7 Match Star Ratings For WWE WrestleMania 37 - Night 1

5. Cesaro Vs. Seth Rollins

Cesaro Seth Rollins
WWE

Pitched as crowd-pleasing fun with a level of foresight and anticipation remarkably unlike WWE - this was a conditioning exercise that secured the reaction doubling as a storyline - it was far better than that.

Cesaro's selling was genuinely tremendous in a gut-punching way. It felt at times like he was legit injured, and had blown his elusive opportunity. The subtlety of the work really was sublime. He didn't just fail at the first swing. He didn't just clutch at his shoulder after failing to land his uppercuts with the same velocity and force. Without being remotely melodramatic about things, he sold the pain with a quiet despondency.

And he accomplished all of this within an inventive, all-action banger. It didn't piss about and it didn't drag itself down. It began with a propulsive uppercut, and as the match unfolded with several beautiful transitions into momentum swings, it never did the WWE thing of slowing down to create space for the sell. You don't need a great deal of it, as Cesaro showed with an understated masterclass of a performance here.

Rollins is a figure of fun - he was buried literally one slide ago - but this sort of match indicates that he is almost as good as he think he is. Sometimes.

Hell, on the night, WWE was almost as good as he thinks it is.

Star Rating: ★★★★

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 surefire Undisputed WWE Universal 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!