10 Things You Didn’t Know About WWE WrestleMania
The shocking stats and stories behind WWE's annual powerhouse: WrestleMania.
Think you know absolutely everything there is to know about WrestleMania? Think again.
WWE's annual showcase was a huge financial risk to Vince McMahon's aspiring juggernaut when he launched it back in 1985. By all accounts (ahem), 'Mania was "win or bust" for the then-boss, but it paid off big time and has become the richest pay-per-view in industry history since.
This year, the company runs the 39th version. Nowadays, WrestleMania spans multiple days, and that's just the actual events themselves. WWE takes over the host city all week, and rakes in millions of dollars on everything from merchandise to tickets for secondary shows like Raw, SmackDown and NXT.
Somehow, despite that lofty status, there's still so much to learn about the powerhouse. For example, did you know that 'Mania once took place on a Monday? How about the one wrestler who defeated almost an entire faction on the same night?
If that's not enough, this article has word on which iconic WWE star never actually defended the World Title on the grandest stage, and which famous gimmick bout endured a 36-year wait between appearances on the card.
On with the pageantry!
10. “WrestleMania Sunday”? Not Always!
WWE runs WrestleMania across multiple nights these days. Saturdays and Sundays during show weekends are all about the actual event itself, but the latter was traditionally Vince McMahon's go to for pay-per-views during his glory years (there were exceptions, like the bizarre 'This Tuesday In Texas' back in 1991).
'Mania 2 stands alone, and not just because it's still the only supercard to beam from three different locations. The 1986 special actually took place on a Monday. Yes, a Monday. It remains the only one to be held on a day most folks hate; WrestleMania 2 went down on 7 April '86.
Triple H and Vinnie Mac are unlikely to give that a go in the modern era.
In fairness, they don't need to, but it's still curious that the second 'Mania happened on a Monday afternoon/early-evening. Hulk Hogan probs felt like he was working an entire week when he stepped into the steel cage vs. lumbering giant King Kong Bundy, to be honest.