10 Unlikeliest WWE WrestleMania Main-Eventers
Celebrating the wrestlers who went from the chorus line to the final bow.
Serendipity is very sweet.
We thought we were going to get Becky Lynch vs. Ronda Rousey at Survivor Series, but after an errant Punch from Nia Jax, WWE made the audible of all audibles due to The Man suffering a broken nose and concussion. Charlotte Flair took Becky's place this past Sunday, and now, according to Dave Meltzer, the ostensible plan for WrestleMania? Becky Lynch in the main event against Ronda Rousey - and possibly Charlotte as well.
This is quite astounding, as Rousey vs. Charlotte 1-on-1 has been pencilled in for months as the probable main event of WrestleMania 35.
Naturally, wrestling fandom as a whole is jumping for joy at this news, as 2018 has been an absolute barnburner of a year for the perennial favorite. If WWE don't pull a Dave Meltzer special (i.e. "plans change"), Becky will join a long line of people who were never thought to be big enough stars in wrestling to join the ranks of 'Mania main-eventer.
From midcarders to journeymen to non-wrestlers, there have been some surprising names to close out the show of shows.
10. Daniel Bryan
It's probably the best underdog story WWE ever told, and they did it completely begrudgingly.
WWE would like you to think that they listened to the fans and deliberately crafted a story where Daniel Bryan rode a wave of momentum in 2013, and with the help of the Yes Movement, overcame WWE management and main-evented WrestleMania XXX in a completely organic fashion.
In reality, WWE had no plans for Bryan to main-event, and basically gave zero craps about the Yes chants. However, after the Royal Rumble, when CM Punk walked out of the company discouraged about not main-eventing WrestleMania, WWE had to re-arrange the whole show. When they realized that Batista was not going to work as a babyface against Randy Orton, they decided to insert Bryan in the main event. It killed two birds with one stone: it saved the show, and it was a good way to spite Punk by giving his coveted main event to his personal and professional rival.
Of course, whatever cynical backstage chicanery there was, sometimes, fiction is more important than reality. The story of Daniel Bryan overcoming the odds and closing WrestleMania as WWE Champion is one that will be in WrestleMania video packages forever.