WrestleMania XXIV
Encyclopedia
WrestleMania XXIV was the twenty-fourth annual WrestleMania
professional wrestling
pay-per-view
(PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE). The event took place on March 30, 2008, at the Citrus Bowl
in Orlando, Florida
and was the first WrestleMania to be held in the state of Florida. WrestleMania XXIV was also the 3rd WrestleMania to be held outdoors with the frst being WrestleMania IX, held in Caesars Palace and the second being WrestleMania XIX, held in the Safeco Feild arena in Seattle Washington.
Nine professional wrestling matches were scheduled for the event, which featured a supercard, a scheduling of more than one main bout. The first of these matches was a Singles match from the SmackDown brand that featured The Undertaker defeating World Heavyweight Champion
Edge to win the title. The second was a Triple Threat match from the Raw
brand, in which WWE Champion
Randy Orton
defeated challengers Triple H
and John Cena
to retain the championship. The other was a singles match from the ECW brand, in which Kane
defeated ECW Champion Chavo Guerrero
to win the ECW title. From the six scheduled bouts on the undercard, three received more promotion than the others. In a No Disqualification match, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. defeated The Big Show
. The second match involved wrestlers from all three brands fighting in a Money in the Bank ladder match
, which CM Punk
won. The other match was a retirement match in which Shawn Michaels
defeated Ric Flair
, leading to Flair's departure from the WWE and a period of retirement from active wrestling.
Tickets for the event commenced sale to the public on November 3, 2007. WWE and the City of Orlando hosted festivities that spanned a five-day period within the central Florida region. For the second consecutive year, WrestleMania broke the record for the highest-grossing
pay-per-view in WWE history, as well as for the Citrus Bowl, grossing US$5.85 million in ticket sales. According to a study by Enigma Research Corporation of Sydney, the Citrus Bowl's record-breaking attendance pumped an estimated $51.5 million – surpassing the projected $25 million – into the local economy and generated $1.8 million in local juice stop. The Central Florida Sports Commission reported that the event created jobs and brought approximately 60,000 visitors to the city. Over one million people ordered the event on pay-per-view, grossing $23.8 million in revenue.
WrestleMania featured nine professional wrestling matches
with wrestlers involved in pre-existing scripted feuds, plots, and storylines
. Wrestlers were portrayed as either villains
or fan favorites
as they followed a series of tension-building events, which culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. All wrestlers belonged to either the Raw
, SmackDown, or ECW brand – storyline divisions
in which WWE assigned its employees to different programs.
The predominant rivalry
scripted into WrestleMania on the Raw brand was between Randy Orton
, John Cena
, and Triple H
, over the WWE Championship
. At the Royal Rumble
pay-per-view event in January, Randy Orton successfully defended the WWE Championship against Jeff Hardy
at the same event where John Cena returned from an injury and won the Royal Rumble match, where thirty wrestlers competed in a ring
and were eliminated by being thrown over the top rope when he last eliminated Triple H. By winning the match, Cena became a top contender for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania XXIV. Instead of challenging Randy Orton for the title at WrestleMania, he decided to challenge him at No Way Out
. In the match, Orton got himself intentionally disqualified by slapping the referee, thus retaining the WWE Championship due to WWE regulations. That same night, Triple H also became a top contender to the WWE Championship by defeating five other men in an Elimination Chamber match
, which featured wrestlers fighting in a ring surrounded by chains and girders. The next night on Raw, Cena argued that he deserved another WWE Championship match. Raw General Manager William Regal, who was portrayed as a matchmaker and rules enforcer, then announced that Cena would face Orton later in the night. Regal added a stipulation to the match that if Cena won, he would be added to the WrestleMania match between Triple H and Orton, making it a Triple threat match, a standard match that involves three wrestlers. If Orton won, the main event would remain as Orton versus Triple H in a singles match. However, Cena won the match and was added to the bout at WrestleMania. After the match, Triple H, who was the Special Guest Referee, executed a Pedigree to both Cena and Orton. On the February 25th edition of Raw, the unlikely team of Cena and Triple H defeated WWE Champion, Randy Orton and Mr. Kennedy in a tag team brawl. Yet as Cena and Triple H stared each other down, Mr. Kennedy snuck up on Cena and took him down with the Mic Check, as Triple H did nothing to intervene. On the March 3rd edition of Raw, Raw General Manager, William Regal allowed a triple threat take over, which would permit Randy Orton, Triple H, & John Cena to establish rules for their matches leading up to the March 30th extravaganza-WrestleMania 24. On that night, Cena was in charge and pitted Orton against Triple H. During the match, Cena charged into the ring and lifted Triple H overhead for an FU. Then Orton snuck up and dropped Cena with an RKO. On the March 10th edition of Raw (WrestleMania re-wind night), Randy Orton was next to be in charge. He arranged a match between Triple H and his WrestleMania XV
opponent, Kane
, which Triple H won after executing a Pedigree on Kane while Orton was watching at ringside. Orton also threw John Cena in a match against his WrestleMania 23
opponent, Shawn Michaels
. In an attempt at throwing a victory at HBK, Orton attacked him and then went to RKO Cena. Cena countered the RKO and leveled Orton with an FU. On the following week's edition of Raw, Triple H got his turn of being in charge by pitting Cena and Orton against the entire Raw roster. During the match, both men were forced to work together to eliminate Paul Burchill
, Snitsky
, and Trevor Murdoch before the rest of the roster charged over the ropes, disqualifying themselves and handing Cena and Orton the victory. Afterwords, Triple H had his say too, when he entered the ring and Pedigreed both Orton and Cena, standing over their spent bodies with a look of satisfaction. On the last edition of Raw, the Raw GM, William Regal ordered a No-disqualification "WrestleMania Showcase" 8 man tag team match pitting Triple H, John Cena, Ric Flair
, and Shawn Michaels against Randy Orton, John "Bradshaw" Layfield
, Umaga
, and The Big Show
which Triple H and John Cena's team won when Flair forced Orton to tap out to the modified figure four leglock for the victory.
