WWE: 8 Ways WrestleMania 30 Is A Modern Day WrestleMania 13
1. A Match That Defined An Era
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ft2erDvZWYc-->
-->
At Wrestlemania 13 Bret Hart and Steve Austin produced what many people (myself included) consider the greatest match in wrestling history. It set a benchmark for all to follow and truth be told despite many excellent matches since that day, its one that only a very elite few have even remotely hit nearly two decades later.
In 1997 some of the greatest wrestlers the business has ever seen were plying their craft in America, many in the prime of their careers. The list is extensive in the WWE alone you had future Hall of Famers Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin. The mid-card was home to some exceptional performers such as Owen Hart, Brian Pillman, and Too Cold Scorpio.
WCW had the cruiser-weights led by the gravity defying antics of Rey Mysterio. Best friends Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero and an emerging Chris Jericho were tearing up the undercard. European masters Fit Finlay and William Regal were also tearing the undercard apart, not to mention each other with brutal head-butts and uppercuts.
For all the talent at the time both in America and across the globe though they were all in different companies. The ruthless contract wars between WCW and WWE meant the stars never aligned and brought the overwhelming amount of talent together at the same time and in the same company.
Nowadays with WWE holding a monopoly over the business they have the pick of the bunch from the independent scene and even the major companies in Mexico and Japan. As a result what is starting to emerge is the greatest set of in ring talent under one banner we have seen in some time.
This talent will continue to be nurtured through the WWE performance centre and with its state of the art equipment, medical staff and world class trainers, the future only looks bright.
With so many positives in place and coming off a year of outstanding performances, on April 6th at the 'Showcase of the Immortals' maybe we could once again bear witness to a match that defines an era and takes professional wrestling to all new heights.