10 Fascinating WWE WrestleMania 25 Facts
HBK and The Dead Man gave us one for the ages.
Ahh, the "Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of WrestleMania", which was actually the twenty-fourth anniversary. See, because 1985 + 24 = 2009. WWE and math are generally an oil-and-water mix, especially when hyperbole seizes their vocal cords. Ladders become 30 feet tall, Andre can weigh 1100 pounds, and WrestleMania 25 somehow translates to twenty-fifth anniversary. Such is life with WWE logic.
The lead-up to the big day felt like a funhouse mirror version of the Attitude Era, with multiple attempts at edginess in spite of the restrictive PG sanitizing that began the previous summer. One angle saw Randy Orton assaulting the McMahon family (including Stephanie), leading to Triple H breaking into his house. Another was John Cena blackmailing Vickie Guerrero, who was engaged in a preposterous tryst with Big Show. Chris Jericho beat Ric Flair into a bloody mess. Matt Hardy burned down his brother's house and killed his dog. The stories felt like a parody of The Attitude Era, instead of an on-par revival. Instead of running angles they thought would be fun and compelling, it felt as WWE was running angles solely to try and be like said-Attitude Era. They simply tried way too hard.
On the flip side, two Attitude Era mainstays had a one-on-one encounter at WrestleMania 25, and ended up producing one of the greatest WWE clashes of all time. It's remembered far more than anything else associated with the show.
10. Tazz Offered To Commentate, In Spite Of His Contract Expiring
For the first time since WrestleMania X8 seven years earlier, there was only one announce team for the duration of the main show. Though there still three bands with their own distinct broadcast duos, the trio of Jim Ross, Michael Cole, and Jerry Lawler handled the job for the four-hour telecast.
Absent from the group was Tazz. On Tuesday, March 31, 2009, Tazz's WWE contract expired, and he chose to leave the company, wanting to pursue other interests. He had given his notice several weeks prior, and even offered to work WrestleMania in Houston for free, so as to not leave SmackDown partner Ross high and dry.
WWE instead went with the three-man booth, and Tazz was officially done with the company, resurfacing in TNA later on that year.