10 Times WWE Repeated History

3. Twice The Effort On The Grandest Stage

Becky Lynch Asuka
WWE.com

Vince McMahon's penchant for giants is the worst kept secret in wrestling, but a quick scan of some of his landmark events reveals an unlikely coincidence about just how and when he showcases somebody new.

WrestleMania X was a night designed to apologise to Bret Hart for going with Hulk Hogan at his expense a year prior. Hart wrestled a beautiful opener against his brother Owen then dethroned Yokozuna in more of a moment than a match in the main event.

A decade on and in the same building, Chris Benoit overcame company lifers and main event veterans Triple H and Shawn Michaels to win his first and only top title in WWE, with the theme being that only the steepest climb would yield such satisfction.

10 years after that, and Daniel Bryan did both. He worked twice, like Bret, and worked a triple threat main event against the WWE favourites (as opposed to the fan ones) to become the Champion in unlikely circumstances.

All three were deemed too small, too boring or too technical to be the star attraction in McMahon's one-ring circus, yet they made it. Perhaps Chad Gable should at least persist until for WrestleMania 40, just in case.

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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, Fightful, POST Wrestling, 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