For the last three decades, WrestleMania has served as the cornerstone event for the WWE and has been the backdrop of some of the most memorable moments and matches in the history of sports entertainment.
Countdown to WWE WrestleMania 31: 3 Best Moments From WrestleMania XXVIII (28)
Over the last month, Sports World News has looked into each installment of the WWE's biggest show of the year and we've reached the last stop on the road to WrestleMania 31, which emanates Sunday from Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
The WWE celebrated three decades of WrestleMania last year at WrestleMania XXX as Daniel Bryan attempted to win two matches in one night while Brock Lesnar stamped his place in the record books in a historic edition of the marquee event.
Countdown to WWE WrestleMania 31: 3 Best Moments From WrestleMania XXIX (29)
WrestleMania XXX took place live from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans in front of a capacity crowd of 75,167 fans with the tagline "Let The Good Times Roll" on April 6, 2014.
Here are our three best moments from WWE WrestleMania XXX:
Honorable Mention: The show had a great opening segment with wrestling legends Hulk Hogan, The Rock and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin conversing in the ring. It was a moment shared by three veterans of WrestleMania and was made more memorable by Hogan's gaffe of calling the Superdome the Silverdome.
3) The Swiss Superman Slam: The WWE presented the first ever Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania XXX as 30 Superstars clashed in an over-the-top melee in honor of the great Andre the Giant with a huge trophy on the line. This was the start of a new tradition for the company.
The final four boiled down to Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio, The Big Show and Cesaro. After Del Rio and Sheamus eliminated each other, Cesaro and Big Show remained.
Cesaro, The Swiss Superman, picked up the mighty Big Show and body slammed him over the top rope to eliminate him in a standout moment for Cesaro and one that mirrored Hulk Hogan body slamming Andre the Giant at WrestleMania III in 1987 on a lesser scale.
2) 'The Beast' Ends The Streak, 21-1: In what will undoubtedly hold up as the most shocking moment in WrestleMania history, Brock Lesnar hit The Undertaker with an F-5 and for the very first time, the referee's hand hit the mat a third time to count The "Deadman's" shoulders down.
For the first time ever, The Undertaker lost at WrestleMania.
The match itself wasn't up to the usual "Deadman" WrestleMania standards as he was up against a more physical opponent in "The Beast," but the impact it had on the landscape of professional wrestling will never be forgotten.
Lesnar managed to escape the Hell's Gate twice and was able to kick out after getting hit with the Last Ride and Tombstone successively.
The Undertaker was more winded than he had been in prior matches, but he kicked out of two mighty F-5s from his opponent.
When Lesnar hit a third one however, 'Taker stayed down, unable to answer the count for the very first time. Paul Heyman lost his mind at ringside as the crowd sat in stunned silence. A graphic that read "21-1" flashed throughout the stadium while the audience looked on in shocked disbelief.
The Undertaker had built a 21-0 streak at WrestleMania by defeating the likes of Kevin Nash (Diesel), Kane, Triple H, Ric Flair, Randy Orton, Batista, Edge, Shawn Michaels and CM Punk, but it was all over once Lesnar pinned his shoulders to the mat.
The Undertaker left the Superdome to a standing ovation, with several questions surrounding his future in the WWE.
1) Yes!leMania: WrestleMania XXX will always be known as the year of Daniel Bryan as "The Beard" achieved his crowning moment at this event.
Bryan mirrored what Bret "Hitman" Hart did 20 years earlier at WrestleMania X by competing in the opening and closing matches at the biggest show of the year.
The original plans for WrestleMania XXX called for Batista to win the Royal Rumble Match and go on to dethrone Randy Orton in the main event in New Orleans to win the gold. When fans failed to get behind "The Animal" upon his Rumble Match win, the script was flipped and a new scenario was created involving Bryan.
Bryan opened up WrestleMania with a match against Triple H with the stipulation being that the winner would advance to the main event.
The match was a great opener, which saw Bryan kick out of Triple H's Pedigree and then hit him with the running knees to collect the pinfall victory and move on to the main event. "The Game" savagely attacked him after the bout.
The Triple Threat main event match with Bryan, Batista and Orton was a sensational bout as all three men got their offense in and there was a solid flow and sense of urgency to the contest.
The ending saw Batista hit the Batista Bomb on Orton and Bryan take advantage by hitting "The Animal" with the running knees.
Bryan then locked Batista in the Yes Lock and Batista tried to fight out of it before eventually tapping, giving Bryan the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
The show ended with confetti and fireworks raining down on Bryan as the entire Mercedes-Benz Superdome partook in the Yes! chant to close out the show. It was a fitting ending and mirrored the Bret Hart (WrestleMania X) and Chris Benoit-Eddie Guerrero (WrestleMania XX) celebratory endings to other milestone WrestleManias.
The "Yes Movement" reached its peak as the underdog Bryan was on top of the WWE as the World Heavyweight Champion.
Looking Ahead: We've reached the end of our countdown and look back at the history of the greatest wrestling event of all time. Thanks to everyone who read any of these 30 entries and especially to those who shared them. Next up, the WWE presents WrestleMania 31 at Levi's Stadium this Sunday in an event that will likely add many more great memories to WrestleMania lore.
Rank-O-Mania: As we go through each year, we will rank each WrestleMania as it comes along. WrestleMania XXX is historic for a number of reasons as Lesnar ended The Streak and Bryan won two solid matches, including what was a feel-good ending with "The Beard" capturing the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. This edition also had a breakout moment for Cesaro and a solid John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt bout. One negative about this show is that it doesn't have a stand out five-star classic of a match, but it is still one of the better installments regardless of Bryan's reign being short-lived due to injury. WrestleMania XXX finds its place between WrestleManias VIII and XXIV in ninth place in our final rankings.
1) WrestleMania X-7
2) WrestleMania XIX
3) WrestleMania X
4) WrestleMania VI
5) WrestleMania III
6) WrestleMania 21
7) WrestleMania XIV
8) WrestleMania VIII
9) WrestleMania XXX
10) WrestleMania XXIV
11) WrestleMania XX
12) WrestleMania 22
13) WrestleMania XXVIII
14) WrestleMania XXVI
15) WrestleMania VII
16) WrestleMania X-8
17) WrestleMania XXV
18) WrestleMania 23
19) WrestleMania V
20) WrestleMania XV
21) WrestleMania 2000
22) WrestleMania XII
23) WrestleMania IV
24) WrestleMania XXIX
25) WrestleMania XXVII
26) WrestleMania 13
27) WrestleMania I
28) WrestleMania XI
29) WrestleMania IX
30) WrestleMania 2
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