Opinion

The Career That Killed The Crippler

A look at the career that eventually ended in heartbreak and confusion.

Published

5 years ago

February 10, 2019

Chairshot

Mason Epeneter takes a look at the long and trying career of Chris Benoit, the decorated time that ultimately led to his demise.

WrestleMania XX, Chris Benoit has the World Heavyweight Champion Triple H locked into the Crippler Crossface. Benoit has gone after the WWE World Championship before against The Rock and Kurt Angle but failed both times, a former WCW World Heavyweight Champion in his own right after he beat Sid Justice at the 2000 Souled Out event for WCW, but that was short-lived seeing he had vacated the title the next night due to disagreements with how World Championship Wrestling was managing business. After all that work, all the effort of almost 20 years, would Triple H tap out? He did. Chris Benoit was crowned the new World Heavyweight Champion in the Main Event of WrestleMania XX, and I will go into how he got there, and how he fell from there.

It all started with the Dynamite Kid. When Benoit went to his first wrestling show, he saw the recently deceased “Dynamite Kid” Tom Billington and that was when he decided not only that he wanted to become a wrestler, but he decided that he wanted to be just like his childhood hero, The Dynamite Kid. He got his start by going to shows early, setting up chairs, and eventually being invited into the ring. He got his reputation backstage by having the guts to speak to his hero, The Dynamite Kid. Later on in his career, Bruce Hart invited him to the Hart Dungeon where Stu had told him to come back once he finished high school, and that he did. During his time with Stu Hart and Stampede Wrestling, he won the Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship four time and won the Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship four times. It was in Stampede Wrestling that he met a man who would change his life, Bad News Allen (known to WWF fans as Bad News Brown).

Bad News Allen had suggested that Benoit go to New Japan Pro-Wrestling after Stampede Wrestling closed. He had spent a year training earlier in 1986 at the New Japan Dojo but he had matches under his real name and wasn’t made into anything special at the time. In 1989, he became The Pegasus Kid. The fans loved his matches with Jushin Thunder Liger. So much so that he eventually went onto win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship from Jushin Thunder Liger in the Tokyo Dome on August 19, 1990. Jushin won it back on November 1 of the same year. As Pegasus Kid, Benoit went onto win the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship from Villano III I Mexico on March 3, 1991. Benoit went onto hold the title for an astonishing 560-days. He lost it back to Villano III on September 13, 1992.

During his WWF Light Heavyweight Championship reign, Benoit lost a mask vs. mask match against Jushin Thunder Liger, forcing him to become the Wild Pegasus. Benoit won the 1993 Best of the Super Juniors tournament after defeating El Samurai in the finals. On April 16, 1994, Benoit participated in the first edition of the Super J-Cup. Benoit, as Wild Pegasus, had a first-round bye. In the quarterfinals, Benoit defeated Black Tiger II (FKA Eddie Guerrero), in the semifinals, Benoit knocked off Gedo. In the finals, Benoit beat the legendary Great Sasuke in 18:46, becoming the first ever winner of the prestigious Super J-Cup. In 1995, Benoit made it to the semifinals of the Best of the Super Juniors tournament where he defeated Black Tiger II again, he went to the finals and had beaten Shinjiro Otani in the finals to win the 1995 Best of the Super Juniors tournament. To this day, the Pegasus Kid is a legend in New Japan and is often considered one of the greatest Junior Heavyweights of all time.

Benoit had started with Extreme Championship Wrestling in 1994 while working with New Japan. At the 1994 November to Remember event, Benoit accidentally broke Sabu’s neck and he earned the name that would make his career, “Crippler” Benoit. Benoit went through a moment of extreme guilt and worry that he potentially paralyzed Sabu. In 1995, at the Return of the Funker event, Chris Benoit teamed with Dean Malenko as “The Triple Threat” (ECW World Heavyweight Champion Shane Douglas was also part of this stable) to win the ECW World Tag Team Championships from Sabu and The Tazmaniac. This was Benoit’s first title within the States. The Triple Threat dropped the Tag Titles to The Public Enemy of Johnny Grunge and Rocco Rock on April 8, 1995. This match also including Rick Steiner and The Tazmaniac. The Crippler’s work visa expired, and Paul Heyman failed to renew it which caused Benoit to depart from ECW and to go back to working with New Japan.

