WrestleMania XX
Encyclopedia
WrestleMania XX was the twentieth WrestleMania
professional wrestling
pay-per-view
(PPV) produced by World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE). It took place on March 14, 2004 at Madison Square Garden
in New York
.
The event was a joint-promotion
pay-per-view event, featuring performers from the Raw
and SmackDown! brands. The card for the event featured two main events. The main match for the Raw brand was a Triple Threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship
between champion Triple H
, Shawn Michaels
and Chris Benoit
. Benoit won the match, making Triple H submit via the Crippler Crossface. The main match for the SmackDown! brand featured Eddie Guerrero
versus Kurt Angle
for the WWE Championship
which Guerrero won after a Small package. The event featured the return of The Undertaker, who defeated Kane
after a Tombstone Piledriver. Also on the card was the final match in the company for both Goldberg
and Brock Lesnar
, with Stone Cold Steve Austin
as the special guest referee. After Goldberg won the match following a Jackhammer, both men were given a Stone Cold Stunner
by Austin on their way out.
WrestleMania XX was the third WrestleMania at Madison Square Garden but the fourth to take place in the New York
metropolitan area
(following WrestleMania I
, WrestleMania 2
, and WrestleMania X
). The event grossed
US$
2.4 million in ticket sales, making the Pay-Per-View the highest grossing event ever for WWE at Madison Square Garden. More than 20,000 people from 16 countries, 48 states
attended the event, which was also televised in more than 90 countries. The event generated an estimated $13.5 million of economic activity for New York City and created an equivalent of 96 full-year jobs.
heading into the pay-per-view was on the Raw
brand
, with Triple H
, Shawn Michaels
and Chris Benoit
feuding over the World Heavyweight Championship
. This would mark the 3rd pay per view event that Triple H would defend a World Championship at Madison Square Garden
. The first event was January 2000 at the Royal Rumble
, where Triple H retained the then-known WWF Championship
over Cactus Jack
. The second event at the same arena was in November 2002 at Survivor Series
, where Triple H defended the World Championship in the 1st ever Six man Elimination Chamber
match, which was won by Shawn Michaels. Triple H was the champion heading into the WrestleMania XX event with the origins of the rivalry beginning on the December 29, 2003 episode of Raw, when Michaels challenged Triple H for the World title in Michaels' hometown of San Antonio, Texas
. As it looked like Michaels was going to win his 5th World title over Triple H, Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff
got to the ring at the last minute and made the pinfall but stopped at a 2 count, thus screwing Michaels in the process. At the Royal Rumble event
on January 25, Triple H and Michaels faced each other again in a Last Man Standing match for the title, which resulted in a draw, and, as a result, Triple H retained the title, leaving question on who was the better of the two. Also at the pay-per-view, in the Royal Rumble match
, SmackDown!'s Benoit won the contest by last eliminating The Big Show
. The following night, on the January 26 edition of Raw, Michaels and Triple H were involved in an in-ring confrontation when Raw's authority figure (referred to as the "Sheriff"), Steve Austin
, made his way to the ring. He stated that, although Michaels should have a rematch, he had to "enforce the law". He stated that, in the rules it specifies that the winner of the Royal Rumble may face either the WWE Champion
or World Heavyweight Champion. The winner of the Royal Rumble, Benoit, made his way to the ring, and stated that he would be challenging the World Heavyweight Champion at WrestleMania XX. On the February 9, 2004 edition of Raw, a contract signing took place between Benoit and World Champion, Triple H. As Triple H signed his name on the paper, Michaels came out to inform Benoit that the last thing he wanted to do is rain on his parade. He then stated that he more than anybody can respect Benoit's effort to win the Royal Rumble match and earning a World title shot but suggested that Benoit could've stayed on SmackDown! to take care of business while Michaels, himself, was trying to finish his 10 year issue with Triple H on behalf of the Raw brand. He last stated that he is this close to finishing his rivalry and plans to do so at WrestleMania XX for the World title. Benoit responded by saying that it's just not going to happen and stated that he's the one who challenges Triple H for the World title, not Michaels. After Michaels responded by superkicking Benoit, he then signed his own name on the paper as the challenger to Triple H's World Championship. On the following week's episode of Raw, Michaels defeated Benoit due to interference by Triple H. Afterwords, Steve Austin appeared and announced that Triple H would be defending his World Championship at WrestleMania against both Michaels and Benoit in a Triple threat match. On the March 1, 2004 edition of Raw, after Michaels and Benoit lost to Randy Orton
and Batista in a tag team match, World Champion, Triple H and the rest of Evolution
attacked Michaels and Benoit, ending with Triple H nailing them with the Pedigree and rubbing his World title belt into their faces while they were laying motionless in the ring.
The main feud on the SmackDown! brand was between Eddie Guerrero
and Kurt Angle
for the WWE Championship
. In the beginning of 2004, Angle and Guerrero were allies while Guerrero feuded with his nephew Chavo Guerrero
. On the January 29, 2004 edition of SmackDown!, Eddie Guerrero last eliminated Angle in a 15-man Royal Rumble style match to earn a shot at the WWE Championship. At the prior pay per view, No Way Out
, Kurt Angle defeated The Big Show
and John Cena
in a Triple threat match to earn himself a title shot at WrestleMania on the same event where Guerrero defeated Brock Lesnar
for the WWE title. On the February 19, 2004 edition of SmackDown!, Angle was the special guest referee in a match between WWE Champion, Eddie Guerrero and WWE Cruiserweight Champion
, Chavo Guerrero. As Eddie was about to close in on the victory, Angle stopped the 3 count and would turn on Guerrero, thus becoming a villain once again. On the following week's edition of SmackDown!, Guerrero was eagar get his revenge on Angle while looking for him but when he finally saw Angle, he shoved SmackDown General Manager, Paul Heyman
and his assistant Dawn Marie
out of his way only for Heyman to have Guerrero escorted out of the arena by security. Guerrero was scheduled to team with John Cena to take on Chavo Guerrero and the Big Show in a tag team match on that night but due to Guerrero being escorted out of the arena, he was replaced by Rey Mysterio for the tag match, which Mysterio and Cena won. Later that night, Angle appeared and stated that he attacked Guerrero for the SmackDown! fans and for the WWE. He then referred to Guerrero as a former drug addict that shouldn't represent SmackDown! as the WWE Champion and stated that one day people will be thanking him for a champion that they could be proud of. Guerrero then came back to the arena and assaulted Angle until he got arrested by orders of Paul Heyman. As Guerrero got taken out of the building in handcuffs
, Angle made some insulting comments to him until the officers drove away with Guerrero in the Police car. On the March 4, 2004 edition of SmackDown!, during Guerrero's match with Heyman (while he was handcuffed), Angle interfered and knocked him down a few times until Guerrero defended himself by spitting on Angle. As Guerrero begged Angle to nail him with the WWE Championship belt, Angle did so and raised title the belt over-head to show an example for their match Wrestlemania XX.
This also marks the first WrestleMania to have a match billed as "interpromotional", which means that a party from Raw would wrestle a party from SmackDown!. WWE owner, Vince McMahon
, named three matches to be interpromotional on the February 16 edition of Raw. The first was a match a tag team
match featuring SmackDown!'s Torrie Wilson
and Sable
, who had recently been featured in a pictorial in Playboy magazine, against Raw's Stacy Keibler
and Miss Jackie
, who had protested the decision made by Hugh Hefner
to not feature them.
The next match was made at the request of Kane
, who had been receiving threats from his storyline
brother, The Undertaker. This would mark the 2nd WrestleMania event that the Undertaker and Kane would go one-on-one with the first being WrestleMania XIV
six years prior. In November 2003 at Survivor Series
, Kane defeated Shane McMahon
in an Ambulance match then during the latter event, he interfered and buryed The Undertaker alive in the Undertaker's match with Vince McMahon. On the November 20, 2003 edition of SmackDown, Kane appeared to give the Eulogy
for the Undertaker. Kane claimed that the man as the Undertaker the world knew, has been dead for a long time because they were monsters and lived to strike fear into the hearts of normal men until the Undertaker portrayed himself (in the American Bad Ass/Big Evil persona
) and became one of the fans. Kane stated that he watched Undertaker show compassion by defending Stephanie McMahon (during her feud with Vince McMahon) and show weakness in losing to Brock Lesnar
for the WWE Championship at No Mercy. He then stated that Undertaker was not his brother nor a monster cause' a monster shows no compassion nor has weaknesses. He referred to Undertaker as an imposter and a fraud that he buried alive and ended the eulogy by saying R.I.P. Two months later, Kane participated in the Royal Rumble
match where he heard the bell toll from the Undertaker's entrance music, distracting and distressing him and enabling Booker T
to eliminate him from the ring. Over the following weeks, Kane repeatedly insisted that The Undertaker was "dead", only to be met with various paranormal incidents such as a rainstorm localized over the ramp on which he stood. On the last edition of Raw, Kane appeared to the ring and saw an empty Casket
standing in the ring but as he opened it, he saw an urn
inside of it. He then grabbed the microphone and asked if that's what he's been looking forward to. He also stated it's going to take more than an empty casket and an urn to intimidate and beat him. He then stated that the Undertaker's legacy, his 11-0 WrestleMania steak and his life is coming to an end as he said "it's back to the grave for you for good". As he clamied that It's over and that he's not afraid of the Undertaker. The lights turned out but this time, the 10,000 pound wrestling ring lifted off the ground with Kane standing in it and tilted side ways, which would be the final message sent from the Undertaker before their match at WrestleMania XX.
