7 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE WrestleMania XIX
1. Reign Of Error
Triple H's removal of Booker T from his orbit in 2003 still triggers annoyance not just for the racially-charged content of their storyline but the sheer machiavellian magnificence of 'The Game'.
Everything about the match required the challenger to go over. Booker was subject to bigotry from the oppressive heel champion and his d*ckhead sidekick Ric Flair but lost clean as a sheet when he got his WrestleMania shot. As if to confirm everything spat at him by Hunter and 'The Nature Boy' beforehand, he was kept away from both the strap and the chap as he slid towards the Intercontinental Title in the immediate aftermath.
It was vintage gamesmanship from somebody identifying as 'That Damn Good' at it. Hunter was a ring general at his year 2000 peak but this was yet another reminder of what WWE used to have, rather than what they were now stuck with.