33 WWE WrestleMania Opening Matches Ranked From Worst To Best

17. William Regal Vs. Rob Van Dam - WrestleMania X8

Triple H Daniel Bryan WrestleMania XXX
WWE.com

Something of an ugly and unworkable styles clash on paper, Rob Van Dam was f*cking over in 2002, which helped massively.

Regal was as effective a comedy wrestler as he was a technician, and it was the mode he leaned on here with his hilarious begging off antics and cowardly facials. Still, even with a crowd high on RVD (sorry), that strange dynamic did contrive to repel both men away from their best, with the wincing exception of Van Dam's killer upright neckbreaker bump.

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!