The predominant rivalry on the SmackDown! brand was between Edge and The Undertaker, over the World Heavyweight Championship
. On the May 11, 2007 edition of SmackDown!, the Undertaker was defending his first World Championship against Batista (who he defeated for the World title at WrestleMania 23
) in a Steel Cage match, which resulted in a draw when both men escaped the cage and both of their feet touched the floor at the same time. After the match, Mark Henry
made his unexpected return from an injury and ambushed the Undertaker. As Henry left the ring, Edge, who defeated Mr. Kennedy a few days earlier on Raw to win the Money in the Bank contract
, entered the SmackDown! brand to cash it in and defeated the Undertaker to win his first World Championship. At Armageddon
, Edge won his second World Championship when he pinned then-champion, Batista in a Triple Threat match that also involved Undertaker due to interference by the Major Brothers
(rechristened as the "Edge-heads" on the December 21st edition of SmackDown!). Then at the Royal Rumble
event, Edge successfully defended the World title against Rey Mysterio. On the February 1 episode of SmackDown, Assistant General Manager Theodore Long
announced that at No Way Out, an Elimination Chamber match would be held to determine the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania. The Undertaker won the match by last eliminating Batista. On the following episode of SmackDown, Edge predicted that The Undertaker's 15–0 undefeated streak at WrestleMania would come to an end once he defeated him. Two weeks later, on the March 7 episode of SmackDown, the team of Edge and Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
defeated The Undertaker in a Handicap match, in which one wrestler faces a team of two or more wrestlers, after Edge pinned The Undertaker following a takedown variation called the spear. The following week, Edge, Hawkins, Ryder, and Chavo Guerrero
, a group of aligned wrestlers, defeated Ric Flair
and Shawn Michaels
in a Steel Cage match, where the ring was surrounded by walls of steel. During the match, Undertaker interfered and attacked Hawkins, Ryder, and Guerrero. The Undertaker used a Double chokeslam on Hawkins and Ryder and a Tombstone Piledriver on Guerrero. As Undertaker was attacking Guerrero, however, Edge escaped the cage and won the match for his team. The next week on SmackDown, Edge, along with Vickie Guerrero
, Hawkins, and Ryder, held a mock burial, entitled "Burial of The Undertaker’s WrestleMania Undefeated Streak," to celebrate Edge's early victory over The Undertaker. During the "burial", however, The Undertaker emerged from a casket, which was inside the ring, and attacked Edge, Hawkins, and Ryder, knocking Hawkins and Ryder outside the ring and chokeslamming Edge through the casket.
At No Way Out, The Big Show
made a return to the company after taking time off for injuries beginning in December 2006. In his return promotional interview, Big Show threatened to give Rey Mysterio a chokeslam. Professional boxer
and WBC Welterweight Champion Floyd Mayweather, Jr., who was in attendance and a close friend of Mysterio's, came to his aid and confronted Big Show. After Big Show dropped to his knees, Mayweather attacked him with a combination of punches, which caused Big Show to bleed from the nose and mouth. The following night on Raw, the Big Show challenged Mayweather to a wrestling match, which Mayweather accepted. Big Show arranged the exhibition with fighter Brandon “The Thrill” Hill. Big Show’s choosing to battle the 5-foot-7, 150-pounder – who was similar in size and stature to Mayweather – was no coincidence. He appeared intent on sending a message as he overpowered his opponent in an MMA-style match that could be won by pinfall, submission, or knockout. Mayweather, however, was not impressed and reminded the world that “The Thrill” was not “Money.” After watching the exhibition via satellite, he then told Big Show “I broke your nose and at WrestleMania, I’m going to break your jaw.” Big Show had heard enough. To put an exclamation point on his winning statement, he lifted his hapless opponent overhead and tossed him over the ropes and onto the hard concrete below. On the following night's edition of Raw (WrestleMania re-wind night), the Big Show-Floyd Mayweather weigh-in took place where The World’s Largest Athlete outweighed The Greatest Fighter in the World by a daunting 300 pounds. While Show reveled in the disparity, Mayweather made it clear that he would not be intimidated. That’s when Big Show scooped up Mayweather and hurled him into a crowd of fellow Superstars. On the March 17th edition of Raw, Big Show stopped by Chris Jericho
’s talk show segment The Highlight Reel for a chat when things quickly turned ugly. Show challenged Jericho to a title match after equating him with his WrestleMania foe, Floyd “Money” Mayweather. During their match, Show made a statement by overpowering Jericho. Jericho then got disqualified when he smacked Show across the face with his title belt. However, Big Show sent Mayweather a message loud and clear by knocking out Y2J with one punch.