Benoit had signed with World Championship Wrestling as a part of a talent exchange between WCW and New Japan in late 1995. He competed in the 1995 edition of the Super J-Cup where he received a first-round bye. He defeated Lionheart (Chris Jericho) in the quarterfinals, but fell to Gedo in the semi-finals. Ironically, long-time rival Jushin Thunder Liger went onto win this Super J-Cup. After this tournament, Benoit had impressed WCW management and Ric Flair to the point that Benoit was made a member of the legendary Four Horsemen.

Benoit was put into a feud with Kevin Sullivan that included a kayfabe affair between Nancy Sullivan and Chris Benoit, this lead to a real-life affair which caused animosity between Benoit and Sullivan backstage. After plenty of matches throughout this year-long feud, it finally came to the end at the 1997 Bash at the Beach event, in a retirement match. Benoit had successfully beaten Kevin Sullivan, which forced Kevin Sullivan’s in-ring WCW career to end.

In 1998, a feud between Booker T and Chris Benoit had started to develop over the WCW World Television Championship. This led to a Best of 7 series between the two to determine who would be the #1 Contender for the Title that Fit Finley had taken from Booker T. Benoit and Booker T had gone to a 3-3 split leading to their final match. Throughout much controversy, including an original match that neither men accepted the result of (Booker T won via disqualification due to the nWo trying to win over Benoit). The final match happened at the 1998 Great American Bash event, which Bookter T won and went onto defeat Fit Finlay later that night for the WCW World Television Championship.

At the 1999 Uncensored event, Benoit once again teamed with former teammate Dean Malenko to successfully capture the WCW World Tag Team Championships from the team of Barry Windham and Curt Hennig after losing to them previously in a tournament final to crown new Tag Team Champions at the SuperBrawl IX event. Benoit quickly entered the Four Horsemen again, this time with Dean Malenko, Arn Anderson, and Steve McMichael. Benoit and Malenko quickly dropped the title to the team of Rey Mysterio and Billy Kidman on the March 29, 1999 edition of Monday Nitro. Throughout the rest of the year, Benoit had many feuds (including a WCW United States Heavyweight Championship reign) but he started to become unhappy with management and the company as a whole. As a desperate attempt to keep Benoit, World Championship Wrestling had Chris Benoit win the vacant WCW World Heavyweight Championship at the 2000 Souled Out event against Sid Vicious. The next day, Benot vacated the championship and left the WCW for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF).

Benoit started out strong. In his first WrestleMania, after a few months in the company, Chris Benoit pinned Chris Jericho to win Kurt Angle’s Intercontinental Championship. That caused an incredible rivalry that spanned to the Royal Rumble event of the next year where Jericho won the World Wrestling Federation Intercontinental Championship in a ladder match. Throughout that feud however, the title changed hands on more than one occasion causing Benoit to become a 3x Intercontinental Champion within his first year with the company.

The next year at WrestleMania X-Seven, Benoit faced Kurt Angle, a match which Angle showed successful in. At the 2001 Backlash event, Benoit defeated Angle in critically-acclaimed “Ultimate Submission” match (Writer’s Note: I highly suggest you watch this match, it is a technical masterpiece). The feud culminated at the 2001 Judgement Day event when Angle got the upper hand on Benoit with the help of Edge and Christian in a Best of 3 Falls match. The next night on Raw Is War, Benoit teamed up with former rival Chris Jericho to challenge the World Tag Team Champions Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H of The Power Trip for the titles, a match Benoit and Jericho were successful in and became the new Tag Team Champions. They quickly dropped the belts to The Dudley Boyz less than a month later. Benoit’s Tag Title reign led him to two WWF Championship matches, both of which he lost.