On the January 26, episode of Raw, Goldberg
came to the ring, and demanded a match himself against Brock Lesnar, with whom he had problems over the past two months. The night before, Goldberg was entered in the Royal Rumble match, only to have Lesnar (who, as the reigning WWE Champion, was not entered into the match) interfered, causing Goldberg to be eliminated by Kurt Angle
. The following week on an episode of Raw, as a result of the rivalry extending between the two programs, General Manager Steve Austin
gave Goldberg the option of attending No Way Out by giving him a front-row ticket. At the No Way Out event, Goldberg was seen arriving at the arena and being escorted to his front seat by security. Then SmackDown General Manager, Paul Heyman
gave a promotional in-ring segment on how SmackDown! was the better program over Raw. Lesnar would come down to the ring to promote his match and to insult Goldberg. Goldberg immediately jumped over the barricade into the ring, where Lesnar performed a running shoulder block to Goldberg's stomach; however he recuperated and lifted Lesnar vertically in the air before slamming him down to perform the Jackhammer. Goldberg was then escorted out of the arena by security. During Lesnar's WWE title defense against Eddie Guerrero
later that night, Goldberg returned to the arena and interfered by executing a spear, which caused Lesnar to lose the title after Guerrero nailed him with a Frog splash. On the February 22, 2004 episode of Raw, Vince McMahon named the Interpromotional
singles match pitting Lesnar versus Goldberg for WrestleMania XX with Steve Austin as the special guest referee. During the match between McMahon and Eric Bischoff
, Lesnar appeared on Raw and nailed Steve Austin with an F-5 then stole Austin's four-wheeler
. A few days later on SmackDown!, Lesnar stated that he appeared on Raw just to get back at Austin for giving Goldberg the front-row seat ticket and suggesting that Goldberg would attack Lesnar at No Way Out. Behind the scenes, it was widely known that the match would be Goldberg's last in WWE. Only a week before WrestleMania, however, rumors surfaced that Lesnar, too, was leaving in order to pursue a career in the National Football League
. On the last edition of SmackDown! prior to WrestleMania, Steve Austin appeared to get his fourwheeler back from Lesnar only for the entire roster to get in his way by orders of SmackDown! General manager Paul Heyman. Moments later, the entire roster had decided to move aside and let Austin by to confront Lesnar in the ring. As Austin got to the ring, he and Lesnar traded punches with Austin attempting to nail Lesnar with the Stone Cold stunner
only for Lesnar to escape, leaving Austin to finally get back his fourwheeler and closing in on the show with his trademark beer bash.
The event began with the Boys Choir of Harlem
singing "America the Beautiful
". The first match that aired was a singles match between The Big Show and John Cena for the WWE United States Championship
, the first time the title was ever defended at the event; the match started out with The Big Show beating down on the challenger, not giving him any room. Cena hit an early FU though only secured a 2 count. Cena grabbed his signature chain and tried to attack Big Show with it, however the referee
saw Cena with the chain and confiscated it due to it being illegal in the match. With the referee securing the chain with his back turned to the match, Cena hit Big Show with hidden brass knuckles
and hoisted The Big Show up onto his shoulders for his finishing move, FU. Cena then immediately pinned The Big Show to win the match and the United States Championship.
The next match was a Fatal Four-Way tag match between the teams of Rob Van Dam
and Booker T
, Garrison Cade
and Mark Jindrak
, The Dudley Boyz
(Bubba Ray and D-Von) and La Résistance (René Duprée
and Rob Conway) for the World Tag Team Championship, held by Van Dam and Booker T. The match saw quick action between all four teams, and ended when Conway was pinned by Van Dam after Booker T used his signature Scissor kick
on him, which was then followed by Van Dam's signature dive from the top rope, the Five-Star Frog Splash, leading to the two retaining their title.
The third match was between Christian and Chris Jericho
. The match centered around both men furiously attacking each other; Christian won the match after Jericho's love interest, Trish Stratus
, hit Jericho in the face with her elbow thinking Jericho was Christian, allowing Christian to roll him up for the win. Following the match Stratus turned on Jericho, slapping him several times allowing Christian to hit him with his finishing move, the Unprettier.
Next up was a Handicap match featuring Evolution
(Randy Orton
, Batista and Ric Flair
) against The Rock 'n' Sock Connection
(The Rock and Mick Foley
). Evolution won the match when Orton pinned Foley after successfully executing an RKO.
"Mean" Gene Okerlund
then introduced the WWE Hall of Fame
Class of 2004. This was followed by the interpromotional Playboy Evening Gown match between Torrie Wilson and Sable against Stacy Keibler and Miss Jackie, which had both teams wrestle in lingerie
. SmackDown!'s team of Wilson and Sable would get the victory after Wilson caught Jackie with a roll up cover for a pinfall victory.
The next match was a gauntlet style match called the Cruiserweight Open for the Cruiserweight Championship
, which saw cruiserweight competitors around the outside of the ring, while two competitors wrestled in the ring. As one wrestler lost, another one entered. Último Dragón and Shannon Moore
started the match with Dragón getting a pinfall victory after the Dragon-DDT, but was then forced to submit
by Jamie Noble
with the Dragon Sleeper, who next eliminated Funaki
in 8 seconds, a WrestleMania record. Nunzio
was then in the match, but was eliminated after being counted out of the match when he was unable to return to the ring by the referee's count of ten. Billy Kidman then entered the match, pinning and eliminating Noble following a top rope BK-Bomb. Kidman was then pinned and eliminated by Rey Mysterio with a Modified Powerbomb from the top rope. Tajiri
was the next entrant, but was also pinned by Mysterio following a standing West Coast Pop. Akio
was the next scheduled entrant but was unable to compete due to being inadvertently attacked by Tajiri with his signature green mist he spat out of his mouth when Mysterio ducked. The Cruiserweight Champion, Chavo Guerrero
, was the final entrant and pinned Mysterio with a reversal of Mysterio's Sunset Flip to win with the assistance of his father Chavo Guerrero, Sr., thus retaining the title.
The seventh match featured Brock Lesnar
and Goldberg
with special guest referee, Steve Austin
. The beginning of the match began with both men staring each other down, jawing back and forth, with no physical action for several minutes, causing an exasperated Austin at one point to coax them into locking up. The fact that they both were leaving the WWE immediately after the match, as well as the lack of effort brought forth by both Goldberg and Lesnar drew large heat
from the fans throughout the match. Goldberg then successfully took Lesnar down with a Spear, that would only draw a two count after a pin attempt. Lesnar then executed the F-5 maneuver on Goldberg, but also resulted in a two-count pin attempt. Afterwards, Lesnar missed an attempt to knock Goldberg down, allowing Goldberg to execute another spear and a successful Jackhammer powerslam that led to a three count for Goldberg, thus winning the match. After the match, Steve Austin executed a Stone Cold Stunner
on both competitors to the crowd's delight and celebrated with beer
in the ring.
The next match was another four-way tag team match, but was for the WWE Tag Team Championship
between the champions, Rikishi
and Scotty 2 Hotty, versus the APA (Bradshaw
and Faarooq
), the Basham Brothers
(Doug
and Danny
), and the World's Greatest Tag Team (Shelton Benjamin
and Charlie Haas
), which saw the champions retain after Rikishi pinned Doug with a Bonzai Drop.
The eighth match was the encounter of Victoria and Molly Holly
for the WWE Women's Championship
, where Holly would have to be shaved bald if she lost. Victoria would counter a Widow's peak maneuver attempt by Holly into a Backslide pin, drawing a three count, thus winning the match and retaining the WWE Women's Championship. Holly tried running towards the backstage area to escape the match's stipulation, but was eventually stopped by Victoria who would knock her out and place her onto the barber's chair, shaving her bald.
The next match featured Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle over the WWE Championship. The match was centered around both men maneuvering around on the match. Guerrero used a DDT
and Frog Splash maneuver on Angle that would result in a pin attempt; Angle then recovered and secured Guerrero with an ankle lock hold. However, Guerrero escaped the hold by rolling through it and throwing Angle out of the ring. As Angle was outside, Guerrero loosened his ring boot to relieve the pain. As Angle returned to the ring, he applied another ankle lock on Guerrero that would end up being unsuccessful with Guerrero escaping the hold by pushing Angle off with his other foot leaving Angle holding the Guerrero's loosened ring boot. With Angle confused, Guerrero executed a Roll-up pin maneuver leading to a successful pinfall, thus winning the match and retaining the WWE Championship.
