Wrestlemania 25 Recap

It was the showcase of the immortals, and the grandest stage of them all. It was the Silver Anniversary, Wrestlemania 25. The opening bout was the Money in the Bank Ladder match. They had some great spots in the match where Kofi Kingston was showcased, last years winner CM Punk won the match becoming the first man to ever win two Money in the Bank Ladder matches in a row.

Up next was an awesome performance by Kid Rock which saw almost everyone at my table at Buffalo Wild Wings singing All Summer Long, and Cowboy. His song led the Divas out for the 25-Diva Battle Royal. As the match dwindled down I noticed a Diva I’ve never seen before. Well that she turned out to be a he, and it was the goofy weirdo Santino Marella who won the Diva’s Battle Royal to become Miss Wrestlemania. Talk about crazy. It definitely was crazy to say the least.

Up next was the Chris Jericho vs. Piper/Snuka/Steamboat in a handicap match with Ric Flair in their corner and Mickey Rourke sitting at ringside. Jericho had to defeat all three legends to win the match and defeat him they did but Ricky Steamboat stole some of the show. He looked absolutely awesome in the ring. It was so awesome seeing him wrestle again. After the match, Jericho called Rourke into the ring and asked for an apology. Rourke was hesitant at first but he eventually got in the ring and knocked out Chris Jericho. Flair and Rourke celebrated in the ring.

Extreme Rules, Brother vs. Brother, Matt vs. Jeff as the Hardy Boys definitely took it to another level tonight. I personally have always thought that Matt was the better wrestler and he proved to be tonight. Jeff Hardy took his chances but Matt hit a nasty twist of fate on his brother Jeff. The Era of Mattitude has returned.

The biggest shocker of the night was watching the shortest Intercontinental Title Match in history. Rey Mysterio who payed tribute to the late Heath Ledger by dressing in Joker fashion got the last laugh. He defeated the Longhorn loudmouth JBL in a mere 21 Seconds. After the match JBL proceeded get on the microphone and utter the words I quit. So indeed JBL did make history, he lost his title in record fashion and is the first person to ever quit at a Wrestlemania. Good stuff.

For wrestling fans like myself we live for matches that define our generation. The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels was definitely one of the greatest matches in the history of Wrestlemania and the history of wrestling. It will be the most talked about match for awhile. While the Undertakers streak may still be intact, the legend of Shawn Michaels’ performances continued to grow. All I got to say is I want a rematch at Backlash because I think this long time rivalry isn’t over.

Next up was the introduction of the Hall of Famers, but for one of them it was a emotional farewell. Stone Cold Steve Austin, arguably the greatest WWE Superstar of all time closed the doors on his wrestling career. He came out with four-wheeler and vintage classic Austin 3:16 shirt and had one more toast with the fans, J.R., and the people who have loved this legendary figure. Stone Cold I salute you and thank you for all the memories you gave us in your career.

As predicted John Cena did win the World Title triple threat match against Edge and the Big Show. It was a solid match which saw Cena pick up the Big Show for the attitude adjuster (formerly known as the F-U), and 72,000 plus in Houston watch as Cena become World Champion once again. I would also like to point out that it was cool to see Cena use his old theme song Basic Thuganomics before he made his way out to the ring.

Finally the match that I was torn about, Randy Orton vs. WWE Champion Triple H. It was a back and forth match which saw both men hit their finishers within the first five minutes of the match. In the end, the sledgehammer, the pedigree and Triple H’s desire for revenge was too much for the Legend Killer and Triple H retains his WWE Championship.

Overall it was a good Wrestlemania, I would give it a 7.5 out of 10. I was disappointed that the Miz/Morrison and Carlito/Primo match was not on the pay-per-view but they did have the match right before the PPV started. The Colons won and became the undisputed WWE tag team champions. I also thought that Stephanie, Shane and Vince should have came out to celebrate with Triple H to end the show.

A lot of people have complained about how bad the PPV was. I personally thought it was good. It had some old school, some extreme, some surprises some comedy, and memories that were created. Wrestlemania 25 will stand the test of a time, no matter what the critics say.