10 WrestleMania Main Events The Royal Rumble Almost Promised Us
4. Brock Lesnar Vs. Daniel Bryan (WrestleMania 31)
Realistically, it was only a matter of time before we mentioned the 2015 Royal Rumble.
Heading into the show, Daniel Bryan was the overwhelming fan favourite to secure a second successive WrestleMania main event, after a fan backlash had contributed to his epic ascent to the top of the mountain at WrestleMania XXX in New Orleans. Plus, he’d just recently returned from a neck injury, leading many of us to believe that they’d rushed him back for the sole purpose of another major ‘Mania push.
Of course, Vince McMahon clearly had other plans.
Bryan was unceremoniously dumped out of contention somewhere in the middle of the match; a massive anti-climax, and the fans certainly made their feelings heard. The only more vehement reaction of the night was that which followed the eventual win for Roman Reigns, creating one of the most infamous moments in the PPV’s history.
Reigns faced Lesnar at ‘Mania, and though that match was much better than it often gets credit for, it still doesn’t scratch that enduring itch of how a Lesnar vs. Bryan match would go down.
Still, at least we’ve always got the memory of WrestleMania XXX to savour…