18 WWE WrestleMania 36 Impulse Reactions

Silence, violence, and one of the greatest matches in WrestleMania history.

John Cena Bray Wyatt
WWE.com

Yes, some of these reactions won't feel particularly...impulsive. But then the biggest wrestling show of the year wasn't live and most of it took place in an empty gym, so perhaps this isn't the time for pedantry.

The first ever two-night WrestleMania (an event only split because the event taking place across the entire world forced it to) has just concluded, with the main event of Brock Lesnar Vs Drew McIntyre barely feeling like the headline attraction of the biggest show of the year thanks to inescapable circumstances that hijacked this grandiose act of escapism.

This WrestleMania will be a talking point forever - this was the one in-house prediction that proved true. Taken out of Raymond James Stadium in Tampa when the company were given no choice, most of the talent weren't able to get the typical (and in this case, necessary) television time to promote their programmes in time for the 'Show Of Shows'.

As the global situation worsened, so too did the reason for any of this to exist in the first place. WWE had paymasters to placate and were obviously willing to gamble the health of the talent to do so.

Were the show really worth it? Long story short, no, but the wider debate allows for a match to exist that will be remembered for decades. Just when logic and the world at large had all the correct answers, WWE somehow managed to change a few key questions.

18. Cesaro Vs. Drew Gulak

John Cena Bray Wyatt
WWE.com

Just a month or so on from having an absolute banger opener at Elimination Chamber with Daniel Bryan, Drew Gulak made history as the first wrestler to ever stride out on WWE's 'Grandest Stage' in front of absolutely nobody.

His arrival inadvertently drew online disdain, but it was less to do with the former Cruiserweight Champion and more the total lack of a f*cking pirate ship in that haunted Performance Center.

At least it wasn't anger he could hear - though he could have made a pin dropping midway through all the grunts and groans of a painfully perfunctory opening match on the show's irritating Kickoff. His match with the 'Swiss Superman' was infinitely preferable to Corey Graves and Peter Rosenberg chuntering on (anything would have been), but other than Michael Cole seemingly working earpiece-free, there wasn't really much to take from it.

Cesaro's hands-free airplane spin was a decent enough way to put Gulak away, but the pair didn't batter each other for such a stupid cause. Good for them. Less so for us.

This was genuinely historic, and you will never ever watch it again.

Contributor
Contributor

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