On the February 25 episode of Raw, 2008 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee Ric Flair challenged Shawn Michaels to a match at WrestleMania. Michaels accepted after some reluctance, knowing that due to a previous announcement from WWE chairman Mr. McMahon
the next match Flair lost would result in his forced retirement. Flair said that "it would be an honor for [him] to retire at the hands of Shawn Michaels." During a press conference before his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame
, Flair mentioned that he was asked about having his match as the main event for the Pay per view show. However, Flair refused and insisted that "the world champions go on last." On the March 17th edition of Raw, Mr. McMahon, who had issued a win-or-retire ultimatum to Flair back in November (the week after the Survivor Series
event), competed against Flair. With his latest victory, the 16-time World Champion leapt seven hurdles tossed in his path, including Randy Orton, Umaga, Triple H, William Regal, Montel Vontavious Porter, and Mr. Kennedy, and kept his career alive. During the battle, Mr. McMahon used a battery of weapons to bloody the “Nature Boy”: a garbage can, kendo stick, and a metal folding chair. Just when it appeared Mr. McMahon would emerge victorious, Michaels distracted the referee before the three-count. Flair prevailed in the end, after nailing Mr. McMahon in the blarney stones and crashing down on him and putting him through a table.
On February 18, WWE announced via its website that the fourth annual Money in the Bank ladder match
would take place at WrestleMania XXIV, a match where the objective is to retrieve a briefcase suspended in the air using a ladder. The match involved wrestlers from all three WWE brands. The winner would earn a contract to challenge for any of the three WWE World Championships (the WWE Championship of Raw, the World Heavyweight Championship of SmackDown, or the ECW Championship of ECW) at any time and any place over a one-year period. Qualifying matches occurred to determine the participants in the match at WrestleMania, starting on that night's edition of Raw with Jeff Hardy
and Mr. Kennedy defeating Snitsky
and Val Venis
respectively to qualify. Shelton Benjamin
became the third participant when he defeated Jimmy Wang Yang
on the following episode of SmackDown. During the next two editions of Raw, Chris Jericho
defeated Jeff Hardy, and Carlito defeated Cody Rhodes to qualify. At a non-televised SmackDown/ECW house show
held on March 8, Montel Vontavious Porter qualified when he defeated Jamie Noble
. On the March 11 edition of ECW, CM Punk
became the seventh person when he defeated Big Daddy V
. John Morrison was the final person to qualify when he beat The Miz
on the March 14 edition of SmackDown. Jeff Hardy was later removed from the match after a legitimate suspension by WWE for a drug violation of the company's Wellness Policy. WWE decided not to add another superstar in his place, making that year's Money in the Bank ladder match the first year to have seven participants.
On March 21, 2007, a press conference was held at City Hall in Orlando, Florida, formally announcing the event for Orlando at the Citrus Bowl. According to an interview with The Daytona Beach News-Journal at the press conference, WWE chairman Vince McMahon
mentioned Orlando being one of three front-runners to host the event, the other two being Las Vegas
and Paris
. McMahon explained that Orlando was chosen as geographically, a WrestleMania was never held in the southeast
before.
As the second WrestleMania to be held entirely outdoors, Vince McMahon also announced that the show would have taken place regardless of the weather conditions. In the March 2008 issue of WWE Magazine
, WWE set designer
Jason Robinson revealed that a steel rig with a tarpaulin
roof would be built above the ring itself to prevent rain from falling on the ring. In that same issue, an initial design of the ring setup was revealed showing a larger rig surrounding the tarpaulin rig, with lighting
and two giant screens attached. The final design had the lighting and video screens on the tarpaulin rig, as well as the sound system. During an interview, WWE production manager Brian Petree mentioned that video reinforcement should prevent anyone's view from being obstructed by the steel structure. Up to seven generators
were used to power up the show.
