In just over two days, WrestleMania XXX will kick off from the New Orleans Superdome. And, just like in every WrestleMania to come before it, there will be matches that electrify the crowd and matches that make fans flock to the bathrooms and concession stands.
Throughout the WWF/WWE's history, the company's signature wrestlers have risen to the occasion at WrestleMania to deliver some of the most iconic performances in history, with guys like the Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and Hulk Hogan pulling out all the stops for the "Showcase of the Immortals." Their sense of the moment and ability to elevate their in-ring game has cemented their legacies as sports entertainment legends, and their best matches only grow in stature as the years pass.
That, ultimately, is what WrestleMania is all about: legacy. This three (or sometimes four) hour extravaganza often serves as the pinnacle of individual wrestlers' careers, and in the eyes of fans the performances put on there shape the entire way WWE superstars are viewed historically.
As we approach this year's event, we look back at some of these iconic performances that left the crowd and viewers at home both enthralled and begging for more. Here, in chronological order, we present the Greatest Match From Each WrestleMania.
In just over two days, WrestleMania XXX will kick off from the New Orleans Superdome. And, just like in every WrestleMania to come before it, there will be matches that electrify the crowd and matches that make fans flock to the bathrooms and concession stands.
Throughout the WWF/WWE's history, the company's signature wrestlers have risen to the occasion at WrestleMania to deliver some of the most iconic performances in history, with guys like the Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and Hulk Hogan pulling out all the stops for the "Showcase of the Immortals." Their sense of the moment and ability to elevate their in-ring game has cemented their legacies as sports entertainment legends, and their best matches only grow in stature as the years pass.
That, ultimately, is what WrestleMania is all about: legacy. This three (or sometimes four) hour extravaganza often serves as the pinnacle of individual wrestlers' careers, and in the eyes of fans the performances put on there shape the entire way WWE superstars are viewed historically.
As we approach this year's event, we look back at some of these iconic performances that left the crowd and viewers at home both enthralled and begging for more. Here, in chronological order, we present the Greatest Match From Each WrestleMania.
WrestleMania I: Hulk Hogan and Mr. T vs. Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff
Date: 3/31/1985
City: New York
Title on the line: None
Winner: Hulk Hogan and Mr. T
Watch it here
Remember Rocky III? If you do, you'll recall that this is not the first time Mr. T and Hulk Hogan were a part of something magical. Mr. T was merely an innocent spectator in the crowd a month earlier when Hogan and Rowdy Roddy Piper mixed it up for the WWF title, but when Piper and his crony Paul Orndorff began an all-out assault on Hogan, T channeled his inner Clubber Lang and hopped into the ring to defend Hogan. Thus did the match come to be, and while it was not the most artfully performed bout of all-time, the star power (Muhammad Ali was the guest referee) and the crowd's enthusiasm made it the clear highlight of the inaugural WrestleMania.
WrestleMania II: 20 Man Battle Royal
Date: 4/7/1986
City: Uniondale, NY, Rosemont, Ill., Los Angeles
Title on the line: None
Winner: Andre the Giant
Watch it here
A largely forgettable WrestleMania was highlighted by the 20-man Battle Royal, and six NFL players even got into the action. Imagine if this happened now; would you not pay to see J.J. Watt, Jared Allen, Patrick Willis, Julius Peppers, and others get into the ring? Precisely. The match was, not shockingly, won by Andre the Giant, whose sheer size made it virtually impossible to move him even if he were totally willing. It's no wonder that this year, WWE decided to commemorate Andre's legacy with WrestleMania XXX's Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
WrestleMania III: Randy Savage vs. Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat
Date: 3/29/1987
City: Pontiac, Mich.
Title on the line: Intercontinental Championship
Winner: Ricky Steamboat
Watch it here
The Intercontinental title match between Randy Savage and Ricky "the Dragon" Steamboat is a masterpiece, widely considered when of the greatest WrestleMania matches of all-time. Savage had nearly "retired" Steamboat when Savage hit him in the throat with the ring bell, and this match was full of a kind of furious intensity rarely seen in the ring. The match had it all: near-falls, referee knockouts, and the obscene hairiness of George "the Animal" Steele. The iconic moment from the night may have been Hulk Hogan body-slamming Andre the Giant, but the crowd's enthusiasm and emotion from Savage and Steamboat made this one the top fight of the night.
WrestleMania IV: Randy Savage vs. Ted DiBiase
Date: 3/27/1988
City: Atlantic City, N.J.
