dean Ambrose - Ladder Match (WrestleMania 31)
104. Matt Hardy vs. Rey Mysterio (WrestleMania XIX)
103. The Brain Busters vs. Strike Force (WrestleMania V)
The beauty and fluidity of great tag team wrestling was a hallmark of WrestleMania during many of its early years, thanks to teams like The Hart Foundation, The Rockers and The British Bulldogs. This match, between The Brain Busters (Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard) and Strike Force (Rick Martel and Tito Santana), is technical and crisp, which actually felt pretty revolutionary at the time. There are no frills, no gimmicks, no distractions. It’s just pure wrestling. The match also provides a chance to recognize Bobby “The Brain” Heenan, who was in the corner of The Brain Busters. The best manager to ever do it, Heenan was a staple of WrestleMania for years. Whether ringside or in the announce booth, he was consistently hilarious and is owed a major debt for helping to turn WrestleMania into the spectacle it became.
102. Shane McMahon vs. X-Pac (WrestleMania XV)
101. Randy Orton vs. CM Punk (WrestleMania XXVII)
The cream is rising to the top... OH YEAH! You can figure out what’s going to be in the top 100 by process of elimination (in addition to the above, matches 201 - 300 are here, and 301 - 356 here), to start prepping your arguments. But the order is key, so meet us back here next week to see what we have where!