The Secret History Of WWE’s Ruthless Aggression Era | Wrestling Timelines

April 3, 2005 - WrestleMania 21

Batista WrestleMania 21
WWE

WrestleMania 21 is an extravagant, monumental success, nothing short of one of the greatest nights in the history of the promotion. Consider the sheer range of objectives successfully achieved. It is indescribable.

    WWE successfully crowns not one but two megastar babyfaces in new WWE Champion John Cena and new World Heavyweight champion Batista. Neither match (against JBL and Triple H respectively) is artistically outstanding, but it doesn’t matter at all. They are successful. Cena and Batista are made.

    WWE creates a brand new gimmick attraction, the Money In The Bank six-way Ladder match, which is a superb action spectacle and vehicle to create both a third main event superstar in Edge and an annual event so massive that it changes the Big Four into the Big Five, arguably replacing Survivor Series in importance.

    The Undertaker’s WrestleMania Streak is first emphasised by WWE as a massive deal and hugely lucrative promotional tactic.

    For the first and arguably only time in WWE, through a disciplined use of the brand extension, inter-promotional dream warfare is made real through Kurt Angle Vs. Shawn Michaels. You were fooled into thinking they could not interact, and when they do, it yields a hilarious yet heated rivalry and all-time classic match.

    Wildly enthused by a sensational build and the (upheld) promise of creating new headliners, ‘Mania 21 sets a PPV buy record of 1,090,000.

This is definitive proof of concept for an actual new era. Ultimately, it’s an aberration. 2006 is one of the worst years in WWE history; while Cena and Batista both make it, there’s no wider surge in popularity. In that sense, it’s no WrestleMania 14.

But for those who fight for Ruthless Aggression, it’s a devastating body feint and uppercut knockout of an argument. The same applies for fans of Triple H. His excellently-crafted storyline with Batista, in which he subtly displays jealousy, cowardice, and outright terror in the face of the unstoppable badass monster he has created, is really that damn good.

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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 current Undisputed WWE 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!