Title on the line: WWF Championship
Winner: Randy Savage
Watch it here
Ah, the enduring legacy of the two Hebner brothers. This whole WrestleMania was centered around a championship "tournament" after referee Earl Hebner's twin brother Dave screwed Hulk Hogan out of the WWF title. WWF President Jack Tunney determined that a tournament would be held at WrestleMania to determine the proper champion, and basically the entire show was devoted to it. A lot of short and clunky matches followed, but in the finals Randy Savage and Ted DiBiase delivered a solid (if forgettable) performance. The Million Dollar Man is one of the great villains of his generation, and both he and Savage knew how to wrestle, which when combined with the stakes made this the night's best bout.
WrestleMania V: Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage
Date: 4/2/1989
City: Atlantic City, N.J.
Title on the line: WWF Championship
Winner: Hulk Hogan
Watch it here
The Mega Powers explode! A ridiculous name, but a hell of a match as a beef over (what else?) a woman drove a wedge between Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, setting the stage for them to do battle in WrestleMania V's main event. Savage resented the way Hogan was looking at Savage's lady friend Ms. Elizabeth, and the jealousy/insecurity angle added a layer of relatable emotion to the matchup that doesn't come around often in the fake world of wrestling. Savage's awesome work ethic brought out the best in Hogan, and even though the Hulkster came out on top Savage deserves much of the credit.
WrestleMania VI: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Hulk Hogan
Date: 4/1/1990
City: Toronto
Title on the line: Intercontinental and WWF Championship
Winner: Ultimate Warrior
Watch it here
The clash between the WWF's two biggest stars was meant to serve as a "passing of the torch" moment, as the Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan participated in an epic battle that managed to keep the crowd enthralled while somehow hiding the very limited technical abilities of both men. The match was so intriguing because of both men's immense popularity with fans, and it was really one of the first times that such huge fan favorites met on so big a stage. Of course, Warrior didn't quite stick as champion, and Hogan would find himself back in WrestleMania's main event the very next year.
WrestleMania VII: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Randy Savage
Date: 3/24/1991
City: Los Angeles
Title on the line: None
Winner: Ultimate Warrior
Watch it here
You'll never hear the Ultimate Warrior mentioned as one of the most gifted technical wrestlers of all time, but for one night he did manage to elevate his game. The stakes were quite high as well, as this was a "retirement match" with the loser leaving WWF for good. Savage was in the driver's seat after hitting five straight elbow drops from the top rope, but that only served to heighten the drama when the Warrior kicked out of the pin attempt and soon thereafter pinned Savage. Miss Elizabeth's return to ward off the angry Sensational Queen Sherry immediately flipped Savage from heel to face, and the Macho Man got to ride off into the sunset with both his lady and the adulation of the fans.
WrestleMania VIII: Roddy Piper vs. Bret Hart
Date: 4/5/1992
City: Indianapolis
Title on the line: Intercontinental Championship
Winner: Bret Hart
Watch it here
This is the bout that put Bret Hart on the map. Neither Hart nor Roddy Piper were particular favorites of the fans, but this physical altercation was the kind of slugfest that was about as close to wrestling gets to being "real." The win for the Hitman touched off a meteoric rise to the top, as he would win the WWF championship a mere seven months later, carrying the title into the main event of WrestleMania IX.
WrestleMania IX: Money Inc. vs. The Mega-Maniacs
Date: 4/4/1993
City: Las Vegas
Title on the line: Tag Team Championship
Winner: Money Inc. (via DQ)
Watch it here
We'll be honest, WrestleMania IX kind of sucks. The main event (Bret Hart vs. Yokozuna, then Hulk Hogan vs. Yokozuna) is probably the worst of all-time. There wasn't a whole hell of a lot to cheer for here, but we suppose the best of the bunch was the tag team championship match between Money Inc. and the Mega-Maniacs, Hulk Hogan and Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake. While it was not the most technically beautiful match, it had titles on the line, drama, and a finale that saw Hogan's "Real American" theme song played on a loop for about 10 minutes straight. Basically, good enough.
WrestleMania X: Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels
Date: 3/20/1994
City: New York
Title on the line: Intercontinental Championship
Winner: Razor Ramon
Watch it here
While the ladder match between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels for the Intercontinental title was not the first of its kind (that honor goes to Michaels and Bret Hart from the previous summer), it might as well be the original. This is the match upon which all other ladder matches are judged, with Michaels and Razor revealing the incredible entertainment value that could be had and amazing feats that could be achieved in this format. Few even remember who won (for the record, it was Razor); what they remember was that Michaels, especially, showed what a magical combination talented wrestlers and a couple ladders could be.
