Opinion

Mishal’s Top 5 Most Bizarre WWE Pay-Per-Views

In preparation for a Money In The Corporate Bank pay-per-view, Mishal takes a look at the worst of all time?

Published

4 years ago

May 5, 2020

It’s almost impossible to keep track of all the WWE & wrestling shows I’ve seen in my almost 2 decades watching wrestling to this point. The business is always active, always evolving & always throwing so much content at you that it’s next to impossible to ever think you’ve seen enough professional wrestling yet.

Considering the number of choices someone like WWE is giving us nowadays, I always find myself watching or wanting to talk about the greatest moments, matches, or things that most people already widely discuss, but what about the oddities? What about the bizarre?

I think at a time like this where there is so much of your day to fill due to all the blank space that I’ve actually had time to sit down and delve into the truly bizarre parts of the wrestling business, in particular, some shows that I’ve come across that are so bizarre I’d need a lot more time to properly talk about them in-depth, but I thought this article would be a solid start.

For this list, I chose to focus more on shows I’ve either seen or ones that have happened within my own time of watching professional wrestling rather than simply put a show on here that I don’t have full knowledge over. Each show here is ‘bizarre’ in its own unique way, whether than be the name, idea, matches, execution, or something totally out of the ordinary that we aren’t used to seeing normally. Here at 5 of the most bizarre WWE shows of all time.

Honorable Mentions:

Backlash (2017)
D-Generation X: In Your House (1997)
Breaking Point (2009)
Wrestlemania II (1986)
Crown Jewel (2018)

Fatal-4-Way (2010)

WWE’s Fatal-4-Way is a show I’ve never quite understood, not because any of the matches on the card were outright dreadful in any way, but because the idea behind this show is so bizarre to me as a marketable idea. On paper, the very idea around a show based on the Fatal-4-Way match is acceptable enough, however, is it really a match type that’s marketable or actively popular within the wrestling community at all is the real question we need to ask. Unlike matches like Money in the Bank, Elimination Chamber, Hell in a Cell or the Royal Rumble, the idea of a Fatal-4-Way match possessed nothing spectacular about it, not a single selling point to paying customers to sink their teeth into beyond it being a match with four people wrestling in it. There have been countless great ones throughout WWE history, it just isn’t a match fans fawn over to see more of, let alone have a show based around it. While their strategy remains to be a confusing one, it’s a pretty obvious way for the company to test the waters at the time since they were transitioning into a new era of newer stars & a newer fanbase to cater to.

The show itself was nothing to be ashamed of though, in fact, I’d honestly say it was one of the strongest of 2010, a genuinely great show that outshined middling expectations going into it. Both the World title matches delivered the goods in their respective 4-Way matches while furthering the current storylines they were working around, Kofi Kingston & Drew McIntyre put on a stellar opening contest over the Intercontinental Championship, The Hart Dynasty beat The Usos in a fine encounter & Evan Bourne (the now Matt Sydal) pinned Chris Jericho in one of the more underrated PPV matches of that year. During a time where a lot of fans craved newer talent gaining a spotlight, this show did just that and highlighted the newer crop of their roster. It’s honestly a solid card that just seems forgotten because of how random the overall concept of the show was, utilizing a gimmick that doesn’t really have much of an ‘it’ factor to it.

Compared to my other selections, I’d say this was the strongest of the bunch. As odd of an idea as it is on paper, there’s still a lot to admire.

Great Balls of Fire (2017)

What I’d pay to be a fly on the wall of the board room meeting where the creative team & WWE management decided that a show called ‘Great Balls of Fire’ would be a good idea to market towards their audience.

This entire show, the build-up to it, the marketing campaign & even the show’s own hysterical production design all seem like one big rib to the WWE fanbase, the biggest troll that the company has ever delivered. It still amazes me to this very day that a show like this even exists, or was taken seriously at one point, even the fact that I woke up at 1 am to sit through this show baffles me when I reflect on it. WWE is an entertainment juggernaut, amongst the biggest in the entire world right now & I truly understand the need to try to innovate and constantly experiment with new ideas to potentially foster into something larger, but what was the endgame with this show?