The set design
for the entrance stage was at the north end of the stadium and consisted of another steel structure with various video screens hanging from it. The steel beams for the structure were custom built in Belgium
and shipped over to Orlando. According to WWE Magazine, the amount of pyrotechnics
used would be ten times that of the amount used on Raw. Without the restriction of a roof, the pyrotechnics for the show shot as high as 2000 feet (609.6 m) as compared to WrestleMania 23
's height of 150 feet (45.7 m). The fireworks were set off from boats on one of the lakes nearby the stadium. WWE has been said to have spent an estimated $300,000 on the fireworks alone.
With the Citrus Bowl's locker rooms on the south side and the entrance set on the north side, a tented 40000 ft2 mini-city outside the north end served as the show's backstage area and included air conditioning, trailers, VIP areas, showers and restrooms. As a consequence, the road next to the north end zone, W. Church Street, was closed down until a day after the event. Numerous other roads were also closed to allow trucks and fork lifts to move in mega equipment for the event. The ring itself was built on the 50-yard line of the Citrus Bowl to give the best view for fans. Heavy-duty plastic flooring had been put over the field, to protect the turf, provide seating, and serve as the steel structures' foundation.
Development on the set design began in the middle of 2007. The building of the actual set began in the middle of March 2008. 100 people worked 16 hours a day to construct the set for the event. The construction finished on March 29. WrestleMania XXIV was the first WrestleMania event to be filmed in high-definition
. It was also the first WWE show and sports related title to be released on the Blu-ray Disc
format by WWE Home Video. WrestleMania also led to an increase in sales for musical artists related to the event, including the Red Hot Chili Peppers
' album Stadium Arcadium
, John Legend
's album Live from Philadelphia, Rev Theory
's single "Light It Up
", and Fuel
's single "Leave the Memories Alone" (which was used in tribute to Ric Flair
).
Before the show aired live on pay-per-view
, Kane
won a 24-man Interpromotional
Battle Royal
, an elimination style match where the last person remaining was the winner, to win an ECW Championship match against Chavo Guerrero
later that night. During one point, Brian Kendrick, Kofi Kingston and Shannon Moore were eliminated. Chuck Palumbo then threw Jamie Noble over the ropes but Noble ran over top of them, and because his feet didn't hit the floor he was not eliminated. Straight after that, Palumbo kicked him off the apron. The event officially began with John Legend
singing a rendition of "America the Beautiful
."
between Finlay
and John "Bradshaw" Layfield
(JBL), a match where there were no disqualifications or countouts and the match outcomes could have occurred anywhere. Finlay was accompanied to the ring by his storyline
son, Hornswoggle, who was returning from a scripted injury suffered at the hands of JBL. During the match, JBL hit Finlay with a trash can lid when the latter was about to perform a suicide dive on him through the ropes on the outside. Later on, Finlay tossed JBL through a table
that he had set up earlier on the turnbuckle. Hornswoggle also got involved during the match by hitting JBL with a kendo stick
, while later on JBL threw a trash can at him. Attacking Finlay's knee with a kendo stick, JBL delivered a Clothesline from Hell to Finlay to score a successful pinfall. This was an interpromotional match.
The next match of the evening was the fourth-annual Money in the Bank ladder match
, in which there were no disqualifications or countouts, and the only way to win the match was to climb a ladder in the ring and retrieve a contract briefcase hanging above. The match featured Chris Jericho
, Mr. Kennedy, and Carlito from the Raw
brand
; CM Punk
, Shelton Benjamin
and John Morrison from the ECW brand; and Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) from the SmackDown brand. Early in the match, Morrison climbed a turnbuckle
and performed a moonsault
onto other competitors outside the ring while holding a ladder against his chest. Later, while Kennedy and Morrison were battling on top of a ladder, Benjamin climbed another ladder placed adjacent to the first one and performed a sunset flip powerbomb on Kennedy, who in turn superplexed Morrison from the top of the ladder. Later, Carlito and Kennedy flipped Benjamin off a ladder in the ring, sending him crashing through another ladder set-up between the barricade
and the ring apron. When MVP was close to retrieving the contract briefcase, Matt Hardy
(returning to action after suffering a legitimate injury), entered the ring from the crowd, climbed the ladder, and delivered a Twist of Fate to MVP off that ladder. As soon as Morrison started to climb a ladder, see-saw
ing with another ladder, Jericho flipped the other one and Morrison landed on the ring-ropes groin
-first. Jericho even performed a Codebreaker on Punk using a ladder. In the end, Jericho and Punk fought each other on a ladder, but Punk trapped Jericho's one leg in the ladder's steps and retrieved the briefcase to win the match. This was an interpromotional match.
The next match, which was billed as a "Battle for Brand Supremacy", was between SmackDown's Batista and Raw's Umaga
. Early in the match, both Batista and Umaga exchanged blows and Batista knocked Umaga outside with a shoulder block. Umaga later kicked Batista in the face, which caused him to fall back-first outside the ring from the ring-apron. As a result, Umaga started targeting Batista's injured back. In the end, however, when Umaga tried to hit his Samoan Spike, Batista countered the attempt and gave him a spinebuster. Batista won the match by pinning Umaga after a Batista Bomb. This was an interpromotional match. The fourth match for the event featured Chavo Guerrero
defending his ECW Championship against Kane
. Kane surprised Chavo by emerging from underneath the ring instead of from the entrance stage during his ring entrance. Kane instantly pinned Chavo after a chokeslam
and won the ECW Championship in nine seconds. This was the only ECW match on the PPV.