Benoit returned from injury a year later and feuded with RVD for the Intercontinental Championship, a feud RVD would later go onto win at the 2002 SummerSlam event. Benoit reignited his feud with Kurt Angle quickly after. At the 2002 Unforgiven event, Benoit had finally knocked off his former rival… or so he thought. Things took a turn when Stephanie McMahon announced Benoit & Angle would be teaming together in a tournament to crown the inaugural WWE Tag Team Champions (currently known as the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship). At the 2002 No Mercy event, Benoit and Angle shocked the world when they overcame their years worth of differences and became the first-ever WWE Tag Team Champions.

Benoit and Angle had a somewhat of a lengthy reign before dropping the Tag Team Championships to the team of Edge and Rey Mysterio on the November 7 edition of SmackDown. Angle and Benoit quickly fell out when they lost the Tag Titles. Angle and Benoit quickly crossed paths again at the 2003 Royal Rumble event. Angle had once again captured the WWE Championship and once again, Benoit was chasing the belt. This match was also a fan favorite but after a long 20 minutes, Angle made Benoit tap out. WrestleMania XIX had come around the corner and Benoit was chasing after the title that he won first. A triple threat tag team match occurred for the WWE Tag Team Championships. It was the champion team of Team Angle vs Los Guerreros vs Chris Benoit and Rhyno. The champions retained after Shelton Benjamin pinned Chavo Guerrero.

The 2004 Royal Rumble event has come. Chris Benoit is entering the Royal Rumble match as the #1 entry. The odds of him surviving 29 other men are astronomical, the only other man to have done it before is Shawn Michaels in 1995. It didn’t help that the #2 entry was Randy Orton. But despite everything, Benoit survived everybody, now it was to just him and The Big Show. Could Chris Benoit defeat The World’s Largest Athlete or would he crumble? He did. Benoit held on from the apron, putting the Big Show into a headlock and eventually getting his body over the top rope. Benoit did the impossible, the Canadian Crippler was going to the Main Event of WrestleMania XX!

The day had come: WrestleMania XX. An incredible match by Triple H and Shawn Michaels and Chris Benoit that included a Hell of a lot of bloodshed. Benoit was crowned the new World Heavyweight Champion by the end of the night and had an emotional celebration with longtime best friend and WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero. This was the high point of Chris Benoit’s career. But, Benoit quickly started to fall. He lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Randy Orton at the 2004 SummerSlam event. He then deescalated into mid card feuds. Eventually, in 2007, Benoit was given a shot to be ECW’s World Champion. Tragedy struck, depression hit Benoit hard and he hung himself after so much brain deterioration from the Career that Crippled him. WWE refuses to ever recognize Benoit again. That is The Career That Crippled The Crippler.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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Opinion

Greg DeMarco’s Top 5: The Final Opponent For John Cena In WWE

It’s obvious that John Cena is nearing the end of his legendary career, and he’s suggested ending it at WrestleMania 41. Who should be his final opponent?

Published

2 weeks ago

April 11, 2024

Greg DeMarco

John Cena Last Match Randy Orton WWE WrestleMania 41

It’s obvious that John Cena is nearing the end of his legendary career, and he’s suggested ending it at WrestleMania 41. Who should be his final opponent?

John Cena recently appeared on the Pat McAfee Show, the Monday after his surprise (but mostly expected) WrestleMania 40 appearance during Cody Rhodes’ win over Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Championship. During that appearance, he confirmed what many expect, that he is nearly done with his in-ring career. But Cena even tossed out the idea of a time-frame, detailing that his acting schedule will likely take him through Christmas, and maybe Hollywood could “pump the brakes” to allow for one final run.

That run could easily begin at the Royal Rumble with a surprise entrance (or entering himself via TV appearances as part of the build), with a tease for his 17th world title win before finally settling in on his final match.

