Though understandably edited off of Network and DVD versions of the match, John Bradshaw Layfield's glowing praise of United States Champion Chris Benoit literally spoke volumes on how much the company and everybody within it believed he'd one day be a first ballot Hall-Of-Famer and legacy-level legend.
'The Rabid Wolverine' going over Montel Vontavious Porter here was surprising, but proved to be the start of his final title programme rather than the end of the MVPs first.
Benoit's last WrestleMania was starkly unremarkable, unlike the horrific events that followed just two months later.
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
