10 Best WWE Pay-Per-Views Of The Past Decade

5. WrestleMania 31

CM Punk Brock Lesnar
WWE

A thoroughly enjoyable WrestleMania despite the now-familiar lengthy run-time, the 'Show Of Shows' Bay Area setting shone a light on the audience and roster alike. The daytime scene wasn't ideal for The Undertaker's senseless squash of Bray Wyatt, but then, the meeting between 'The Deadman' and 'The Eater Of Worlds' wasn't ideal for the card itself.

Away from that sh*tshow, Seth Rollins gave Randy Orton his best WrestleMania singles match in years before returning at the end of the show to become the first Money In The Bank winner to cash in on 'The Grandest Stage'.

His intrusion was a sublime solution to the super-heated Roman Reigns/Brock Lesnar main event. Speculation had previously ran rampant that Lesnar's UFC return was imminent, but a deal-sealing WWE contract signing earlier in the week added substantially more intrigue to the bloodletting of 'The Big Dog'. Manhandling Reigns as few others had done, Lesnar had all-but punched himself out by the time 'The Architect' arrived to build his part in a brand new triple threat main event.

In another combination that would manifest itself yet again years later, Ronda Rousey shooed off Stephanie McMahon and Triple H alongside The Rock. Then undefeated and a white hot mainstream star, Ronda's placement in a WWE ring was a genuine coup for the group.

 
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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett