10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (March 18)
5. Edge Used WrestleMania 22 As His Proving Ground
Another fact linked to Mick Foley also related to his opponent at WrestleMania 22. Adam 'Edge' Copeland had experienced varying levels of success when working as a singles star in WWE up until 2006. He feels the 'Mania 22 match greatly helped change perceptions of him.
Before the 'Hardcore' battle against Foley, Edge had already captured the WWE Title. Cashing in on John Cena at New Year's Revolution, the Canadian would quickly drop the belt back to Cena at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Having had a taste of the top, Copeland only wanted more.
ESPN recently ran an interview with the former 'Rated-R Superstar', and asked him to name his own personal favourite WrestleMania moment from his career. Somewhat surprisingly, the match against Foley from 'Mania 22 was named, as Edge felt that shifted management's thinking towards him afterwards.
Whilst the infamous flaming table bump was naturally painful, it's something Copeland claims was worth it. He says the match legitimised him as a main event level player.