10 Things Nobody Has Told You About WWE WrestleMania

9. There Are Shockingly Few Great Openers

Triple H Roman Reigns
WWE

In WrestleMania "lore", the list of middling opening matches far outstrips the list of red-hot openers.

While Tito Santana and Ricky Steamboat did a fine job of ungluing the crowd in the early years of the event, it was only at VII that the first really strong opener - Rockers Vs. Haku and Barbarian, a cracking brains versus brawn match - was promoted on the Grandest Stage. It took WWE a full decade to book a truly excellent opener, but it was worth the wait; Bret's slow realisation that he had to fight his brat of a brother at X was a superb beat that intensified a flawless technical affair.

WWE's form in the '90s was otherwise shocking.

In fact, the opening slot started to feel like a curse; by WrestleMania 21, two decades and only two very good opening matches in, Rey Mysterio struggled with his mask as much as he did his opponent Eddie Guerrero. That match was a clunky disappointment, the odd electrifying moment aside.

The 2000s was saved only by two excellent Money In The Bank matches and a blackly comedic Belfast Brawl. The 2010s hardly started off hot; furthering the "curse" theory, the Shield had their one average match in a sea of rippers at WrestleMania 29. From XXX onwards, the hex was reversed, but even 'Mania 38 feel victim to it as a result of a very unfortunate injury suffered by Rick Boogs.

Nonetheless, the seminal Daniel Bryan Vs. Triple H and a handful of hot matches aside, the opener of WrestleMania was only ever good a quarter of the time at best.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!