Ric Flair
's "Career Threatening" match against Shawn Michaels
was next, which stipulated that Flair would have to retire from wrestling
if he had lost. At the start of the match, both superstars engaged in a series of counters, and then Flair shoved Michaels in a corner, making "Old Yeller
" comments to him. In retaliation, Michaels slap
ped Flair in the face, which caused him to start bleeding from the mouth. Later, Michaels tried to go for his Sweet Chin Music, but stopped in the process and Flair capitalized by trapping him in his figure four leglock. Afterward, Michaels finally delivered the Sweet Chin Music to Flair, but the latter kicked out to the pinfall attempt. Michaels then trapped Flair in his modified figure four leglock, but Flair delivered a thumb to the eye to Michaels to break the submission. As Flair was delivering chops to Michaels' chest, Michaels hit a second Sweet Chin Music. After getting up on his feet with a worried face, Michaels said to Flair "I'm sorry, I love you," before nailing a final Sweet Chin Music and thus pinning Flair to end his 35-year long wrestling career. After the match, Michaels left quickly and Flair got a standing ovation from the crowd. An emotional Flair embraced his family at ringside and then, as he proceeded to go backstage, he thanked the crowd for their support.
The sixth match was the Playboy
BunnyMania Lumberjack match, in which Maria
and Ashley
faced Beth Phoenix
and Melina
, who were accompanied to the ring by Santino Marella. Rapper
Snoop Dogg
served as the official "Master of Ceremonies
" for the match. In the match, several WWE Diva
s surrounded the ring and were able to interfere in the match without disqualifications. Due to some technical difficulties, the lights at Citrus Bowl temporarily went out during the match. Near the end, a pin attempt by Maria was prevented when Marella pulled Maria's leg. In response, Raw commentator Jerry Lawler
approached and knocked Marella down with a punch. Phoenix hooked Maria's leg and vertically lifted and slammed her to the mat and pinned Maria to win the match. After the match, Snoop Dogg hit Marella with his forearm in the ring and kissed Maria, before leaving with her and Ashley.
defending his WWE Championship
against Triple H
and John Cena
in a Triple Threat match, which is a standard match involving three wrestlers with no disqualifications. For his entrance, Cena had the Jones High School Marching Tigers
marching band
perform an instrumental version of his theme song "The Time Is Now
" live. During the match, when Triple H had held Orton in a sleeper hold, Cena picked up both Orton and Triple H for an FU, but Triple H dropped down and low blowed him. Orton then dominated the match for some time; one highlight of the match featured Orton performing a crossbody from the top rope on Cena, while the latter was held on Triple H's shoulders in a seating position. Orton also performed DDT from the second rope to both Cena and Triple H simultaneously. Orton then tried to perform an RKO on Cena, but he countered and threw Orton onto Triple H. Triple H then started targeting Orton's legs and using some submissions on him. The match came to an end when Cena had Triple H on his shoulders for the FU, but was countered into a Pedigree. As Triple H was in the pin, Orton come across and punted Triple H in the head and pinned Cena to win the match and retain the WWE Championship.
The next match was the No Disqualification match between The Big Show
and Floyd Mayweather, Jr.. Early in the match, Mayweather repeatedly escaped Big Show's grasp and delivered body shots to him. Mayweather and his accomplices tried to "walk out" of the match, but Big Show walked up the ramp and brought Mayweather back in the ring. As Big Show was about to chokeslam Mayweather, one of Mayweather's accomplices struck a steel chair
on Big Show's back, and the latter chokeslammed him in retaliation. Capitalizing from this distraction, Mayweather grabbed that chair and hit Big Show multiple times on the head with it. Finally, Mayweather removed his right glove and put on a pair of brass knuckles
to hit Big Show in the face. As a result, Big Show was knocked out
as he could not answer the referee's ten count, and Mayweather was declared the winner.
The main event of the night saw Edge putting his World Heavyweight Championship
on the line against The Undertaker. The early going of the match was slow-paced, in which both superstars countered each others maneuvers. During the match, Undertaker ran and lept over the top rope from the ring onto Edge on the outside. Then throughout the match, Edge was able to counter Undertaker's numerous signature moves, including the Chokeslam
, Old School and the Last Ride, a variation of the powerbomb. Near the end, Edge hit Undertaker with a television camera while the referee was knocked down. When he proceeded to deliver a Tombstone Piledriver to Undertaker, the latter countered it into his own version and successfully delivered it to Edge for a two-count. Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
came to the ring for Edge's aid, but Undertaker took them out. Because of their distraction, Edge was able to hit a spear on Undertaker, but was unable to pin him. When Edge delivered another spear to Undertaker, the latter caught him in his Hell's Gate
submission hold and forced Edge to tap out to become the new World Heavyweight Champion and improve his WrestleMania record to 16–0.