WrestleMania XI: Diesel vs. Shawn Michaels
Date: 4/2/1995
City: Hartford
Title on the line: WWF Championship
Winner: Diesel
Watch it here
Nobody will ever mistake Diesel for a technical talent in the ring; rather, he was a huge, lumbering presence who relied on his raw physical dominance to get over with fans. His former partner (and the man he "swore" to protect as his bodyguard) Shawn Michaels, on the other hand, was a gifted athlete who lacked size but undeniably was a talented performer. When they met for the WWF Championship at an otherwise forgettable WrestleMania XI, Michaels brought the best out of "Big Daddy Cool" and somewhat redeemed an otherwise-lackluster show. Plus, Pam Anderson and Jenny McCarthy in their prime. Hey now!
WrestleMania XII: The Undertaker vs. Diesel
Date: 3/31/1996
City: Anaheim, Calif.
Title on the line: None
Winner: The Undertaker
Watch it here
Controversial opinion alert: the Iron Man Match between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels was boring. Yes, it was a great display that wrestling purists undoubtedly adored. But an hour with no pinfalls, submissions, or anything else? Yawn. We'll take the crisp 15 minute affair between The Undertaker and Diesel, a match that can best be described as a "slugfest" where Diesel basically just beat the hell out of the Undertaker for practically the entire match until Undertaker hit him with a clothesline, chokeslam, and a Tombstone to continue his streak. In a WrestleMania that didn't have many matches on the card, this was the one that just plain got the job done.
WrestleMania XIII: Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin
Date: 3/23/1997
City: Rosemont, Ill.
Title on the line: None
Winner: Bret Hart
Watch it here
The match that cemented Stone Cold Steve Austin's arrival as the signature face of the WWF remains one of the greatest-if not the greatest-matches in the history of WrestleMania. Bret Hart was out of the picture for the eight months following WrestleMania XII, and when he returned the Attitude Era had begun to take shape without him. He had been left behind in favor of the beer-drinking, middle finger raising Austin, whose antics delighted fans and infuriated Hart. The image of a bloody Austin refusing to submit to Hart's sharpshooter is one of the enduring images in WrestleMania history, and the post-match beatdown the Hitman put on an "unconscious" Austin established a clear changing of the guard of the company's lead good guy.
WrestleMania XIV: Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Shawn Michaels
Date: 3/29/1998
City: Boston
Title on the line: WWF Championship
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin
Watch it here
This main event had a ton of hype, and justifiably so. Not only did it have two enormous stars in Stone Cold Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels, but it also had Mike Tyson as a guest "enforcer" and Austin still trying to get to the top of the WWF food chain. Most fans knew the match was a mere formality due to Michaels' back problems and impending surgery, but that did not make Austin's coronation any less enjoyable. Beers were consumed, Michaels was "knocked out" by Tyson, and the fans loved every second of it.
WrestleMania XV: Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock
Date: 3/28/1999
City: Philadelphia
Title on the line: WWF Championship
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin
Watch it here
The war between Stone Cold Steve Austin and Vince McMahon had reached its pinnacle by the time WrestleMania XV rolled around, and at the time the Rock was known as the Corporate Champion rather than the People's Champion. This rollicking affair that spilled all over the arena somehow managed to use three different referees, numerous chair shots, and even some straight up choking with cables. It had numerous near-misses at the end and ultimately concluded in the most satisfying way possible: Stone Cold chugging beers and delivering a Stone Cold Stunner to McMahon.
WrestleMania 2000: Edge and Christian vs. The Dudley Boyz vs. The Hardy Boyz
Date: 4/2/2000
City: Anaheim, Calif.
Title on the line: Tag Team Championship
Winner: Edge and Christian
Watch it here
WrestleMania 2000's ladder match hinted at what was to come the following year, as the three biggest tag teams in the WWF all put themselves on the map and stole the show from the much-hyped Fatal Fourway match for the WWF title. All three teams pulled off some incredible moves from the ladders, with the best/most suicidal individual performance probably coming from Jeff Hardy. In reality, though, every single person who participated did at least one awesome thing, which is practically impossible in most matches and shows just how spectacular this one was. This one has to be ranked right up there among the greatest ladder matches of all time.