The tenth match of the event was the encounter of The Undertaker and Kane, which would be Undertaker's first match since he was buried alive at Survivor Series 2003
. The Undertaker made his return under his "Deadman" gimmick, as he was accompanied to the ring by Paul Bearer
. The two wrestlers brawled in the beginning of the match, until Kane delivered a Chokeslam to Undertaker, which he sat up from shortly afterward while Kane was taunting Paul Bearer. The Undertaker then retaliated giving a Kane a Chokeslam of his own and executing his deadly finisher Tombstone piledriver into a successful pinfall, thus winning the match and remaining undefeated at WrestleMania with a 12-0 record. This was the second time that Kane faced off against Undertaker at WrestleMania and losing again, like the previous effort at WrestleMania XIV
.
The main event was a Triple threat match over the World Heavyweight Championship
between Triple H, Chris Benoit, and Shawn Michaels. This match marked the seventh title defense of the night, the most in WrestleMania history. The match started with Benoit and Michaels wanting to face the champion, but would wrestle each other, trying to gain an advantage before Triple H's intervention leading to the match going back-and-forth between all three men, hitting their signature holds and maneuvers throughout with the action going to the outside with Michaels ascending to the top rope and performing a moonsault onto Benoit and Triple H called the moonsault
. Benoit would soon gain control over Michaels when he applied his signature hold the Crippler Crossface. As Michaels was about to submit, Triple H would save the match, beating both men, and executing his own finisher, the Pedigree, on Benoit before Michaels halted his attempt to win the match. Triple H and Michaels would subsequently team up to suplex Benoit through the announcer's table, trying to eliminate Benoit from the match. The two continued to wrestle until Benoit made his return to action to have Michaels then attempt to hit Benoit with a his signature kick, the Sweet Chin Music, but Benoit countered it, throwing Michaels out of the ring. As this occurred, Triple H attempted to execute the Pedigree again on Benoit, but was countered and was locked into the Crippler Crossface Triple H to submit. As a result, Benoit won the match and the World Heavyweight Championship. After the match, Eddie Guerrero came to the ring and the two embraced while confetti dropped for the emotional ending of WrestleMania XX.
versus Goldberg
contest, some critics expressed disappointment with the match, with many in Madison Square Garden booing both competitors and only cheering for Steve Austin
because of the fact that both participants were set to leave the WWE after the event. Goldberg's contract expired the following week and he was not seen in professional wrestling again after that. After trying out for the Minnesota Vikings
Lesnar was one of the final preseason cuts; he was later sued by WWE for violating a non-compete clause when he debuted in New Japan Pro Wrestling
in 2005, but both parties agreed to drop the suit. Lesnar was offered a new WWE contract after he left NJPW but elected to enter the Ultimate Fighting Championship
, where he is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion.
At Backlash
, the original main event match was between Chris Benoit
and Shawn Michaels
for the World Heavyweight Championship
. Though, on the March 29 edition of Raw, after being traded to SmackDown! and brought back to Raw, Triple H
demanded that the intended match at Backlash be changed to Benoit and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff
liked the idea of the match, but concluded with adding that he made a promise to Michaels for granting him a World title match at Backlash; instead Bischoff booked a Triple Threat match between Benoit, Michaels and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. At Backlash, Benoit retained the World title, after he forced Michaels to submit to the Sharpshooter
.
The feud between Kurt Angle
and Eddie Guerrero
continued. On the March 25 edition of SmackDown!, Angle was made the on-screen
General Manager of SmackDown!, as part to the storyline of Angle's legitimate neck problems. This angle would also play on the April 15 edition of SmackDown!, when he attributed injuries suffered after The Big Show
chokeslam
med Angle off a ledge. In reality Angle announced that he would be having neck surgery in May and would be out of action until August. At The Great American Bash
, Angle cost Guerrero the WWE title in a Texas Bull Rope match against John "Bradshaw" Layfield
, after Angle reversed the outcome of the match when Guerrero appeared to have retained the title. In the same month, Angle's position as General Manager of SmackDown! came to an end when he was fired
by WWE Chairman
Vince McMahon
, after McMahon had exposed that Angle was not really injured. At SummerSlam
, Angle and Guerrero were booked in a match, in which Angle defeated Guerrero after he forced Guerrero to submit to the Ankle lock.
's professional wrestling section was quite critical of WrestleMania XX calling it "One of the most awful and dullest WrestleManias in recent memory". He further noted "From the cookie-cutter matches to the lack of storyline continuity, WrestleMania XX did nothing to satisfy long-time fans or to bring new ones into the fold. In fact, it probably served to turn more people off their embarrassingly inferior product which shows no signs of improving in the near future as many of their top superstars are leaving or taking time off from the organization." He vastly criticized the quality of all the matches on the card, he claimed the return of The Undertaker was "a cruel joke." He heavily criticized the match between Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar stating that "The heavily pushed Brock Lesnar and Bill Goldberg bout was an unmitigated catastrophe which sparked 'Boooring!' cat-calls throughout Madison Square Garden as fans berated the muscle-bound grapplers for engaging in a five minute staredown." He rated the entire event 4 out of 10 stars, which was a lower rating than the previous year's event
. The Triple Threat match between Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship receiving the highest rating of 7.5 out of 10 stars, the match between Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship was rated 7 out of 10 stars, the match between The Undertaker and Kane was rated 2 out of 10 stars, and the match between Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar received the lowest rating of the matches with a rating of 0 out of 10 stars. Robert Leighty Jr of 411mania gave the event an overall score of 7.3 out of 10.0 and noted that "This is a very long show with a lot of filler to get as many people as possible involved, but the Main Matches all delivered in some way. The 2 Main Title matches were fantastic, and the handicap match was a blast. You throw in a strong Jericho/Christian match and the unique crowd response of Goldberg/Lesnar and you have a strong WrestleMania. Not the greatest ever thanks to a mediocre run in the middle, but a good show that could have been better." The Triple Threat match between Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship has received critical acclaim with many wrestling publications and website calling this match this one of the greatest wrestling matches of all time. Robert Leighty Jr of 411mania cited that the main event was "The Greatest Three Way Match in wrestling history. Everything was perfect about this match including the finish." The Triple Threat match was also placed #2 on IGN
's list of Top 20 Matches in Wrestlemania History.
WrestleMania
WrestleMania is a professional wrestling pay-per-view event, produced annually in late March or early April by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut...
professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
(PPV) produced by World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWE). It took place on March 14, 2004 at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
The event was a joint-promotion
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
pay-per-view event, featuring performers from the Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
and SmackDown! brands. The card for the event featured two main events. The main match for the Raw brand was a Triple Threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
between champion Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
and Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
. Benoit won the match, making Triple H submit via the Crippler Crossface. The main match for the SmackDown! brand featured Eddie Guerrero
Eddie Guerrero
Eduardo Gory "Eddie" Guerrero was a Mexican-American professional wrestler born into the Guerrero wrestling family. He wrestled in Mexico and Japan for several major professional wrestling promotions...
versus Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
for the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
which Guerrero won after a Small package. The event featured the return of The Undertaker, who defeated Kane
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
after a Tombstone Piledriver. Also on the card was the final match in the company for both Goldberg
Bill Goldberg
Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....
and Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar
Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
, with Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
as the special guest referee. After Goldberg won the match following a Jackhammer, both men were given a Stone Cold Stunner
Stunner (professional wrestling)
A stunner is a common term in professional wrestling referring to the seated three-quarter facelock jawbreaker maneuver, predominantly used by Stone Cold Steve Austin and named for his Stone Cold Stunner finisher...
by Austin on their way out.
WrestleMania XX was the third WrestleMania at Madison Square Garden but the fourth to take place in the New York
New York metropolitan area
The New York metropolitan area, also known as Greater New York, or the Tri-State area, is the region that composes of New York City and the surrounding region...
metropolitan area
Metropolitan area
The term metropolitan area refers to a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure, and housing. A metropolitan area usually encompasses multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships,...
(following WrestleMania I
WrestleMania (1985)
WrestleMania was the first annual WrestleMania professional wrestling event produced by the World Wrestling Federation. It took place on March 31, 1985, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The attendance for the event was 19,121 fans...
, WrestleMania 2
WrestleMania 2
WrestleMania 2 was the second annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
, and WrestleMania X
WrestleMania X
WrestleMania X was the tenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation. It took place at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York on March 20, 1994. The central focus of the pay-per-view was the WWF Championship, which was defended...
). The event grossed
Gross (economics)
In economics, gross means before deductions. The antonym is net, meaning after deductions.-Usage:In this sense, it may appear an adjective, following the noun it modifies, e.g., "earned two million dollars, gross"...
US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
2.4 million in ticket sales, making the Pay-Per-View the highest grossing event ever for WWE at Madison Square Garden. More than 20,000 people from 16 countries, 48 states
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
attended the event, which was also televised in more than 90 countries. The event generated an estimated $13.5 million of economic activity for New York City and created an equivalent of 96 full-year jobs.
Background
The main rivalryFeud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
heading into the pay-per-view was on the Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
brand
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
, with Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
and Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
feuding over the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
. This would mark the 3rd pay per view event that Triple H would defend a World Championship at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
. The first event was January 2000 at the Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (2000)
Royal Rumble was the thirteenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on January 23, 2000 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York....