Fantasy booking and storytelling aside, the goal here is the final match–more specifically the final opponent. With a John Cena, you’ve got a ton of options. As such, it’s hard to narrow it down to 5, and one of your favorites is likely missing–be warned!

Greg DeMarco’s Top 5: The Final Opponent For John Cena In WWE

Honorable Mentions:

The Miz – A feud with John Cena gave The Mix a WrestleMania 27 main event–and a WrestleMania main event victory on top of it. Miz has been receiving more love than ever lately, and a match with John Cena would not be misplaced. Maybe he can use their WrestleMania 33 contest (and Cena’s personal aftermath) as fodder for it, too.
AJ Styles – The man who once made it popular to “BEAT UP JOHN CENA” is also nearing the end of his run, and could be the one candidate on this list that could realistically give us a double-retirement match. He would also be the guy who retired both The Undertaker and John Cena (and would probably end up being the guy who lost in both).
The Rock or Cody Rhodes – Both great options, but you have to figure their dance card for WrestleMania 41 is already full, potentially standing across the ring from one another. Either is an amazing option (including “Thrice In A Lifetime”), but I just don’t think it’s in the cards.
Trick Williams – Potentially a surprising addition to the Honorable Mentions, but the comparisons are there in terms of in-ring style/ability, promo skills, and the interplay they had in NXT (remember, it was Cena who is credited with encouraging Trick to not be afraid to go for it himself despite his relationship with Carmelo Hayes).

5. CM Punk

The fifth spot on this list was nearly interchangeable between several of the honorable mention names, but it really came down to Punk and Seth Rollins for me (with a hint of AJ Styles). The 2011 feud between CM Punk and John Cena was legendary, and is a moment that will forever be seen by me as the one that truly cemented CM Punk as a member of the growing list of all-time greats in WWE.

Punk is uniquely qualified for this match as he would make it mean more than a showboat for John Cena’s career and final match. It’s entirely believable that CM Punk would want to put John Cena’s career into the ground, and WWE has the video archive to support it.

Despite being #5, this could actually be a dark-horse for the match we get, and I can’t see anyone reasonably being upset about that.

4. Roman Reigns

John Cena and Roman Reigns have had two separate legendary programs. the first saw Cena, at times, embarrass Roman in promo exchanges in a feud that took place in the “pre-Tribal Chief” era. The second is more fresh and likely more memorable, as John Cena put Roman Reigns over in a football stadium in Las Vegas at SummerSlam (although it might be more remembered for the return of Brock Lesnar).

Reigns, a legend himself at his point (he’s featured alongside Steve Austin at the top of the “Forever” portion of the Then/Now/Forever/Together video that recently debuted) would provide a pairing akin to The Undertaker serving as Shawn Michaels’ retirement opponent at WrestleMania 26 9notice I didn’t say “final opponent). The end of Roman’s 1316 day world title reign has brought about a new appreciation for Reigns, which would further enhance this pairing at WrestleMania 41.

3. Bron Breakker

Bron Breakker is the picture-perfect definition of a juggernaut in WWE, a fast rising star who almost seems like a lock to main event WrestleMania one day (you never know–Seth Rollins JUST got his first WrestleMania main event last weekend). Breakker recently said farewell NXT as the natural in-ring competitor makes a transition to full-time main roster competition.

Breakker also fits the category of who “needs it.” Bring the man to retire John Cena would be quite the feather in the cap of Breakker’s early career, and would give him a moment that would be relived for generations to come. The only question mark is WWE “trusting” Breakker with this moment, as a sudden change of character could mean that Cena’s final match wouldn’t be seen or discussed as much. Breakker, to me, has given no reason for anyone to suspect that might happen, regardless of any controversies his father and uncle have been linked to.