On the following episode of Raw, Ric Flair made his farewell speech, which led to Triple H
introducing various people from Flair's past, such as the Four Horsemen
, Ricky Steamboat
, and others, each coming out to give an emotional farewell. Afterward, the entire WWE roster came out to say thank you to Flair. Shawn Michaels, who was clearly upset about retiring Flair, was forgiven by Flair. Despite Flair's forgiveness, his former protégé Batista later started a feud with Michaels, citing Michaels' "selfishness" at WrestleMania for not laying down for Flair. The two had a match booked at Backlash
, WWE's next scheduled pay-per-view event, and after a confrontation between Michaels and Chris Jericho, Jericho was later added into the match as a Special Guest Referee. Michaels won with a superkick.
The feud between Randy Orton, John Cena and Triple H continued after WrestleMania with the added involvement of John "Bradshaw" Layfield
leading to a Fatal Four-Way Elimination match between all four at Backlash, an elimination style match where the last person remaining is the winner. At the event, Triple H won his seventh WWE Championship by last pinning Orton. With Matt Hardy's return at WrestleMania, his feud with Montel Vontavious Porter over the WWE United States Championship
, that had started in July 2007, was revived with a match booked at Backlash, which Hardy won. The rivalries between The Undertaker and Edge and the one between Kane and Chavo Guerrero both continued with successful title defenses at Backlash. On the May 2 episode of SmackDown, General Manager Vickie Guerrero
stripped The Undertaker of the World Heavyweight Championship because of his continued use of his illegal chokehold, claiming she did it to protect the other wrestlers.
achieved. Canadian Online Explorer
's professional wrestling section gave the entire event 9 out of 10 stars. The rating was higher than WrestleMania 23 which received 8 out of 10 stars. The main event between The Undertaker and Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship was rated 9.5 out of 10 stars, the Career Threatening match between Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels received a perfect 10 out of 10 stars, Big Show vs. Floyd "Money" Mayweather Jr. was rated 7 out of 10 stars, and the Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship between Randy Orton, Triple H and John Cena was rated 6.5 out of 10 stars.
and Blu-ray Disc
by WWE Home Video in the U.S. on May 20, 2008, after it had completed broadcast on pay-per-view
. It was the first WWE event to be released via the Blu-ray format. As well as the event, the DVD/BD release features bonus material in the form of the 2008 Hall of Fame ceremony in its entirety and the battle royal that took place before the event.
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) event 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). The event took place on March 30, 2008, at the Citrus Bowl
Citrus Bowl
The Florida Citrus Bowl is a stadium in Orlando, Florida, USA, built for football, which currently seats around 70,000 people....
in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
and was the first WrestleMania to be held in the state of Florida. WrestleMania XXIV was also the 3rd WrestleMania to be held outdoors with the frst being WrestleMania IX, held in Caesars Palace and the second being WrestleMania XIX, held in the Safeco Feild arena in Seattle Washington.
Nine professional wrestling matches were scheduled for the event, which featured a supercard, a scheduling of more than one main bout. The first of these matches was a Singles match from the SmackDown brand that featured The Undertaker defeating World Heavyweight Champion
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...
Edge to win the title. The second was a Triple Threat match 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...
brand, in which 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...
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 challengers 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...
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....
to retain the championship. The other was a singles match from the ECW brand, in which 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....
defeated ECW 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...
to win the ECW title. From the six scheduled bouts on the undercard, three received more promotion than the others. In a No Disqualification match, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. 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....
. The second match involved wrestlers from all three brands fighting in a Money in the Bank ladder match
Money in the Bank ladder match
The Money in the Bank ladder match is a professional wrestling ladder match held by WWE. The match can feature anywhere from six to ten participants from any WWE brand, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring...
, which CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
won. The other match was a retirement match in which 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...
defeated 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....
, leading to Flair's departure from the WWE and a period of retirement from active wrestling.
Tickets for the event commenced sale to the public on November 3, 2007. WWE and the City of Orlando hosted festivities that spanned a five-day period within the central Florida region. For the second consecutive year, WrestleMania broke the record for the highest-grossing
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"...
pay-per-view in WWE history, as well as for the Citrus Bowl, grossing US$5.85 million in ticket sales. According to a study by Enigma Research Corporation of Sydney, the Citrus Bowl's record-breaking attendance pumped an estimated $51.5 million – surpassing the projected $25 million – into the local economy and generated $1.8 million in local juice stop. The Central Florida Sports Commission reported that the event created jobs and brought approximately 60,000 visitors to the city. Over one million people ordered the event on pay-per-view, grossing $23.8 million in revenue.
