40 Years Of Fascinating WWE WrestleMania Facts (Part 4)

9. WrestleMania 32 - Every WrestleMania 31 Champion Was Off WrestleMania 32

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WWE.com

A WrestleMania pre-ordained as historic based on size and scale looked cursed by its ambition when, by weeks before the show, a vast array of wrestlers were either set to miss it completely or at the very least compete on 'The Grandest Stage' in a reduced capacity.

But the best way to reflect the scale of the problem was by comparing the Champions from exactly one year prior. New WWE Champion Seth Rollins missed the event entirely after going down hurt the prior November. United States Champion John Cena was just about well enough to perform a surprise run-in on behalf of The Rock. Intercontinental Champion Daniel Bryan wasn't, nor was he set to do anything ever again per a tear-soaked farewell in February. Tag Champions Cesaro and Tyson Kidd were snookered by the latter's career-ending neck injury. The Divas Championship was binned at WrestleMania 32, but AJ Lee wouldn't have been with the company to defend it anyway.

The times were changing, as the following year's show also proved...

 
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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