As ridiculous as the show’s actual name is, the fact that Jerry Lee Lewis’ classic song of the same name as the show itself was used as the official theme song is extraordinary to me, simply extraordinary.

However, I’ll proudly admit that the show ended up being far above what I expected, in fact, it was a fairly loaded card that even featured a personal dream match of mine finally coming to fruition. Headlined by Brock Lesnar defending his Universal Championship against Samoa Joe, WWE did a pretty solid job in putting together a card that was more than just being represented by a show name so ridiculous you wouldn’t bother investing your time or interest in it. Lesnar vs Joe wasn’t necessarily a spectacular match but did its job in giving fans something on the show to truly take notice of. Alongside the main event, we had Roman Reigns attempt murder in a chaotic Ambulance Match against Braun Strowman, Alexa Bliss defend her title against Sasha Banks in a great little match, The Hardys face Cesaro & Sheamus in a slow-paced but really well executed 30-minute Iron Man Match, Neville battle Akira Tozawa over the Cruiserweight Championship & Big Cass mauled his former partner Enzo Amore in one of that year’s most effective angles up until that point.

It still stands as one of the most bizarre decisions WWE has ever made, but Great Balls of Fire is a show I’d highly recommend checking out if you have the time. At the very least you’ll laugh at how absurd the show looks every time the stage is in the background.

Wrestlemania 2000 (2000)

To this day, Wrestlemania 2000 stands as the only Wrestlemania in history to not feature one basic, straightforward, down the middle singles match on its card.

In the midst of a Hardcore Battle Royal, 4 Tag Team matches, a Triangle Ladder Match & a Fatal-4-Way main event the only thing closely resembling a singles match was a ‘Catfight’, which ranks amongst my least favorite ‘matches’ in Wrestlemania history. The issue with this card is that the overreliance on multip-person bouts can lead to show being far too overcrowded & active, resulting in a lack of storytelling a show as big as Wrestlemania needs to truly be memorable. There was just simply too much happening on this show at stages that exhausted me simply watching it on television, despite this being at one of the peak periods of WWE programming as the Monday Night Wars were still being waged on primetime television.

When looking at the actual card, the only real standout was the Triangle Ladder Match between The Dudleys, The Hardys & Edge and Christian which isn’t just a revolutionary match that changed the way the industry looked at gimmick matches, but the importance of tag team wrestling as an entire concept. It embodies what Wrestlemania is and what it should feel like to watch, on top of having phenomenal storytelling from everyone involved in it, as well as the right men coming out on top. WWE sadly crammed the rest of the card with too much dead weight to really discuss, particularly the remaining tag team contests which did nothing to excite me, although the Hardcore Battle Royal, while an incredible mess, is one of the few bright spots of the show due to how absurd the flow of the match is with its breakneck pacing.

Sadly the ultimate nail in the coffin for me was the show’s main event, a star-studded Fatal-4-Way match between Triple H, The Rock, Mick Foley & Big Show, each with a member of the McMahon family in their corner to battle over the WWE Championship. The match itself had pretty solid action, but as I mentioned earlier shoved far too much into the match itself to really land the ending it went for. Balancing not just the retirement of Mick Foley, the rise of Big Show, a plethora of McMahon family drama that just dragged on at points but it sadly sacrificed all of this in favor of having the company’s biggest star at the time, The Rock capture the WWE Championship in what should have been the conclusion to your biggest show of the calendar year.

Wrestlemania 2000 is a pretty solid example that signifies the importance of one-on-one contests, that allows for breaks in between matches with abundances of talent involved in them. As crazy as a show as this can be, it was just so much to digest at points that it becomes overwhelming to watch, with such an intense focus on the spectacle of Wrestlemania that it’s just absurd at times, especially considering that this show wasn’t even held in a larger venue than what we’re now accustomed to.

With Wrestlemania’s getting seemingly longer by the year & WWE seemingly always wanting to shove the maximum amount of talent possible onto a card, this show should be a bleak reminder that sometimes quantity just doesn’t equal quality.

December to Dismember (2006)

What hasn’t been said about ECW’s December to Dismember that hasn’t already been said by any living, breathing professional wrestling fan?