Background
Mock combat
Mock combat involves the execution of combative actions without intent to harm. Participants can engage in such sparring for ritual, training, recreational or performance reasons...
with wrestlers involved in pre-existing scripted feuds, plots, and storylines
Narrative thread
A narrative thread, or plot thread , refers to particular elements and techniques of writing to center the story in the action or experience of characters rather than to relate a matter in a dry 'All knowing' sort of narration...
. Wrestlers were portrayed as either villains
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
or fan favorites
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
as they followed a series of tension-building events, which culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. All wrestlers belonged to either 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...
, SmackDown, or ECW brand – storyline divisions
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...
in which WWE assigned its employees to different programs.
The predominant rivalry
Feud (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...
scripted into WrestleMania on the Raw brand was between 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...
, 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....
, and 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...
, over 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...
. At the Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (2008)
Royal Rumble was the twenty-first annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 27, 2008 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands. The event was...
pay-per-view event in January, Randy Orton successfully defended the WWE Championship against Jeff Hardy
Jeff Hardy
Jeffrey Nero "Jeff" Hardy is an American professional wrestler, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is a former two–time TNA World Heavyweight Champion...
at the same event where John Cena returned from an injury and won the Royal Rumble match, where thirty wrestlers competed in a ring
Wrestling ring
A wrestling ring is the ring stage on which professional wrestlers wrestle.-Configuration and construction:The configuration and construction of the "traditional" ring is very similar to that of a boxing ring, though the wrestling version has three ring ropes...
and were eliminated by being thrown over the top rope when he last eliminated Triple H. By winning the match, Cena became a top contender for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania XXIV. Instead of challenging Randy Orton for the title at WrestleMania, he decided to challenge him at No Way Out
No Way Out (2008)
No Way Out was the ninth annual No Way Out professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on February 17, 2008 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada...
. In the match, Orton got himself intentionally disqualified by slapping the referee, thus retaining the WWE Championship due to WWE regulations. That same night, Triple H also became a top contender to the WWE Championship by defeating five other men in an Elimination Chamber match
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...
, which featured wrestlers fighting in a ring surrounded by chains and girders. The next night on Raw, Cena argued that he deserved another WWE Championship match. Raw General Manager William Regal, who was portrayed as a matchmaker and rules enforcer, then announced that Cena would face Orton later in the night. Regal added a stipulation to the match that if Cena won, he would be added to the WrestleMania match between Triple H and Orton, making it a Triple threat match, a standard match that involves three wrestlers. If Orton won, the main event would remain as Orton versus Triple H in a singles match. However, Cena won the match and was added to the bout at WrestleMania. After the match, Triple H, who was the Special Guest Referee, executed a Pedigree to both Cena and Orton. On the February 25th edition of Raw, the unlikely team of Cena and Triple H defeated WWE Champion, Randy Orton and Mr. Kennedy in a tag team brawl. Yet as Cena and Triple H stared each other down, Mr. Kennedy snuck up on Cena and took him down with the Mic Check, as Triple H did nothing to intervene. On the March 3rd edition of Raw, Raw General Manager, William Regal allowed a triple threat take over, which would permit Randy Orton, Triple H, & John Cena to establish rules for their matches leading up to the March 30th extravaganza-WrestleMania 24. On that night, Cena was in charge and pitted Orton against Triple H. During the match, Cena charged into the ring and lifted Triple H overhead for an FU. Then Orton snuck up and dropped Cena with an RKO. On the March 10th edition of Raw (WrestleMania re-wind night), Randy Orton was next to be in charge. He arranged a match between Triple H and his WrestleMania XV
WrestleMania XV
WrestleMania XV was the fifteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on March 28, 1999 at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
opponent, 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....
, which Triple H won after executing a Pedigree on Kane while Orton was watching at ringside. Orton also threw John Cena in a match against his WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan...
opponent, 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...
. In an attempt at throwing a victory at HBK, Orton attacked him and then went to RKO Cena. Cena countered the RKO and leveled Orton with an FU. On the following week's edition of Raw, Triple H got his turn of being in charge by pitting Cena and Orton against the entire Raw roster. During the match, both men were forced to work together to eliminate Paul Burchill
Paul Burchill
Paul Birchill , better known by his ring name Paul Burchill, is an English professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he signed after training and debuting for the Frontier Wrestling Alliance in his home country.-Frontier Wrestling Alliance...
, Snitsky
Gene Snitsky
Eugene Alan "Gene" Snisky is a professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Snitsky, who is best known for his time spent with World Wrestling Entertainment. He had played college football at the University of Missouri and was on the pre-season roster in 1995 for the Birmingham Barracudas...
, and Trevor Murdoch before the rest of the roster charged over the ropes, disqualifying themselves and handing Cena and Orton the victory. Afterwords, Triple H had his say too, when he entered the ring and Pedigreed both Orton and Cena, standing over their spent bodies with a look of satisfaction. On the last edition of Raw, the Raw GM, William Regal ordered a No-disqualification "WrestleMania Showcase" 8 man tag team match pitting Triple H, John Cena, 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 Shawn Michaels against Randy Orton, 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...