2. R-Truth

Despite being 5-years older than John Cena, and making his in-ring debut in the same year (1999), R-Truth’s childhood hero hanging up the boots will undoubtedly be a hard-hitting moment for the man who has basically become the WWE Mascot. Truth emulating Cena in his matches, and of course the RawAfterMania moment with Cena, Truth, and The Miz hitting a Fifteen Knuckle Shuffle (thank you, Michael Cole) on The Judgment Day makes this a near can’t miss final match for both John Cena and the WWE Universe.

R-Truth himself is equally deserving of this match, as it would be a reward for all of his years in the ring as part of a career that seems age defying while proving that age is not only a number, but also a number that can be ignored (see Child Hero, John Cena).

While a rematch of their 2011 WWE Capital Punishment main event is an unlikely WrestleMania 41 match-up, it’s one I believe everyone would love to see.

1. Randy Orton

I mean, is there anyone more perfect? John Cena and Randy were inseparably linked for a good portion of their careers, and have shared the ring more times than Big Show has turned babyface/heel. Both are far into legendary status at this point, and Orton specifically is obviously focused on enjoying this stage of his career.

But Orton is still delivering great performances inside the ring, too.

Randy Orton vs John Cena was an exciting proposition many years ago, became a punchline for WWE booking a few years ago, but is now coming full circle as the perfect match-up to end the amazing career of John Cena. It has my vote, and should have yours, too.

Even if R-Truth would be the most fun option.

What say you? Who is the best candidate to stand across the ring from John Cena in his final WWE match, potentially at WrestleMania 41? Who did I leave out?

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Opinion

Greg DeMarco’s WrestleMania 40 Saturday Results & Review

It’s the Granddaddy Of ‘Em All, WrestleMania! Night 1 of WrestleMania XL and Greg DeMarco has your results and review!

Published

2 weeks ago

April 8, 2024

Greg DeMarco

It’s the Granddaddy Of ‘Em All, WrestleMania! Night 1 of WrestleMania XL and Greg DeMarco has your results and review!

It all comes down to this–at least for the first night! A loaded card in front of a packed house, and I’d expect everyone to deliver one hell of a performance.

Women’s World Championship – Becky Lynch vs. Rhea Ripley (champion)

Greg’s pre-show prediction: Rhea Ripley retains

In my opinion, this match should be the main event of Night 1, but The Rock is back and that was going to take precedence (even if I disagree). Becky won this title shot at the Elimination Chamber, even though they were already building the feud before that event in Perth. Ripley herself main evented that event in a stadium, defeating Nia Jax.

It was revealed during her entrance that this is Becky Lynch’s “Flu Game,” as she has temperatures as high as 102 degrees throughout the week.
Rhea Ripley enters to a life performance of her entrance theme, which you can tell she dug.
Prime logo is center ring, just the black outline with “Prime” in the middle, and it is not at all bothersome. I can’t believe people made such a big deal out of bitching about that.
The stage looks dope, not at all “too small” as some had said. The whole environment looks great, honestly.
Rhea Ripley has been dealing with a wrist injury. She said on the Pat McAfee Show she didn’t expect to work with the wrist brace on tonight, but there it is.
Corey Graves points out that Becky’s training was likely impacted by her illness, and Pat McAfee scoffs at him for stating the obvious. I hope that isn’t what we get all night.
Commentary notes that is is 52 degrees and windy in the stadium, and I am reminded of Nick Khan’s comments about moving an outdoor WrestleMania to late April in the future, if they don’t get an indoor building (he did say “2026” when talking about that, which likely means the 2025 venue is indeed set).
Rhea’s Prism Trap is a fell of a submission finisher. Add in the body lock the way she did, and it’s even more impressive.
I just noticed the “Prime” turnbuckle pads and it’s…weird. I just didn’t expect it and can’t think of the last time we didn’t have the WWE/WWF logo on the buckles outside of Black and Gold NXT. WrestleMania 2?
I am also noticing that Dude Wipes seems to have sponsored the ring posts. Kudos to WWE (and the wrestling industry behind them) for being so damn desirable to sponsors!
That combo to get into the Riptide was fantastic–and the kickout was even better.
During the DisarmHer you can clearly see the commentary position, and Michael Cole is legit reclined all the way back. Love it–Cole is living his best life.
Rhea’s Riptide into the buckle before the proper Riptide was pretty sweet as well. Made Becky look insanely strong in defeat.

