WWE: Ranking All 9 WrestleMania Celebrity Matches

8. Akebono vs. The Big Show - Sumo Match - WrestleMania 21

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWTCS4BKN_c This barely qualifies as a match, except that it took place in a wrestling ring at WrestleMania. With the ropes taken down and a sumo ring (dohyo) set up inside, Akebono and Big Show disrobed, did the pre-match rituals, salted the ring, and locked up €“ for all of 63 seconds from the time they made first contact. The "psych-out" and salting took longer than it did for Akebono to toss Show out of the circle and out of the ring itself. For wrestling fans, this had to be thoroughly confusing. Unless you've seen a sumo match before, it looked like two big guys in diapers having a slapfight. To their credit, Michael Cole and Tazz treated it very seriously and tried to educate viewers about the various aspects of the match. But it was still an awful "match" for a wrestling PPV. Interestingly, Akebono has gone on to a lengthy pro wrestling career in Japan, so there's that.