7 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE WrestleMania 38 (Night 1)

by Jamie Kennedy

1. ’Stone Cold’s’ First Match In 19 Years

WWE WrestleMania 38 Steve Austin Kevin Owens
WWE.com

It was clever of WWE not to announce an actual match between Steve Austin and Kevin Owens ahead of time, because people would've started getting ahead of themselves with unrealistic expectations. By revealing plans live at 'Mania, the company took the pressure right off Austin's shoulders.

Dallas came alive once it became clear that a 'No Holds Barred' battle between both men was on, and the noise didn't relent until 'Stone Cold' was sinking beers mid-ring and cameras faded to black. This wasn't a technical classic, but it was never going to be. Hell, it didn't need to be.

Sorry, there was just no way this was getting anything other than an 'Up'.

Countless Austin marks who grew up with the icon's rebellious act would've been throwing every punch and cheering every kick in their living rooms. That's what WWE's brand of wrestling is all about, and it'd take a special kind of misery guts to come away from this brawl with a scowl.

19 years in the making, and 25 minutes (or so) of top quality entertainment.

What did you think of WrestleMania 38 Night 1? For more WWE, check out 2 Ups & 6 Downs From WWE WrestleMania SmackDown (April 1) and 7 Ups & 8 Downs From WWE's Road To WrestleMania 38!

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Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.