Winner via pinfall AND STILL your Women’s World Champion: Rhea Ripley

Hell of an opener, and if you didn’t know Becky was sick, you wouldn’t have known. Props to them both. That would have satisfied as a main event, but can now go down as one of the best openers in WrestleMania history.

Ladder Match for the Raw Tag Team Championships and Smackdown Tag Team Championships – DIY (Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano) vs. Awesome Truth (The Miz & R-Truth) vs. New Catch Republic (Pete Dunne & Tyler Bate) vs. A Town Down Under (Austin Theory & Grayson Waller) vs. The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston) vs. The Judgment Day (Finn Balor & Damian Priest, Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions)

Greg’s pre-show prediction: Awesome Truth (Raw titles) and A-Town Down Under (SmackDown)

As many expected, the belts are hanging separately, meaning we are most likely splitting the tag titles here. Triple H and company have put some serious work into building up the tag team divisions of both brands, and even though I expect the two winners to not be actual “teams,” but either way I actually like the way they didn’t make a big deal out of splitting the titles up, they’re just doing it. They have been defended separately since being unified, albeit rarely.

R-Truth makes a joke about DIY being DX and that’s now taken off. I love it.
The Miz is very under appreciated. Can literally do anything.
Someone is struggling with the “Titan Tron” videos tonight.
Not gonna lie, I am the biggest Pat McAfee fan, but he’s actually quite annoying right now.
Sign of the night: SANTA DESERVED IT.
Lots of green in this match, half of the teams wearing their “WrestleMania Green” gear.
Also, loving the Consequences Creed gear for Woods.
God Bless Finn Balor for taking that Airplane Spin into the ladder.
205 combined years of experience in this match. That’s an average of 17 years (Waller has the least with 7, Balor and Miz are tied for the most with 23).
“Dunne Mountain?!?!” Thank you Michael Cole for fixing that.
HOT TAG TO R-TRUTH!
Poor Finn Balor, not he takes the AA to the ladder after John Cena’s Five Moves Of Doom
R-TRUTH WITH THE PIN!
Hilarious.
A-Town Down Under gets the SmackDown tag titles!
And Grayson gets tossed through a ladder, still holding a title!
The match does continue until the Raw tag titles are also retrieved.
If Theory also got the Raw tag titles down, I will laugh my ass off.
Birminghammer is a fantastic name for a tandem (somewhat) Burning Hammer.
Tornado DDT through a table!
Air Raid Crash from the ladder!
And we still have more tables set-up.
JD McDonagh trying to get Finn–who has taken a beating–to get the Raw tag titles.
McDonagh through the tables!
PERFECTLY placed Razor’s Edge onto that chair.
Dude, that ladder is trashed. (And very unsafe.)
AA sends Damian outside!
I think everyone wants R-Truth to get this. EVERYONE.
YES!

Winners via belt retrieval, AND NEW:

SmackDown Tag Team Champions – Grayson Waller & Austin Theory
Raw Tag Team Champions – R-Truth & The Miz

Really good Ladder Match, but it’s hard to have a bad one. The tag team titles are split and it was really well done. It made perfect sense to do it that way, not make a big deal out of it and just let it happen. I am excited to see both teams win–not because I picked both, but because I think one team (Waller/Theory) have amazing futures and the other (Miz/Truth) will be a lot of fun, even if their run will probably be short lived.

Santos Escobar (with Legado Del Fantasma members Angel, Humberto, & Elektra Lopez) & Dominik Mysterio vs. Rey Mysterio & Andrade (with The LWO members Carlito, Joaquin Wilde, Cruz Del Toro, & Zelina Vega

Greg’s pre-show prediction: Dominik and Santos win, giving Dominik “revenge” for his loss at WrestleMania 39.