WrestleMania X-Seven: Edge and Christian vs. The Dudley Boyz vs. The Hardy Boyz
Date: 4/1/2001
City: Houston
Title on the line: Tag Team Championship
Winner: Edge and Christian
Watch it here
After putting on a practically perfect match the year before, Edge and Christian, the Dudley Boyz, and the Hardy Boyz one-upped themselves at WrestleMania X-Seven. The "Tables, Ladders, and Chairs" match was about as diabolically violent as it sounded, punctuated by Edge's spear of Jeff Hardy off the top of a 20 foot ladder and Matt Hardy and Bubba Ray Dudley plummeting out of the ring and shattering several tables to pieces. It may not have been quite as original as the previous year, but it was better executed and featured a lot more senseless violence. In other words, more fun to watch.
WrestleMania X8: The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan
Date: 3/17/2002
City: Toronto
Title on the line: None
Winner: The Rock
Watch it here
In terms of hype, the Rock vs. Hulk Hogan in the "Icon vs. Icon" battle was perhaps the most-talked about non-main event in the history of WrestleMania. With the WCW Invasion fading into the background, this matchup linked two generations of fans by pitting two of the sport's most iconic stars against each other. The fan energy from start to finish was incredible, and Hogan in particular deserves credit for putting on a classic performance despite being 48-years-old at the time of the match. Signature moves abounded, and the stars' display of mutual respect for one another at the end of the match cemented its legacy.
WrestleMania XIX: Brock Lesnar vs. Kurt Angle
Date: 3/30/2003
City: Seattle
Title on the line: WWE Championship
Winner: Brock Lesnar
Watch it here
You'd be hard-pressed to find a time when two more gifted wrestlers got in the ring together. By wrestlers, we mean literally wrestlers; Angle really did win an Olympic gold medal, and Lesnar was an NCAA Division I champion. Their matchup at WrestleMania brought out the best in both of these technical performers, with the match's pace ramping up as it went along. Also, Angle was wrestling with a broken neck, which is both remarkable and insanely stupid. In any case, though, the mix of styles throughout the match kept the fans on their feet, and even a botched finish by Lesnar that saw him nearly break his own neck could not diminish what was a fantastic battle.
WrestleMania XX: Chris Benoit vs. Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels
Date: 3/14/2004
City: New York
Title on the line: World Heavyweight Championship
Winner: Chris Benoit
Watch it here
It's kind of awkward to say anything positive about Chris Benoit, knowing what a monster he truly was. But the fact of the matter is that this was an incredibly well-done match, with many well-executed two-on-one maneuvers and a couple broken announce tables to boot. The finish, especially, is one for the ages; within a span of two minutes, it looks like each participant is going to win, only to see the third competitor break up the pin or submission hold. The fans were clearly behind Benoit throughout the match, making his victory a wildly popular outcome. Obviously, nobody knew what was to come just three years later.
WrestleMania 21: Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle
Date: 4/3/2005
City: Los Angeles
Title on the line: None
Winner: Kurt Angle
Watch it here
The matchup between these two had a refreshingly simple buildup devoid of any fluff, and because of that the focus for this one was entirely on the product in the ring rather than the storylines surrounding it. Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle certainly delivered a gem, showing that both could be both tremendously technical while at the same time delivering a fast-paced, exciting match. The two used an array of top rope maneuvers to show just how impressive their skillsets were, and the finish with Michaels trapped in the ankle lock for the better part of two minutes before finally tapping out is a legitimately-heart pounding moment.
WrestleMania 22: Shawn Michaels vs. Vince McMahon
Date: 4/2/2006
City: Chicago
Title on the line: None
Winner: Shawn Michaels
Watch it here
It was a pretty lean year for wrestling, but this matchup between two old guys turned out to be WrestleMania's most entertaining match. It's not every day that your boss willingly submits to you beating the hell out of him for 20 minutes, but that's exactly what Vince McMahon did with Shawn Michaels. McMahon, ever the good sport, was subjected to, among other things: having a picture of himself smashed on his head, having his son's face shoved in his bare ass, taking an epic chair shot to the face, getting his head busted open with a ladder, and being driven through a table with a flying elbow. Bosses of the world, take note.
WrestleMania 23: Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Date: 4/1/2007
City: Detroit
Title on the line: None
Winner: Mr. Kennedy
Watch it here
Year three of the traditional Money in the Bank challenge saw some the most dangerous (and let's be honest, entertaining) moves in the match's brief history. Jeff Hardy once again stole the spotlight with an insane maneuver off the ladder, this time jumping off the top of a 20 footer onto Edge, who happened to be lying prone on another ladder outside the ring. Wrestling may be fake, but there's no way to fake falling that far or to hide how much landing on a metal ladder has to hurt. That Mr. Kennedy ended up being the winner is perhaps the only blemish on this otherwise wildly entertaining encounter.
