16 Match Star Ratings For WWE WrestleMania 39

12. Trish Stratus, Lita & Becky Lynch Vs. Damage CTRL

Star Ratings
WWE.com

At around 15 minutes and reliant upon a fast pace and convoluted modern sequencing, this was much too ambitious.

Lita isn't quite in her Heroines of Wrestling phase, but Iyo Sky had to practically sprint with lung-bursting speed, at the last second, to blatantly get into position to take her signature moves. Iyo had to create the illusion of a fast-paced match, even if it all looked incredibly fake. Trish Stratus fared better, slightly, but like Lita she had to beg for a reaction from the audience. Lita actually earned one deep in the match, when she hit her big moves, but that just brought into focus that the match went much too long. It was a strange decision, imposing a modern structure. This would have benefited, greatly, from smoke and mirrors.

The Lita and Trish nostalgia has faded, so much so that Becky Lynch felt anonymous in there when she should have worked most of the match in the Ricky Morton role. The entire match veered between oof and just there before the last two minutes, which the crowd did get into.

So a glorified Raw match, then, only worked in slower motion than usual.

Star Rating: ★★½

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!