, where Triple H retained the then-known WWF Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
over Cactus Jack
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
. The second event at the same arena was in November 2002 at Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2002)
Survivor Series was the sixteenth annual Survivor Series professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on November 17, 2002 from Madison Square Garden in New York, New York and featured talent from both the Raw and SmackDown! brands...
, where Triple H defended the World Championship in the 1st ever Six man Elimination Chamber
Elimination Chamber
The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE promotion. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure or "chamber" which encloses the ring. The chamber's floor is platformed over the ringside area which elevates it to ring level and within...
match, which was won by Shawn Michaels. Triple H was the champion heading into the WrestleMania XX event with the origins of the rivalry beginning on the December 29, 2003 episode of Raw, when Michaels challenged Triple H for the World title in Michaels' hometown of San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
. As it looked like Michaels was going to win his 5th World title over Triple H, Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
got to the ring at the last minute and made the pinfall but stopped at a 2 count, thus screwing Michaels in the process. At the Royal Rumble event
Royal Rumble (2004)
Royal Rumble was the seventeenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 25, 2004 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
on January 25, Triple H and Michaels faced each other again in a Last Man Standing match for the title, which resulted in a draw, and, as a result, Triple H retained the title, leaving question on who was the better of the two. Also at the pay-per-view, in the Royal Rumble match
Royal Rumble
The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view event, produced every January by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The event was created in 1988, with its inaugural event taking place on January 24, 1988 at the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario...
, SmackDown!'s Benoit won the contest by last eliminating The Big Show
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
. The following night, on the January 26 edition of Raw, Michaels and Triple H were involved in an in-ring confrontation when Raw's authority figure (referred to as the "Sheriff"), Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
, made his way to the ring. He stated that, although Michaels should have a rematch, he had to "enforce the law". He stated that, in the rules it specifies that the winner of the Royal Rumble may face either the WWE Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
or World Heavyweight Champion. The winner of the Royal Rumble, Benoit, made his way to the ring, and stated that he would be challenging the World Heavyweight Champion at WrestleMania XX. On the February 9, 2004 edition of Raw, a contract signing took place between Benoit and World Champion, Triple H. As Triple H signed his name on the paper, Michaels came out to inform Benoit that the last thing he wanted to do is rain on his parade. He then stated that he more than anybody can respect Benoit's effort to win the Royal Rumble match and earning a World title shot but suggested that Benoit could've stayed on SmackDown! to take care of business while Michaels, himself, was trying to finish his 10 year issue with Triple H on behalf of the Raw brand. He last stated that he is this close to finishing his rivalry and plans to do so at WrestleMania XX for the World title. Benoit responded by saying that it's just not going to happen and stated that he's the one who challenges Triple H for the World title, not Michaels. After Michaels responded by superkicking Benoit, he then signed his own name on the paper as the challenger to Triple H's World Championship. On the following week's episode of Raw, Michaels defeated Benoit due to interference by Triple H. Afterwords, Steve Austin appeared and announced that Triple H would be defending his World Championship at WrestleMania against both Michaels and Benoit in a Triple threat match. On the March 1, 2004 edition of Raw, after Michaels and Benoit lost to Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
and Batista in a tag team match, World Champion, Triple H and the rest of Evolution
Evolution (professional wrestling)
Evolution was a villainous professional wrestling stable on WWE's Raw brand between 2003 and 2005. At the height of its existence, the group consisted of Triple H, Ric Flair, Randy Orton, Batista and briefly Eugene....
attacked Michaels and Benoit, ending with Triple H nailing them with the Pedigree and rubbing his World title belt into their faces while they were laying motionless in the ring.
The main feud on the SmackDown! brand was between Eddie Guerrero
Eddie Guerrero
Eduardo Gory "Eddie" Guerrero was a Mexican-American professional wrestler born into the Guerrero wrestling family. He wrestled in Mexico and Japan for several major professional wrestling promotions...
and Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
for the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
. In the beginning of 2004, Angle and Guerrero were allies while Guerrero feuded with his nephew Chavo Guerrero
Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling...
. On the January 29, 2004 edition of SmackDown!, Eddie Guerrero last eliminated Angle in a 15-man Royal Rumble style match to earn a shot at the WWE Championship. At the prior pay per view, No Way Out
No Way Out (2004)
No Way Out was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on February 15, 2004 at the Cow Palace in Daly City, California...
, Kurt Angle defeated The Big Show
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
and John Cena
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand....
in a Triple threat match to earn himself a title shot at WrestleMania on the same event where Guerrero defeated Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar
Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
for the WWE title. On the February 19, 2004 edition of SmackDown!, Angle was the special guest referee in a match between WWE Champion, Eddie Guerrero and WWE Cruiserweight Champion
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
, Chavo Guerrero. As Eddie was about to close in on the victory, Angle stopped the 3 count and would turn on Guerrero, thus becoming a villain once again. On the following week's edition of SmackDown!, Guerrero was eagar get his revenge on Angle while looking for him but when he finally saw Angle, he shoved SmackDown General Manager, Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman is an American entertainment producer, best known for his career in professional wrestling as a promoter, manager, commentator and journalist. He is also an occasional actor in film....
and his assistant Dawn Marie
Dawn Marie Psaltis
Dawn Marie Psaltis is an American former professional wrestler and professional wrestling valet. She is perhaps best known for her appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and the SmackDown! brand of World Wrestling Entertainment under her ring name Dawn Marie, where she was a WWE...
out of his way only for Heyman to have Guerrero escorted out of the arena by security. Guerrero was scheduled to team with John Cena to take on Chavo Guerrero and the Big Show in a tag team match on that night but due to Guerrero being escorted out of the arena, he was replaced by Rey Mysterio for the tag match, which Mysterio and Cena won. Later that night, Angle appeared and stated that he attacked Guerrero for the SmackDown! fans and for the WWE. He then referred to Guerrero as a former drug addict that shouldn't represent SmackDown! as the WWE Champion and stated that one day people will be thanking him for a champion that they could be proud of. Guerrero then came back to the arena and assaulted Angle until he got arrested by orders of Paul Heyman. As Guerrero got taken out of the building in handcuffs
Handcuffs
Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists close together. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each half has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that prevents it from being opened once closed around a person's wrist...
, Angle made some insulting comments to him until the officers drove away with Guerrero in the Police car. On the March 4, 2004 edition of SmackDown!, during Guerrero's match with Heyman (while he was handcuffed), Angle interfered and knocked him down a few times until Guerrero defended himself by spitting on Angle. As Guerrero begged Angle to nail him with the WWE Championship belt, Angle did so and raised title the belt over-head to show an example for their match Wrestlemania XX.
This also marks the first WrestleMania to have a match billed as "interpromotional", which means that a party from Raw would wrestle a party from SmackDown!. WWE owner, Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
, named three matches to be interpromotional on the February 16 edition of Raw. The first was a match a tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
match featuring SmackDown!'s Torrie Wilson
Torrie Wilson
Torrie Anne Wilson is a retired American professional wrestler, fitness competitor and model. She is best known for her tenures in World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment , where she worked on both their SmackDown and Raw brands throughout her eight-year run.As a fitness...
and Sable
Rena Mero
Rena Marlette Mero Lesnar , better known as Sable, is an American model, actress, and former professional wrestler. She is primarily known for her stints in World Wrestling Entertainment....
, who had recently been featured in a pictorial in Playboy magazine, against Raw's Stacy Keibler
Stacy Keibler
Stacy Keibler is an American actress, model, and former professional wrestler and valet, best known for her work with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment ....
and Miss Jackie
Jackie Gayda
Jacquelyn Gayda-Haas is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and valet, best known for her work on World Wrestling Entertainment 's Raw and SmackDown! brands and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as a TNA Knockout...
, who had protested the decision made by Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner
Hugh Marston "Hef" Hefner is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.-Early life:...
to not feature them.
The next match was made at the request of Kane
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
, who had been receiving threats from his storyline
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
brother, The Undertaker. This would mark the 2nd WrestleMania event that the Undertaker and Kane would go one-on-one with the first being WrestleMania XIV
WrestleMania XIV
WrestleMania XIV was the fourteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on March 29, 1998 at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts....
six years prior. In November 2003 at Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2003)
Survivor Series was the seventeenth annual Survivor Series professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
, Kane defeated Shane McMahon
Shane McMahon
Shane Brandon McMahon is an American executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of YOU On Demand. A former executive and professional wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment , he is the son of WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and former US Senate candidate Linda...
in an Ambulance match then during the latter event, he interfered and buryed The Undertaker alive in the Undertaker's match with Vince McMahon. On the November 20, 2003 edition of SmackDown, Kane appeared to give the Eulogy
Eulogy
A eulogy is a speech or writing in praise of a person or thing, especially one recently deceased or retired. Eulogies may be given as part of funeral services. However, some denominations either discourage or do not permit eulogies at services to maintain respect for traditions...
for the Undertaker. Kane claimed that the man as the Undertaker the world knew, has been dead for a long time because they were monsters and lived to strike fear into the hearts of normal men until the Undertaker portrayed himself (in the American Bad Ass/Big Evil persona
Persona
A persona, in the word's everyday usage, is a social role or a character played by an actor. The word is derived from Latin, where it originally referred to a theatrical mask. The Latin word probably derived from the Etruscan word "phersu", with the same meaning, and that from the Greek πρόσωπον...
