10 Most Soul-Destroying WrestleMania Moments

"The boyhood dream has come true", gushed Vince McMahon as Shawn Michaels defeated Bret Hart to become the new WWF Heavyweight Champion. The match-concluding 'Sweet Chin Music' at WrestleMania XII has been played time and time again, and for good reason; it was an extremely heartfelt moment.

In similar fashion, seeing genuine tears roll down the cheeks of both Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero at the close of WrestleMania XX was seriously emotional. Fans couldn't help but join in, recognising the hard work and sacrifice the pair had consistently made to get to that point.

Moments such as those outlined above are undoubtedly ones consumed by sheer, unadulterated joy. When these moments occur, fans can't help but punch the air in delight. Unfortunately, WrestleMania has also been home to moments after which those same fans want to punch holes in the nearest wall out of frustration.

The overwhelming letdown caused by the moments featured on this list cannot be forgotten. They were soul-destroying for different reasons - perhaps wrestling fans were disappointed in the company itself for select creative decisions, or maybe a big match just fell flat and left everyone deflated as a result - but soul-destroying nonetheless. 

WrestleMania is the grandest stage WWE can provide, but that only makes the disappointment even bigger when things go wrong.

In the mid-1990's, Vince McMahon put a lot of emphasis on the idea of the 'New WWF Generation'. The idea was simple, to make the WWF look cutting edge and youthful. Meanwhile, over in the retirement home known as WCW, guys McMahon had created like Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage were embarrassing themselves.

That was the general idea of the 'Billionaire Ted' skits, but they backfired terribly on the WWF. Contrary to what fans of the company were being told, neither Hogan nor Savage could be called past their prime with any real accuracy. Things all came to a head at WrestleMania XII.

On the WWF's grandest stage, the 'Free For All' portion of the broadcast featured a 'match' between 'The Huckster' and 'Nacho Man'. Played by actors, both were portrayed as relics the WWF no longer needed. It wasn't nice to see the promotion take potshots at stars who had helped build the company by breaking their backs. 

Further to this, Roddy Piper, The Ultimate Warrior and Jake 'The Snake' Roberts were all on the 'Mania card, discrediting the youth movement message that McMahon was trying to promote.