3. WrestleMania 21
This choice might surprise a few, but the bottom line was that Mania 21 was a resounding financial success and was a night that holds a significant place in history for several of the stars that excelled once the post-Attitude Era transition period ended. The PPV buys soared to heights not reached since WrestleMania X-Seven. After a few down years, Mania 21 was a step in the direction toward "The Show of Shows" reaching its current place in the pop culture lexicon. Despite the crowd being limited to LA's Staples Center (an arena), it still holds strong in the top 10 economically against the stadium shows. The event was built around the elevation of a number of new stars. Rey Mysterio, one of the modern era's most underappreciated talents, opened the show with a victory that, in the context of his rivalry with Eddie Guerrero, helped propel him to the following year's semi-main-event and a lengthy run as a headliner (and merchandise sales second only to John Cena from 2006-2011). Randy Orton made a storyline out of Undertaker's vaunted "Streak," giving The Deadman as strong a run for his money at WrestleMania as anyone ever had before and positioning himself as one of the top heels in the WWE for years to come. Edge won the inaugural Money in the Bank Ladder match, which dazzled the wrestling world and set a trend that ultimately led to a spin off PPV. The Rated R Superstar as we knew him was sculpted during his time as "Mr. Money in the Bank" and the success of the gimmick is in large part due to Edge making it so. Batista defeated "The Man", Triple H, to win the World Heavyweight Championship and begin a dominant five year run as the #2 star in the industry. His break away from Evolution was arguably the most compelling storyline in years and the primary draw that made Mania 21 such a hit at the box office. John Cena won the WWE Championship for the first of twelve times on the same night and became "The Man" in the WWE soon afterward. Performance-wise, Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle stole the show with a 5-star classic for the ages that Bobby Heenan called "the best match he had ever seen." HBK-Angle gave a boost to an already stout, critically celebrated line-up that featured high marks for Money in the Bank and Orton-Taker. Guerrero-Mysterio and Batista-Trips also earned mild thumbs up, respectively.