7 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE WrestleMania 23

All Grown Up.

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WWE.com

There are notable checkpoints from Triple H’s career that have informed his insecurity over the decades despite his solidified spot as the heir to Vince McMahon’s throne, and WrestleMania 23’s rampant success could well be one of them.

‘The Game’ tore his quadricep for the second time in January, freeing up the headline spot for best buddy Shawn Michaels. Without Hunter (but with an outstandingly well-promoted celebrity involvement, and more on that later), the show was an utter sensation at the box office, drawing 1,188,000 buys as well as a reported crowd of 80,193 to Detroit for the event that marked a permanent return to Stadiums for the ‘Show Of Shows’.

The upscale came at exactly the right time for the organisation - 2007 would serve as WWE’s noughties annus horribilis following Chris Benoit’s infamous actions in June, but WrestleMania remained the protected centrepiece either side of the foundation-shifting that took place in its devastating aftermath. Returning to the site of the historic WrestleMania III two decades later, the company presented the ‘Grandest Stage’ as “All Grown Up”. For reasons out of anybody’s control, it would soon have to come of age...

(Want more WrestleMania Ups & Downs? We got 'em: I, 2, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, 13, XIV, XV, 2000, X-Seven, X8, XIX, XX, 21, 22)

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 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 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, 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