) and became one of the fans. Kane stated that he watched Undertaker show compassion by defending Stephanie McMahon (during her feud with Vince McMahon) and show weakness in losing to Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar
Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
for the WWE Championship at No Mercy. He then stated that Undertaker was not his brother nor a monster cause' a monster shows no compassion nor has weaknesses. He referred to Undertaker as an imposter and a fraud that he buried alive and ended the eulogy by saying R.I.P. Two months later, Kane participated in the Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (2004)
Royal Rumble was the seventeenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 25, 2004 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
match where he heard the bell toll from the Undertaker's entrance music, distracting and distressing him and enabling Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
to eliminate him from the ring. Over the following weeks, Kane repeatedly insisted that The Undertaker was "dead", only to be met with various paranormal incidents such as a rainstorm localized over the ramp on which he stood. On the last edition of Raw, Kane appeared to the ring and saw an empty Casket
Casket
A casket, or jewelry box is a term for a container that is usually larger than a box, and smaller than a chest, and in the past was typically decorated...
standing in the ring but as he opened it, he saw an urn
Urn
An urn is a vase, ordinarily covered, that usually has a narrowed neck above a footed pedestal. "Knife urns" placed on pedestals flanking a dining-room sideboard were an English innovation for high-style dining rooms of the late 1760s...
inside of it. He then grabbed the microphone and asked if that's what he's been looking forward to. He also stated it's going to take more than an empty casket and an urn to intimidate and beat him. He then stated that the Undertaker's legacy, his 11-0 WrestleMania steak and his life is coming to an end as he said "it's back to the grave for you for good". As he clamied that It's over and that he's not afraid of the Undertaker. The lights turned out but this time, the 10,000 pound wrestling ring lifted off the ground with Kane standing in it and tilted side ways, which would be the final message sent from the Undertaker before their match at WrestleMania XX.
On the January 26, episode of Raw, Goldberg
Bill Goldberg
Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....
came to the ring, and demanded a match himself against Brock Lesnar, with whom he had problems over the past two months. The night before, Goldberg was entered in the Royal Rumble match, only to have Lesnar (who, as the reigning WWE Champion, was not entered into the match) interfered, causing Goldberg to be eliminated by Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
. The following week on an episode of Raw, as a result of the rivalry extending between the two programs, General Manager Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
gave Goldberg the option of attending No Way Out by giving him a front-row ticket. At the No Way Out event, Goldberg was seen arriving at the arena and being escorted to his front seat by security. Then SmackDown General Manager, Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman is an American entertainment producer, best known for his career in professional wrestling as a promoter, manager, commentator and journalist. He is also an occasional actor in film....
gave a promotional in-ring segment on how SmackDown! was the better program over Raw. Lesnar would come down to the ring to promote his match and to insult Goldberg. Goldberg immediately jumped over the barricade into the ring, where Lesnar performed a running shoulder block to Goldberg's stomach; however he recuperated and lifted Lesnar vertically in the air before slamming him down to perform the Jackhammer. Goldberg was then escorted out of the arena by security. During Lesnar's WWE title defense against Eddie Guerrero
Eddie Guerrero
Eduardo Gory "Eddie" Guerrero was a Mexican-American professional wrestler born into the Guerrero wrestling family. He wrestled in Mexico and Japan for several major professional wrestling promotions...
later that night, Goldberg returned to the arena and interfered by executing a spear, which caused Lesnar to lose the title after Guerrero nailed him with a Frog splash. On the February 22, 2004 episode of Raw, Vince McMahon named the Interpromotional
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
singles match pitting Lesnar versus Goldberg for WrestleMania XX with Steve Austin as the special guest referee. During the match between McMahon and Eric Bischoff
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, Lesnar appeared on Raw and nailed Steve Austin with an F-5 then stole Austin's four-wheeler
All-terrain vehicle
An all-terrain vehicle , also known as a quad, quad bike, three wheeler, or four wheeler, is defined by the American National Standards Institute as a vehicle that travels on low pressure tires, with a seat that is straddled by the operator, along with handlebars for steering control...
. A few days later on SmackDown!, Lesnar stated that he appeared on Raw just to get back at Austin for giving Goldberg the front-row seat ticket and suggesting that Goldberg would attack Lesnar at No Way Out. Behind the scenes, it was widely known that the match would be Goldberg's last in WWE. Only a week before WrestleMania, however, rumors surfaced that Lesnar, too, was leaving in order to pursue a career in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. On the last edition of SmackDown! prior to WrestleMania, Steve Austin appeared to get his fourwheeler back from Lesnar only for the entire roster to get in his way by orders of SmackDown! General manager Paul Heyman. Moments later, the entire roster had decided to move aside and let Austin by to confront Lesnar in the ring. As Austin got to the ring, he and Lesnar traded punches with Austin attempting to nail Lesnar with the Stone Cold stunner
Stunner (professional wrestling)
A stunner is a common term in professional wrestling referring to the seated three-quarter facelock jawbreaker maneuver, predominantly used by Stone Cold Steve Austin and named for his Stone Cold Stunner finisher...
only for Lesnar to escape, leaving Austin to finally get back his fourwheeler and closing in on the show with his trademark beer bash.
Preliminary matches
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| Commentator | Michael Cole Michael Cole Michael Sean Coulthard , better known by his ring name Michael Cole, is an American professional wrestling commentator, currently signed to WWE on both its Rawand SmackDown brands. Coulthard is a former news journalist.... |
| Tazz Tazz Peter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz... |
|
| Jerry Lawler Jerry Lawler Jerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional... |
|
| Jim Ross Jim Ross James William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand... |
|
| Carlos Cabrera Carlos Cabrera Carlos Rodrigo Cabrera is a former newsman and currently employed with WWE, where he is one half of the company's Spanish announce team in which he is the play-by-play announcer. His longtime broadcast partner was the former Ecuadorian professional wrestler Hugo Savinovich, who was the color... |
|
| Hugo Savinovich Hugo Savinovich Hugo Savinovich is a former Ecuadorian professional wrestler, formerly employed with WWE, where he was one half of the Spanish announce team for the company's TV shows and pay-per-view events. He was a color commentator and partner of Carlos Cabrera and occasionally Marcelo Rodríguez. When he... |
|
| Interviewer | Lilian Garcia Lilian Garcia Lilian Annette García , is a Spanish-American singer. She is best known as the former ring announcer for WWE's Raw brand. During her time in WWE, she became the first Diva to remain with the promotion for ten years.-Early life and career:... |
| Ring announcer | Tony Chimel Tony Chimel Anthony "Tony" Chimel is an American professional wrestling ring announcer, currently employed by WWE working as the ring announcer for SmackDown brand.-WWE :... |
| Howard Finkel Howard Finkel Howard Finkel is a professional wrestling ring announcer currently working with WWE in a variety of roles. Hired in 1975 by Vincent J. McMahon's World Wide Wrestling Federation, "The Fink" was the first person brought in to Vincent K... |
|
| Referees | Nick Patrick Nick Hamilton Joseph Nicholas "Nick" Patrick Hamilton Jr. , better known by his ring name Nick Patrick, is a professional wrestling referee. He is a former referee for World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment... |
| Jim Korderas Jim Korderas __FORCETOC__Demetrius Korderas , better known by his referee name, Jim "Jimmy" Korderas is a Canadian professional wrestling referee who worked for World Wrestling Entertainment for over 22 years.-Early career:... |
|
| Brian Hebner | |
| Charles Robinson | |
| Chad Patton | |
| Earl Hebner Earl Hebner Earl William Hebner is a professional wrestling referee currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and the twin brother of Dave Hebner... |
|
| Mike Chioda Mike Chioda Michael Joseph "Mike" Chioda, is a senior referee who is currently signed to WWE. While not refereeing, Chioda, as well as the other referees in WWE, help set up the arena before shows, constructing the ring and stage areas.-WWF:... |
|
| Jack Doan Jack Doan John Michael "Jack" Doan is a veteran professional wrestling referee currently signed with WWE.-Career:Doan joined WWE in October 1991 as a truck driver. From there, he took robes from Superstars at ringside, played music at shows, worked as part of the ring crew, and continued to drive the... |
|
| Tim White Tim White (wrestling) Timothy Rhys White is a former professional wrestling referee. He worked with World Wrestling Entertainment as a producer on the SmackDown! brand... |
|
Boys Choir of Harlem
The Boys Choir of Harlem was a choir located in Harlem, New York City, United States. Its last performance was in 2007 and the group folded shortly thereafter due to several controversies, a large budget deficit, and the death of its founder.Founded in 1968 by Dr...
singing "America the Beautiful
America the Beautiful
"America the Beautiful" is an American patriotic song. The lyrics were written by Katharine Lee Bates and the music composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward....
