20 Reasons Why WWE WrestleMania 36 Was An Absolute BLAST

10. A Most Bruising Opener

Rhea Ripley Charlotte Flair
WWE.com

Bloody hell, Charlotte Flair and Rhea Ripley kicked lumps out of each other.

This was the defining Ripley match people were looking for from 'The Nightmare' at WrestleMania 36 and while Flair's victory has proven divisive, the slugfest preceding it was tremendous. These two more than made up for the lack of crowd noise by talking smack, hitting hard, and exercising good psychology with targeted limb beatdowns, Charlotte playing the domineering bully, and the younger wrestler working from beneath. Fantastic stuff befitting a spot on the biggest show of the year.

That Flair has the majority of her opponents' best WWE singles bout is an oft-repeated thought. At 'Mania, she strengthened it by narrowly outdoing Ripley's previously career-best versus Shayna Baszler, remaining the world how good she can be in a big-match situation.

Advertisement
Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.