Look, this match doesn’t make a lick of sense–Dominik shows up two weeks ago and finds his way into another WrestleMania match with Rey? Definitely shoehorned. But Dominik is outstanding, so if this gets him on the card, I’ll take it.

More green in this match, and I am here for it.
Innovative Double Cross Body by Rey & Andrade.
Dominik showing experience beyond his years, making sure the ref sees his tag with Santos.
At this moment, I am wondering who turns–Carlito or Andrade. Gotta assume it’s one of them.
Three matches in and I don’t even notice the Primo logo in the center of the ring or on the turnbuckle pads.
Santos Escobar trying to unmask Rey Mysterio, as if we don’t all have Google.
Corey Graves making a great point about Rey taking some responsibility for the issues in his life, and Michael Cole immediately dismissing it.
It’s so hard to do a really good Dragon Screw Leg Whip, and Andrade (along with Dominik and Santos) just pulled off two to perfection.
Camera shot of Rey’s cross body shows the heaters above the ring. Good–keep ’em warm!
This could have easily been an 8-man tag team match. Maybe we get that Monday on Raw (which can also be where the turn happens, making my prediction here likely wrong).
Joaquin Wilde gets to do his NXT spot at WrestleMania, and that’s probably more important than officially being in the match.
Two masked men–definitely the Kelce Brothers–are here.
My bad, it was Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson. Good call, honestly. Great pop for them, too.
Looking at the reply, Dominik sold that ringpost spot like a champ.

Winners via pinfall (Rey on Santos): Rey Mysterio & Andrade

Fun tag team match that served its purpose. Needed? Maybe not, as I really wanted to get Liv Morgan vs. Nia Jax onto this card. But when you can get Rey & Dominik on the card, everyone will be happy. and of course the Jason Kelce & Lane Johnson appearances.

Brother vs Brother: Jey Uso vs. Jimmy Uso

Greg’s pre-show prediction: Jimmy Uso follows in the footsteps of Owen Hart and Matt Hardy and beats the “more talented brother.”

They’ve wanted this match all their lives–and the preview video was insane. Very well done.

Jey in the WrestleMania whites tonight.
And we get a hot start to the match!
“Big Brother Jimmy” is always a fun thing to hear.
More Dude Wipes sponsorship on this one–you have to wonder if having Dude Wipes on the posts for the opener was in error.
Superkicks. Lots of Superkicks.
Very enjoyable YEET/NO chants from the crowd.
Jey just kicking the hell out of Jimmy, including a Jumping Super Kick.
This has “Fight Without Honor” feels from old school ROH, where the winners have respect after. We will definitely see these guys together again.
Jimmy apologizing to Jey. Crowd is not buying it.
Of course it was BS, and Jimmy gains the advantage.
SPEAR. USO SPLASH. DONE.

Winner, via pinfall: Jey Uso

Jey breaks the babyface curse by beating his heel brother. Thought we might get an embrace between them, instead we faded out. A good match that was more about the story than the in-ring action. I can see some feeling like this hasn’t “lived up to expectations” because of the high expectations you’d have for an Usos match. Their best work will always be as a team, but I know this is a lifelong dream come true for both.

As for all the Superkicks, I mean….it’s an Usos match.

Six-Woman Tag Team Match – Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai, Asuka, & Kairi Sane) vs. Naomi, Bianca Belair, & Jade Cargill

Greg’s pre-show prediction: Bianca, Naomi, & Jade win when Jade scores the pin (probably on Kairi, who always seems to eat the fall)

This match is all about getting Bianca Belair on the card (she had to be), and Jade Cargill’s debut. It also got Damage CTRL on the card, which they truly deserve–even if it is to lose.