". The first match that aired was a singles match between The Big Show and John Cena for the WWE United States Championship
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
, the first time the title was ever defended at the event; the match started out with The Big Show beating down on the challenger, not giving him any room. Cena hit an early FU though only secured a 2 count. Cena grabbed his signature chain and tried to attack Big Show with it, however the referee
Referee (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling referee is the official figure that makes sure that wrestling matches move smoothly in an attempt to maintain kayfabe. The referee also has the ultimate power in the ring...
saw Cena with the chain and confiscated it due to it being illegal in the match. With the referee securing the chain with his back turned to the match, Cena hit Big Show with hidden brass knuckles
Brass knuckles
Brass knuckles, also sometimes called knuckles, knucks, brass knucks, or knuckledusters, are weapons used in hand-to-hand combat. Brass knuckles are pieces of metal, usually steel despite their name, shaped to fit around the knuckles...
and hoisted The Big Show up onto his shoulders for his finishing move, FU. Cena then immediately pinned The Big Show to win the match and the United States Championship.
The next match was a Fatal Four-Way tag match between the teams of Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
and Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
, Garrison Cade
Lance Cade
Lance Kurtis McNaught was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment where he performed under the ring names Garrison Cade and Lance Cade....
and Mark Jindrak
Mark Jindrak
Mark Robert Jindrak is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
, The Dudley Boyz
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
(Bubba Ray and D-Von) and La Résistance (René Duprée
René Goguen
René Goguen better known by his ring name René Duprée, is a French Canadian professional wrestler. Goguen is best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he is a one-time World Tag Team Champion with Sylvain Grenier as the tag team La Résistance and a one time WWE Tag Team...
and Rob Conway) for the World Tag Team Championship, held by Van Dam and Booker T. The match saw quick action between all four teams, and ended when Conway was pinned by Van Dam after Booker T used his signature Scissor kick
Scissor kick (strike)
A scissor kick in martial arts is used to describe certain kicking or grabbing techniques that resemble a pair of scissors.-In The Asian Martial Arts:...
on him, which was then followed by Van Dam's signature dive from the top rope, the Five-Star Frog Splash, leading to the two retaining their title.
The third match was between Christian and Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
. The match centered around both men furiously attacking each other; Christian won the match after Jericho's love interest, Trish Stratus
Trish Stratus
Patricia Anne Stratigias , better known by her ring name Trish Stratus, is a Canadian professional wrestler, actress and television personality currently signed with WWE. She is also a former fitness model....
, hit Jericho in the face with her elbow thinking Jericho was Christian, allowing Christian to roll him up for the win. Following the match Stratus turned on Jericho, slapping him several times allowing Christian to hit him with his finishing move, the Unprettier.
Next up was a Handicap match featuring Evolution
Evolution (professional wrestling)
Evolution was a villainous professional wrestling stable on WWE's Raw brand between 2003 and 2005. At the height of its existence, the group consisted of Triple H, Ric Flair, Randy Orton, Batista and briefly Eugene....
(Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
, Batista and Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
) against The Rock 'n' Sock Connection
Rock 'n' Sock Connection
The Rock 'N' Sock Connection is a former professional wrestling tag team of The Rock and Mankind that wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation between 1999 and 2000 and briefly in 2004...
(The Rock and Mick Foley
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
). Evolution won the match when Orton pinned Foley after successfully executing an RKO.
"Mean" Gene Okerlund
Gene Okerlund
Eugene "Mean Gene" Okerlund is a semi-retired American professional wrestling interviewer and announcer. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006 by Hulk Hogan...
then introduced the WWE Hall of Fame
WWE Hall of Fame
The WWE Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for professional wrestlers maintained by WWE. It was officially created on the February 1, 1993 episode of the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw television program...
Class of 2004. This was followed by the interpromotional Playboy Evening Gown match between Torrie Wilson and Sable against Stacy Keibler and Miss Jackie, which had both teams wrestle in lingerie
Lingerie
Lingerie are fashionable and possibly alluring undergarments.Lingerie usually incorporates one or more flexible, stretchy materials like Lycra, nylon , polyester, satin, lace, silk and sheer fabric which are not typically used in more functional, basic cotton undergarments.The term in the French...
. SmackDown!'s team of Wilson and Sable would get the victory after Wilson caught Jackie with a roll up cover for a pinfall victory.
The next match was a gauntlet style match called the Cruiserweight Open for the Cruiserweight Championship
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
, which saw cruiserweight competitors around the outside of the ring, while two competitors wrestled in the ring. As one wrestler lost, another one entered. Último Dragón and Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy...
started the match with Dragón getting a pinfall victory after the Dragon-DDT, but was then forced to submit
Submission wrestling
Submission wrestling or Combat wrestling in Japan, is a formula of competition and a general term describing the aspect of martial arts and combat sports that focus on clinch and ground fighting with the aim of obtaining a submission using submission holds...
by Jamie Noble
Jamie Noble
James Howard Gibson better known by his WWE ring name Jamie Noble, is an American former professional wrestler currently working for WWE as a trainer. He is best known for his work from 2002 to 2009 when a severe back injury forced him to retire from competition...
with the Dragon Sleeper, who next eliminated Funaki
Shoichi Funaki
is a Japanese/American professional wrestler best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he was a one-time Cruiserweight Champion and a one-time Hardcore Champion.-Early years :...
in 8 seconds, a WrestleMania record. Nunzio
James Maritato
James Maritato is an American professional wrestler, of Italian origin, currently working on the independent circuit. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment and Extreme Championship Wrestling under the ring names Little Guido Maritato and Nunzio.-Starting out:While...
was then in the match, but was eliminated after being counted out of the match when he was unable to return to the ring by the referee's count of ten. Billy Kidman then entered the match, pinning and eliminating Noble following a top rope BK-Bomb. Kidman was then pinned and eliminated by Rey Mysterio with a Modified Powerbomb from the top rope. Tajiri
Yoshihiro Tajiri
, is a Japanese professional wrestler, perhaps best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment. He is currently competing in SMASH as TAJIRI.-Early years :...
was the next entrant, but was also pinned by Mysterio following a standing West Coast Pop. Akio
James Yun
James Carson Yun is an American professional wrestler and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jimmy Wang Yang, in World Championship Wrestling as one-third of the Jung Dragons as Yang, and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and the independent circuit...
was the next scheduled entrant but was unable to compete due to being inadvertently attacked by Tajiri with his signature green mist he spat out of his mouth when Mysterio ducked. The Cruiserweight Champion, Chavo Guerrero
Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling...
, was the final entrant and pinned Mysterio with a reversal of Mysterio's Sunset Flip to win with the assistance of his father Chavo Guerrero, Sr., thus retaining the title.
The seventh match featured Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar
Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
and Goldberg
Bill Goldberg
Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....
with special guest referee, Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
. The beginning of the match began with both men staring each other down, jawing back and forth, with no physical action for several minutes, causing an exasperated Austin at one point to coax them into locking up. The fact that they both were leaving the WWE immediately after the match, as well as the lack of effort brought forth by both Goldberg and Lesnar drew large heat
Heat (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, heat refers to both crowd reaction and real-life animosity between those involved in the professional wrestling business. In terms of crowd reaction, heat is usually either cheers for a babyface or boos for a heel...
from the fans throughout the match. Goldberg then successfully took Lesnar down with a Spear, that would only draw a two count after a pin attempt. Lesnar then executed the F-5 maneuver on Goldberg, but also resulted in a two-count pin attempt. Afterwards, Lesnar missed an attempt to knock Goldberg down, allowing Goldberg to execute another spear and a successful Jackhammer powerslam that led to a three count for Goldberg, thus winning the match. After the match, Steve Austin executed a Stone Cold Stunner
Stunner (professional wrestling)
A stunner is a common term in professional wrestling referring to the seated three-quarter facelock jawbreaker maneuver, predominantly used by Stone Cold Steve Austin and named for his Stone Cold Stunner finisher...
on both competitors to the crowd's delight and celebrated with beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
in the ring.
The next match was another four-way tag team match, but was for the WWE Tag Team Championship
WWE Tag Team Championship
The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
between the champions, Rikishi
Solofa Fatu
Solofa F. Fatu, Jr. is an American professional wrestler, best known under the ring name Rikishi.-The Samoan Swat Team:...
and Scotty 2 Hotty, versus the APA (Bradshaw
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
and Faarooq
Ron Simmons
Ronald "Ron" Simmons is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and retired American football player. He is recognised as being the first Black world heavyweight champion in professional wrestling and the first of only two African Americans to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship,...
), the Basham Brothers
Basham Brothers
The Basham Brothers, Doug and Danny , are a professional wrestling tag team, who formerly worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment .-History:...
(Doug
Doug Basham
This article is about the wrestler, for the talk show host see Doug Basham Lyle Douglas "Doug" Basham, Jr. is an American professional wrestler, He is best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment between 2002 and 2007, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name...
and Danny
Danny Holly
Daniel R. 'Danny' Holle is an American professional wrestler, currently working on the independent circuit. Holle is best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment between 1998 and 2007 and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring names Danny Holliday, Damaja and Danny...
