10 Shortest WWE WrestleMania Main Events Ever

Punching the clock on WWE's 'Grandest Stage'

Brock Lesnar Drew McIntyre
WWE

Match times used to be fairly rigid in WWE. Especially at the top of the card.

Main events featuring Hulk Hogan wouldn't ever need to go beyond the 15-20 minute mark if all the identical ingenious story beats had already cycled through and it was time to Hulk Up. Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels could extend it closer to 30 if it was absolutely necessary, and the one the time they doubled it divided the entire fanbase. Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Mankind and Triple H could normally get all their sh*t in in 20-25 tops in the Attitude Era, as could John Cena at the height of his topline tenure.

The familiarity didn't breed contempt but consistency. Audiences knew what they'd be getting for their money, and enjoyed the shock of a match going crazy long or explosively short. The rule-proving exceptions stood up as such, before the company leaned into the mammoth success of the Goldberg/Brock Lesnar programme.

Short sharp shock became a formula of its own, so much so that both major men's titles were decided under the format at WrestleMania - the second in as many title changes involving Bill Goldberg this year.

The game has changed, but how did Drew McIntyre's coronation stack up against the other relatively quick WrestleMania conclusions?

10. Brock Lesnar Vs Roman Reigns (WrestleMania 34) - 15:55

Brock Lesnar Drew McIntyre
WWE.com

Brock Lesnar's WrestleMania 34 win over Roman Reigns was among the most depressing matches in the history of the 'Show Of Shows'. That it went over a quarter of an hour was just another black mark against it.

In between suplexes and some brawling on the floor, fans didn't bite on six F5s as a way to beat 'The Big Dog', nor shed any tears for Roman shedding blood. Lesnar unleashed a primal wail has he delivered the final blow, as if to instruct the audience to do the same instead of leaving early or sitting on their hands in protest of something they simply didn't want.

Things are, thankfully, mostly different now, but this match served as as good an item for the Roman Reigns time capsule as the disastrous Royal Rumble 2015. Ahead of a personal battle that gradually transformed perception about the beleaguered 'Big Dog', Vince McMahon's planned empire yet again looked in a state of ruin.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 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 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, 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