WrestleMania XXIV: Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels
Date: 3/30/2008
City: Orlando, Fla.
Title on the line: None
Winner: Shawn Michaels
Watch it here
We'll be honest, we love the trope of the "career-ending" match. While it was only a one-way street here (Michaels had nothing on the line to match Flair's gambling his career), the looming threat of a legend of wrestling retiring always exponentially increases fans' emotional investment in the match and lends an added element of importance to every single maneuver. Ric Flair was (and is) a certified legend, but it was pretty clear going into this contest that no matter how blonde his hair, Flair was actually an old man nearing the end of his run. The technique of the match isn't what makes it great; instead, it's the emotion of both the combatants and the crowd that makes Flair's sendoff match an all-time classic.
WrestleMania XXV: The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
Date: 4/5/2009
City: Houston
Title on the line: None
Winner: The Undertaker
Watch it here
WrestleMania XXV did not have a ton of highlights, but the emotional, back-and-forth battle between the Undertaker and Shawn Michaels is not just the best match from this particular show; it's one of the best from any WrestleMania. These two hadn't met in a PPV singles match for over 10 years, and after watching this you have to wonder why. The flurry at the end of both guys kicking out of each other's finishing maneuvers, with Undertaken finally getting the win after a second Tombstone piledriver, provided a perfect punctuation to a bout that had fans' hearts racing from start to finish. The incredible crowd response and compelling in-ring action made this one a consensus choice for Match of the Year.
WrestleMania XXVI: The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
Date: 3/28/2010
City: Glendale, Ariz.
Title on the line: None
Winner: The Undertaker
Watch it here
We don't need to run down a list of sequels for you to realize how disastrous they often are. But when the Undertaker and Shawn Michaels ran back their match from the year before, though, the final product was actually better than the previous iteration. They took a match that already had a ton of drama coming into it, added another layer by putting Michaels' career on the line, then used the in-ring product to top it all off in one of the most extraordinary battles in WrestleMania history. It was two legends at their best, and a wonderful end to Michaels' Hall of Fame career.
WrestleMania XXVII: The Undertaker vs. Triple H
Date: 4/3/2011
City: Atlanta
Title on the line: None
Winner: The Undertaker
Watch it here
Next in line for the Undertaker was a No Holds Barred match with Triple H (sidenote: are any holds actually barred?), a match that in both scale and hype tried to cash in on the Undertaker's cachet accumulated from his matches with Shawn Michaels the previous two years. While this one didn't quite meet that level of expectation, it was nevertheless a wildly entertaining brawl that was a high point in an otherwise abysmal show. There were chair shots (including to the head, a big no-no these days), kick outs, and in the end a victory for the Undertaker that brought "the Streak" to 19-0.
WrestleMania XXVIII: CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho
Date: 4/1/2012
City: Miami
Title on the line: WWE Championship
Winner: CM Punk
Watch it here
A full year's worth of hype built up to WrestleMania XXVIII, making it one of the most anticipated PPVs of all-time. However, 100 percent of the aforementioned promotion was surrounding the John Cena vs. the Rock match, with a slight nod to the Triple H vs. Undertaker Hell in a Cell as well. CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho, on the other hand, flew under the radar and has largely been overshadowed by their more-marketed peers, but that by no means reflects the quality of the match. Both men showed to the world they were extremely gifted both physically and as storytellers, with this extremely well-coordinated match bringing out the best in both performers. Plus, it was nice to see CM Punk get what may well end up being his only title match at a WrestleMania.
WrestleMania 29: The Undertaker vs. CM Punk
Date: 4/7/2013
City: East Rutherford, N.J.
Title on the line: None
Winner: The Undertaker
Watch it here
The Undertaker vs. CM Punk at last year's WrestleMania was a contrast in styles; you wouldn't think there would be much in-ring chemistry between the big, brawling Undertaker and the smaller, more vertical CM Punk. And yet, the pair managed to steal the show, relying on each's strengths and the emotional buildup to the match (using the real-life death of Paul Bearer to add more fuel to the rivalry) to create modern classic when it would have been easy for the match to be clunky at best. Punk's athleticism and Taker's savvy made for a perfect pairing, and this battle redeemed an otherwise-average WrestleMania.