), and the World's Greatest Tag Team (Shelton Benjamin
Shelton Benjamin
Shelton James Benjamin is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment. Benjamin has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling in high school and at the University of Minnesota. In addition, Benjamin has acted...
and Charlie Haas
Charlie Haas
Charles "Charlie" Doyle Haas II is an American professional wrestler and former collegiate amateur wrestler. He competes on the independent circuit, and is signed to Ring of Honor , where he is one-half of the reigning ROH World Tag Team Champions with Shelton Benjamin...
), which saw the champions retain after Rikishi pinned Doug with a Bonzai Drop.
Nora Greenwald
Nora Kristina Greenwald , better known by her ring name Molly Holly, is an inactive American professional wrestler. Greenwald is best known for her appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment .Greenwald began her professional wrestling career in WCW, where she...
for the WWE Women's Championship
WWE Women's Championship
The WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification...
, where Holly would have to be shaved bald if she lost. Victoria would counter a Widow's peak maneuver attempt by Holly into a Backslide pin, drawing a three count, thus winning the match and retaining the WWE Women's Championship. Holly tried running towards the backstage area to escape the match's stipulation, but was eventually stopped by Victoria who would knock her out and place her onto the barber's chair, shaving her bald.
Main event matches
DDT (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling a DDT is any move in which the wrestler has the opponent in a front facelock, and falls down or backwards to drive the opponent's head into the mat...
and Frog Splash maneuver on Angle that would result in a pin attempt; Angle then recovered and secured Guerrero with an ankle lock hold. However, Guerrero escaped the hold by rolling through it and throwing Angle out of the ring. As Angle was outside, Guerrero loosened his ring boot to relieve the pain. As Angle returned to the ring, he applied another ankle lock on Guerrero that would end up being unsuccessful with Guerrero escaping the hold by pushing Angle off with his other foot leaving Angle holding the Guerrero's loosened ring boot. With Angle confused, Guerrero executed a Roll-up pin maneuver leading to a successful pinfall, thus winning the match and retaining the WWE Championship.
The tenth match of the event was the encounter of The Undertaker and Kane, which would be Undertaker's first match since he was buried alive at Survivor Series 2003
Survivor Series (2003)
Survivor Series was the seventeenth annual Survivor Series professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
. The Undertaker made his return under his "Deadman" gimmick, as he was accompanied to the ring by Paul Bearer
Percy Pringle
William Alvin "Bill" Moody , better known by his ring name Paul Bearer, is a professional wrestling manager and former wrestler best known for his time in World Class Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation, later known as the WWE.-Early career:He entered the wrestling business in...
. The two wrestlers brawled in the beginning of the match, until Kane delivered a Chokeslam to Undertaker, which he sat up from shortly afterward while Kane was taunting Paul Bearer. The Undertaker then retaliated giving a Kane a Chokeslam of his own and executing his deadly finisher Tombstone piledriver into a successful pinfall, thus winning the match and remaining undefeated at WrestleMania with a 12-0 record. This was the second time that Kane faced off against Undertaker at WrestleMania and losing again, like the previous effort at WrestleMania XIV
WrestleMania XIV
WrestleMania XIV was the fourteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on March 29, 1998 at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts....
.
The main event was a Triple threat match over the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
between Triple H, Chris Benoit, and Shawn Michaels. This match marked the seventh title defense of the night, the most in WrestleMania history. The match started with Benoit and Michaels wanting to face the champion, but would wrestle each other, trying to gain an advantage before Triple H's intervention leading to the match going back-and-forth between all three men, hitting their signature holds and maneuvers throughout with the action going to the outside with Michaels ascending to the top rope and performing a moonsault onto Benoit and Triple H called the moonsault
Moonsault
A moonsault, moonsault press, or back flip splash is a professional wrestling aerial technique. Much of its popularity in American wrestling is attributed to The Great Muta, despite it being used in North America by "Leaping" Lanny Poffo years before Muta came from Japan.In a standard moonsault,...
. Benoit would soon gain control over Michaels when he applied his signature hold the Crippler Crossface. As Michaels was about to submit, Triple H would save the match, beating both men, and executing his own finisher, the Pedigree, on Benoit before Michaels halted his attempt to win the match. Triple H and Michaels would subsequently team up to suplex Benoit through the announcer's table, trying to eliminate Benoit from the match. The two continued to wrestle until Benoit made his return to action to have Michaels then attempt to hit Benoit with a his signature kick, the Sweet Chin Music, but Benoit countered it, throwing Michaels out of the ring. As this occurred, Triple H attempted to execute the Pedigree again on Benoit, but was countered and was locked into the Crippler Crossface Triple H to submit. As a result, Benoit won the match and the World Heavyweight Championship. After the match, Eddie Guerrero came to the ring and the two embraced while confetti dropped for the emotional ending of WrestleMania XX.
Aftermath
Despite the effort from WWE to promote the Brock LesnarBrock Lesnar
Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
versus Goldberg
Bill Goldberg
Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....
contest, some critics expressed disappointment with the match, with many in Madison Square Garden booing both competitors and only cheering for Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
because of the fact that both participants were set to leave the WWE after the event. Goldberg's contract expired the following week and he was not seen in professional wrestling again after that. After trying out for the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
Lesnar was one of the final preseason cuts; he was later sued by WWE for violating a non-compete clause when he debuted in New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Japan Pro Wrestling
is a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
in 2005, but both parties agreed to drop the suit. Lesnar was offered a new WWE contract after he left NJPW but elected to enter the Ultimate Fighting Championship
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship is the largest mixed martial arts promotion company in the world that hosts most of the top-ranked fighters in the sport...
, where he is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion.
At Backlash
Backlash (2004)
Backlash was the sixth annual Backlash professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 18, 2004 at the Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta and was a Raw brand-exclusive event...
, the original main event match was between Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
and Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
for the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
. Though, on the March 29 edition of Raw, after being traded to SmackDown! and brought back to Raw, Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
demanded that the intended match at Backlash be changed to Benoit and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
liked the idea of the match, but concluded with adding that he made a promise to Michaels for granting him a World title match at Backlash; instead Bischoff booked a Triple Threat match between Benoit, Michaels and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. At Backlash, Benoit retained the World title, after he forced Michaels to submit to the Sharpshooter
Sharpshooter (professional wrestling)
The Sharpshooter, originally named Sasori-gatame, Scorpion Hold in English, is a professional wrestling submission hold. The move is also known by several other names: cloverleaf leg-lace Boston crab, standing reverse figure-four leglock, and, the most commonly known alternative, Scorpion Deathlock...
.
The feud between Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
and Eddie Guerrero
Eddie Guerrero
Eduardo Gory "Eddie" Guerrero was a Mexican-American professional wrestler born into the Guerrero wrestling family. He wrestled in Mexico and Japan for several major professional wrestling promotions...
continued. On the March 25 edition of SmackDown!, Angle was made the on-screen
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
General Manager of SmackDown!, as part to the storyline of Angle's legitimate neck problems. This angle would also play on the April 15 edition of SmackDown!, when he attributed injuries suffered after The Big Show
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
chokeslam
Chokeslam
A chokeslam refers to a type of body slam in professional wrestling in which the wrestler grasps their opponent's neck, lifts them up, and slams them to the mat. It is common in televised wrestling because it is simple and relatively safe, yet looks powerful on camera...
med Angle off a ledge. In reality Angle announced that he would be having neck surgery in May and would be out of action until August. At The Great American Bash
The Great American Bash (2004)
The Great American Bash was the 1st Great American Bash professional wrestling pay-per-view event, and the first produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on June 27, 2004 at the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, Virginia and was a SmackDown! brand-exclusive event...
, Angle cost Guerrero the WWE title in a Texas Bull Rope match against John "Bradshaw" Layfield
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
, after Angle reversed the outcome of the match when Guerrero appeared to have retained the title. In the same month, Angle's position as General Manager of SmackDown! came to an end when he was fired
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
by WWE Chairman
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
, after McMahon had exposed that Angle was not really injured. At SummerSlam
SummerSlam (2004)
SummerSlam was the seventeenth annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
, Angle and Guerrero were booked in a match, in which Angle defeated Guerrero after he forced Guerrero to submit to the Ankle lock.
Reception
WrestleMania XX was met with generally mixed to negative critical reception. John Powell of Canadian Online ExplorerCanadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer is a bilingual online news and information site from Canada.A subsidiary of Quebecor Media, Canoe.ca is a leading local and national interactive media provider of news, entertainment and services, helping to inform and connect Canadians...
