10 Wrestling Sequels That Were Even Better Than The Originals

7. The Rock Vs Stone Cold Steve Austin (WrestleMania 17)

Kenny Omega Okada
WWE.com

Their WrestleMania 15 clash was a brawl emblematic of the time, and their WrestleMania 19 match was a gentle farewell to their rivalry, but the WrestleMania 17 WWE Title headliner between The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin remains one of the finest matches the company has ever produced.

Building off their prior encounter (as well as Austin's wars with Bret Hart), the match was a fitting climax to WWE's best ever pay-per-view, with both men clearly desperate enough to do just about anything to win.

Taking liberal advantage of a No Disqualification rule added late (as yet another foreshadowing of Austin's heel turn), the two brawled on the arena floor and traded shots with the ring bell, bloodying each other in the process.

What then followed was an exercise in artistry, as the pair recreated Austin's famous WrestleMania battle with Bret Hart (more on that later), as well as drawing a heart-stopping nearfall in escaping Austin's Million Dollar Dream as the 'Hitman' had done at 1996's Survivor Series pay-per-view.

Austin's unrelenting pulverisation of 'The Great One' with a steel chair brought to an end four years of 'The Rattlesnake' hearing cheers for his act. Aligned with the evil Vince McMahon, the two took turns hammering The Rock until he was physically incapable of kicking out.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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