Respectfully, Dakota Kai. (Good thing the ring and surrounding area is heated)
Not gonna lie, Jade looks nervous. But this is a six-woman tag, and her portion is likely highly choreographed. Gonna be all good.
As I watch and enjoy the match (but am not typing much lol), this seems like a match where we’re all just waiting for Jade to come in and win.
No one has told Jade about the tag ropes yet, apparently.
And now Jade is in, and Damage CTRL makes her look like a million bucks.
Dakota Kai nicely gets herself into position for the finish, and Jade gets her WrestleMania win.

Winners via pinfall (Jade on Dakota): Jade Cargill, Naomi, & Bianca Belair

We knew what this one was about going into it, and that’s what it should have been. Jade still ain’t ready. I know it might be an “ego hit” for her to go to NXT, but she needs it. If Giulia can go to NXT, so can Jade.

Intercontinental Championship – Sami Zayn vs. GUNTHER (champion)

Greg’s pre-show prediction: Sami Zayn pulls off the major upset and is the one to dethrone Gunther

Gunther has had a stranglehold on the Intercontinental Championship, defending it like crazy in 2023 but slowing that down here in 2024. It’s not fair to say he’s outgrown the title, but that might actually be the case. It’ll be really interesting to see what happens with Imperium leading up to the draft, and at the WWE Draft itself.

Sami Zayn was the perfect wrestler to have their journey form backstage to the ring followed by the cameras. From his family to Chad Gable to Kevin Owens, it was all so perfect–maybe too perfect? (Not in that someone will screw him, but in that it might be too heavily foreshadowing his win?)
Gunther looked oddly nervous standing on that stage.
You know, the Intercontinental Championship is basically a third world title at this point. And we could see the end of a legendary reign. I think this deserved the Samantha Irvin In-Ring Introductions (aka “Japan Style”) treatment.
Gunther is smiling confidently now, we’re good.
Crowd is ON FIRE for these guys (and evenly split with their chants for each guy).
This is the 21st time the Intercontinental championship is defended at WrestleMania, and it makes you wonder what in the hell they were thinking for the other 11.
Looks like Dude Wipes is back on the ringpost!
Hell of a nearfall, followed up by a Helluva Kick from Gunthcr, and one from Sami!
That finish….AMAZING.

Winner via pinfall, AND NEW Intercontinental Champion: Sami Zayn

The athletes… the moments… the storytelling… professional wrestling is such a beautiful business. Sami Zayn’s win over Gunther was everything I had hoped it would be when I picked Sami to win. Absolutely beautiful.

Cody Rhodes & World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins vs. The Rock & Undisputed WWE Champion Roman Reigns

Greg’s pre-show prediction: Seth & Cody get the win after tons of interference and surprise appearances, making Roman vs Cody on Sunday a match where The Bloodline is banned from ringside.

So much involved in this one. As you know, If Rock & Roman win, Sunday’s WWE Championship match will be held under Bloodline Roles. If Seth & Cody win, then that mach will see ZERO Bloodline involvement. Personally, if Cody is winning the title, I’d rather it be straight up. But I wouldn’t be at all surprised if I am wrong.

Honestly, after the introductions, I realized I was just watching!
This was very much Steve Austin vs The Rock inspired, with them fighting all over the stadium, and pushing the envelope.
I loved The Rock basically neutering the referee–normally I hate that, but here it works.
That finish and the condition of Rollins both lay perfectly into night 2, I would imagine.

Winners via Rock pinfall on Rhodes: The Rock & Roman Reigns

Per rule, Sunday’s main event will now be Bloodline Rules. And given that, my prediction of Roman retaining might be harder to pull off. This was a good return for The Rock, and perfectly played into the whole story. Job well done.

Greg DeMarco’s Overall Thoughts for WWE WrestleMania XL, Saturday (Night 1)

in a vacuum, this was highly enjoyable show. Night 2 might end up being legendary if both Bayley and Rhodes win, and it could overshadow Night 1. But the scene was fantastic, production was top notch as always, and the fans went home having enjoyed one for the ages. The Triple H Era s well underway, and will likely kick into a higher gear with Night 2.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!