's professional wrestling section was quite critical of WrestleMania XX calling it "One of the most awful and dullest WrestleManias in recent memory". He further noted "From the cookie-cutter matches to the lack of storyline continuity, WrestleMania XX did nothing to satisfy long-time fans or to bring new ones into the fold. In fact, it probably served to turn more people off their embarrassingly inferior product which shows no signs of improving in the near future as many of their top superstars are leaving or taking time off from the organization." He vastly criticized the quality of all the matches on the card, he claimed the return of The Undertaker was "a cruel joke." He heavily criticized the match between Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar stating that "The heavily pushed Brock Lesnar and Bill Goldberg bout was an unmitigated catastrophe which sparked 'Boooring!' cat-calls throughout Madison Square Garden as fans berated the muscle-bound grapplers for engaging in a five minute staredown." He rated the entire event 4 out of 10 stars, which was a lower rating than the previous year's event
WrestleMania XIX
WrestleMania XIX was the nineteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on March 30, 2003 at Safeco Field in Seattle, Washington. The event was the first WrestleMania held in the state of Washington, and the first...
. The Triple Threat match between Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship receiving the highest rating of 7.5 out of 10 stars, the match between Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship was rated 7 out of 10 stars, the match between The Undertaker and Kane was rated 2 out of 10 stars, and the match between Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar received the lowest rating of the matches with a rating of 0 out of 10 stars. Robert Leighty Jr of 411mania gave the event an overall score of 7.3 out of 10.0 and noted that "This is a very long show with a lot of filler to get as many people as possible involved, but the Main Matches all delivered in some way. The 2 Main Title matches were fantastic, and the handicap match was a blast. You throw in a strong Jericho/Christian match and the unique crowd response of Goldberg/Lesnar and you have a strong WrestleMania. Not the greatest ever thanks to a mediocre run in the middle, but a good show that could have been better." The Triple Threat match between Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship has received critical acclaim with many wrestling publications and website calling this match this one of the greatest wrestling matches of all time. Robert Leighty Jr of 411mania cited that the main event was "The Greatest Three Way Match in wrestling history. Everything was perfect about this match including the finish." The Triple Threat match was also placed #2 on IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's list of Top 20 Matches in Wrestlemania History.
Results
| # | Results | Stipulations | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Cena John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand.... defeated The Big Show (c) |
Singles match for the WWE United States Championship WWE United States Championship The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand.... |
09:14 |
| 2 | Rob Van Dam Rob Van Dam Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .... and Booker T Booker Huffman Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World... (c) defeated Garrison Cade Lance Cade Lance Kurtis McNaught was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment where he performed under the ring names Garrison Cade and Lance Cade.... and Mark Jindrak Mark Jindrak Mark Robert Jindrak is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment... , The Dudley Boyz Dudley Boyz Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals... (Bubba Ray and D-Von) and La Résistance (René Duprée René Goguen René Goguen better known by his ring name René Duprée, is a French Canadian professional wrestler. Goguen is best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he is a one-time World Tag Team Champion with Sylvain Grenier as the tag team La Résistance and a one time WWE Tag Team... and Rob Conway) |
Fatal Four-Way match for the World Tag Team Championship | 07:52 |
| 3 | Christian defeated Chris Jericho Chris Jericho Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer... |
Singles match | 14:44 |
| 4 | Evolution Evolution (professional wrestling) Evolution was a villainous professional wrestling stable on WWE's Raw brand between 2003 and 2005. At the height of its existence, the group consisted of Triple H, Ric Flair, Randy Orton, Batista and briefly Eugene.... (Batista, Ric Flair Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world.... and Randy Orton Randy Orton Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand... ) defeated The Rock 'n' Sock Connection Rock 'n' Sock Connection The Rock 'N' Sock Connection is a former professional wrestling tag team of The Rock and Mankind that wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation between 1999 and 2000 and briefly in 2004... (The Rock and Mick Foley Mick Foley Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he... ) |
Handicap match | 17:03 |
| 5 | Torrie Wilson Torrie Wilson Torrie Anne Wilson is a retired American professional wrestler, fitness competitor and model. She is best known for her tenures in World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment , where she worked on both their SmackDown and Raw brands throughout her eight-year run.As a fitness... and Sable Rena Mero Rena Marlette Mero Lesnar , better known as Sable, is an American model, actress, and former professional wrestler. She is primarily known for her stints in World Wrestling Entertainment.... defeated Stacy Keibler Stacy Keibler Stacy Keibler is an American actress, model, and former professional wrestler and valet, best known for her work with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment .... and Miss Jackie Jackie Gayda Jacquelyn Gayda-Haas is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and valet, best known for her work on World Wrestling Entertainment 's Raw and SmackDown! brands and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as a TNA Knockout... |
Playboy Playboy Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with... Evening Gown match |
02:33 |
| 6 | Chavo Guerrero Chavo Guerrero, Jr. Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling... (c) (with Chavo Guerrero Sr.) defeated Último Dragón, Shannon Moore Shannon Moore Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy... , Jamie Noble Jamie Noble James Howard Gibson better known by his WWE ring name Jamie Noble, is an American former professional wrestler currently working for WWE as a trainer. He is best known for his work from 2002 to 2009 when a severe back injury forced him to retire from competition... , Funaki Shoichi Funaki is a Japanese/American professional wrestler best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he was a one-time Cruiserweight Champion and a one-time Hardcore Champion.-Early years :... , Nunzio James Maritato James Maritato is an American professional wrestler, of Italian origin, currently working on the independent circuit. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment and Extreme Championship Wrestling under the ring names Little Guido Maritato and Nunzio.-Starting out:While... , Billy Kidman, Rey Mysterio, Tajiri Yoshihiro Tajiri , is a Japanese professional wrestler, perhaps best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment. He is currently competing in SMASH as TAJIRI.-Early years :... , and Akio James Yun James Carson Yun is an American professional wrestler and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jimmy Wang Yang, in World Championship Wrestling as one-third of the Jung Dragons as Yang, and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and the independent circuit... |
Cruiserweight Open for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship WWE Cruiserweight Championship The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs... |
11:32 |
| 7 | Goldberg Bill Goldberg Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft.... defeated Brock Lesnar Brock Lesnar Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog... |
Interpromotional WWE Brand Extension WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown... singles match with special guest referee Steve Austin Stone Cold Steve Austin Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler... |
13:42 |
| 8 | Too Cool Too Cool Too Cool is a professional wrestling tag team and former faction most notably active in World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment between 1998 and 2001 and for a short time in 2004.-1998–1999:... (Rikishi Solofa Fatu Solofa F. Fatu, Jr. is an American professional wrestler, best known under the ring name Rikishi.-The Samoan Swat Team:... and Scotty 2 Hotty) (c) defeated The World's Greatest Tag Team The World's Greatest Tag Team The World's Greatest Tag Team is the professional wrestling tag team of Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin, who currently perform as Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team. Originally formed in World Wrestling Entertainment , they started out captained by Kurt Angle, during which time they were known as... (Charlie Haas Charlie Haas Charles "Charlie" Doyle Haas II is an American professional wrestler and former collegiate amateur wrestler. He competes on the independent circuit, and is signed to Ring of Honor , where he is one-half of the reigning ROH World Tag Team Champions with Shelton Benjamin... and Shelton Benjamin Shelton Benjamin Shelton James Benjamin is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment. Benjamin has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling in high school and at the University of Minnesota. In addition, Benjamin has acted... ), The Basham Brothers Basham Brothers The Basham Brothers, Doug and Danny , are a professional wrestling tag team, who formerly worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment .-History:... (Danny and Doug Doug Basham This article is about the wrestler, for the talk show host see Doug Basham Lyle Douglas "Doug" Basham, Jr. is an American professional wrestler, He is best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment between 2002 and 2007, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name... ) and The APA Acolytes Protection Agency The Acolytes Protection Agency , was a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of Bradshaw and Faarooq. They wrestled for the American promotion World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment between October 1998 and March 2004.... (Bradshaw John Layfield John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News... and Faarooq Ron Simmons Ronald "Ron" Simmons is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and retired American football player. He is recognised as being the first Black world heavyweight champion in professional wrestling and the first of only two African Americans to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship,... ) |
Fatal Four-Way match for the WWE Tag Team Championship WWE Tag Team Championship The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship... |
06:01 |
| 9 | Victoria Lisa Marie Varon Lisa Marie Varon , is an American professional wrestler, bodybuilder and fitness competitor of Puerto Rican and Turkish descent... (c) defeated Molly Holly Nora Greenwald Nora Kristina Greenwald , better known by her ring name Molly Holly, is an inactive American professional wrestler. Greenwald is best known for her appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment .Greenwald began her professional wrestling career in WCW, where she... |
Hair vs. Title match for the WWE Women's Championship WWE Women's Championship The WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification... |
04:53 |
| 10 | Eddie Guerrero Eddie Guerrero Eduardo Gory "Eddie" Guerrero was a Mexican-American professional wrestler born into the Guerrero wrestling family. He wrestled in Mexico and Japan for several major professional wrestling promotions... (c) defeated Kurt Angle Kurt Angle Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion... |
Singles match for the WWE Championship WWE Championship The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963... |
21:34 |
| 11 | The Undertaker (with Paul Bearer) defeated Kane Kane (wrestler) Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury.... |
Singles match | 07:45 |
| 12 | Chris Benoit Chris Benoit Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide... defeated Triple H Triple H Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley... (c) and Shawn Michaels Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December... |
Triple Threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship World Heavyweight Championship (WWE) The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand... |
25:11 |