It’s highly regarded amongst the very worst shows in company history, stands as the show with the lowest buyrate in company history, lead to the creative departure of Paul Heyman, gave us changes to the ECW brand that no fan at the time wanted & put the nail in the coffin for the revival of one of wrestling’s most incredibly unique products back in the day. More than anything, it was a slap in the face to anyone who cherishes the world of Extreme Championship Wrestling, a brand pioneered by echoing the voices of its fans with its rowdy, violent, brutal & over-the-top product that to many was seen as a ‘rebellion’ against the norms we were so used to in the industry.

This show missed the mark on almost every beat. It succeeded at dismantling whatever integrity the ECW brand name had left under the WWE banner & killing what had the potential to be a pretty solid show if creative reigns had actually understood what made a product, a brand like ECW tick in the first place. None of the heart was there, the wrestling was watered down to the very thing it was designed not to be, not a single storytelling beat worked because of how absurd aspects of the product were & it just felt too corporate for the average fan, who craved something authentic considering what ECW represented.

Probably the most insulting thing was that prior to this actual show back in 2006, the company only announced 2 official matches, the opening & main event matches, both of which were fine enough but did nothing to satisfy what WWE marketed this brand as. In terms of highlights, the tag team contest between The Hardys and M&M worked, everything else, however, was just a joke in most people’s eyes, an insult almost. Littered with bizarre ideas that seemed like how someone like a Vince McMahon would interpret the ECW product in modern-day, most of this show was too cringe-worthy to take seriously and was met with either silence or boos from fans depending on where you look at on the show. Even the ‘Extreme’ Elimination Chamber that headlined the show was booked in a manner that was so backward to what ECW is at its core that you’d think whoever was in charge had no knowledge of the product whatsoever, and that may have been the case in reality.

I can probably say it’s a show you can watch to laugh at, however, if you’re an ECW fan like myself, this was such a frustratingly bizarre experience that it’s hard to think the WWE would follow through with something like this at a point in time.

Summerslam (2004)

There is no WWE show that will ever represent the notion of ‘bizarro world’ much like Summerslam 2004 did. Being held in Toronto, Canada this was a show unlike any other I’ve personally ever seen in my life so far, one of the craziest, strangest experiences this industry probably has to offer.

Going into this show there was nothing really controversial or out of the ordinary on the card, it was all pretty standard, well booked & carried a lot of potentially great wrestling to put on display with it being one of the companies ‘Big 4’ in their calendar year. It featured a loaded card headlined by Chris Benoit defending his title against Randy Orton & JBL defending his title against The Undertaker, both matches featuring newly bred main event stars taking on seasoned veterans. And while you’d expect the standard, solid show from a card like this, what played out on live television is something that has to be seen.

On that evening the crowd in Toronto lost their minds entirely. It’s a crowd that I can’t quite explain or understand since not only does what they did make no real sense but not being in the audience, is something I can’t make a fair judgment on myself. Rather than playing into the storylines that the company had built up heading into their summer season, the live crowd hijacked the show and almost every match on the card, particularly within the latter half of the show. The crowd booed whomever the company had built up to be cheered, harassed their hometown hero in Edge during his first title defense in his hometown, heckled referee Earl Hebner to no end, turned on stars halfway through their matches, did a Mexican wave during title matches & never really let the show foster into its own thing. While it did admittedly ruin some of the stories the stars tried to tell, it was ridiculously entertaining to watch as an experience.

Probably the saddest part was that the show did have some highlights outside of the rabid live audience, namely a superb Wrestlemania XX rematch between Eddie Guerrero & Kurt Angle, a really fun Six-Man tag team match, as well as a technically fabulous main event between Chris Benoit & Randy Orton. It was probably the remainder of the card that sinks this shows standing and resulted in what the crowd became since nothing else really stood out in my mind due to some really odd booking decisions, especially everything surrounding a Triple H & Eugene (yes, Eugene, of all people) which went well past its limits in terms of timing. And while the match itself is a bit of a snoozefest to get through, witnessing the crowds dissensions into madness during the WWE Championship match between JBL & Undertaker is one of the funniest things the company has put on to this day.

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

Related Topics:ECW Featured Featured Big SummerSlam 06.WWE

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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

3 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

3 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!