, Umaga
Eddie Fatu
Edward Smith "Eki" Fatu was a Samoan-American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Umaga...
, and 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....
which Triple H and John Cena's team won when Flair forced Orton to tap out to the modified figure four leglock for the victory.
The predominant rivalry on the SmackDown! brand was between Edge and The Undertaker, 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...
. On the May 11, 2007 edition of SmackDown!, the Undertaker was defending his first World Championship against Batista (who he defeated for the World title at WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan...
) in a Steel Cage match, which resulted in a draw when both men escaped the cage and both of their feet touched the floor at the same time. After the match, Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic...
made his unexpected return from an injury and ambushed the Undertaker. As Henry left the ring, Edge, who defeated Mr. Kennedy a few days earlier on Raw to win the Money in the Bank contract
Money in the Bank ladder match
The Money in the Bank ladder match is a professional wrestling ladder match held by WWE. The match can feature anywhere from six to ten participants from any WWE brand, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring...
, entered the SmackDown! brand to cash it in and defeated the Undertaker to win his first World Championship. At Armageddon
Armageddon (2007)
Armageddon was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on December 16, 2007 at the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the eighth event produced under the Armageddon name and starred wrestlers from the Raw,...
, Edge won his second World Championship when he pinned then-champion, Batista in a Triple Threat match that also involved Undertaker due to interference by the Major Brothers
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
(rechristened as the "Edge-heads" on the December 21st edition of SmackDown!). Then at the Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (2008)
Royal Rumble was the twenty-first annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 27, 2008 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands. The event was...
event, Edge successfully defended the World title against Rey Mysterio. On the February 1 episode of SmackDown, Assistant General Manager Theodore Long
Theodore Long
Theodore R. "Teddy" Long is an American professional wrestling manager and former referee who currently works for WWE on its SmackDown brand as its General Manager.-National Wrestling Alliance / World Championship Wrestling:...
announced that at No Way Out, an Elimination Chamber match would be held to determine the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania. The Undertaker won the match by last eliminating Batista. On the following episode of SmackDown, Edge predicted that The Undertaker's 15–0 undefeated streak at WrestleMania would come to an end once he defeated him. Two weeks later, on the March 7 episode of SmackDown, the team of Edge and Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
defeated The Undertaker in a Handicap match, in which one wrestler faces a team of two or more wrestlers, after Edge pinned The Undertaker following a takedown variation called the spear. The following week, Edge, Hawkins, Ryder, and Chavo Guerrero
La Familia (professional wrestling)
La Familia was a villainous alliance in the professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Entertainment that existed from the end of 2007 until the middle of 2009. The group consisted Edge, Vickie Guerrero, Chavo Guerrero, Curt Hawkins, Zack Ryder and Bam Neely...
, a group of aligned wrestlers, defeated 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 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...
in a Steel Cage match, where the ring was surrounded by walls of steel. During the match, Undertaker interfered and attacked Hawkins, Ryder, and Guerrero. The Undertaker used a Double chokeslam on Hawkins and Ryder and a Tombstone Piledriver on Guerrero. As Undertaker was attacking Guerrero, however, Edge escaped the cage and won the match for his team. The next week on SmackDown, Edge, along with Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand...
, Hawkins, and Ryder, held a mock burial, entitled "Burial of The Undertaker’s WrestleMania Undefeated Streak," to celebrate Edge's early victory over The Undertaker. During the "burial", however, The Undertaker emerged from a casket, which was inside the ring, and attacked Edge, Hawkins, and Ryder, knocking Hawkins and Ryder outside the ring and chokeslamming Edge through the casket.
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....
made a return to the company after taking time off for injuries beginning in December 2006. In his return promotional interview, Big Show threatened to give Rey Mysterio a chokeslam. Professional boxer
Professional Boxing
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, emerged in the early twentieth century as boxing gradually attained legitimacy and became a regulated, sanctioned sport. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse which is divided among the fighters and promoters as determined by contract...
and WBC Welterweight Champion Floyd Mayweather, Jr., who was in attendance and a close friend of Mysterio's, came to his aid and confronted Big Show. After Big Show dropped to his knees, Mayweather attacked him with a combination of punches, which caused Big Show to bleed from the nose and mouth. The following night on Raw, the Big Show challenged Mayweather to a wrestling match, which Mayweather accepted. Big Show arranged the exhibition with fighter Brandon “The Thrill” Hill. Big Show’s choosing to battle the 5-foot-7, 150-pounder – who was similar in size and stature to Mayweather – was no coincidence. He appeared intent on sending a message as he overpowered his opponent in an MMA-style match that could be won by pinfall, submission, or knockout. Mayweather, however, was not impressed and reminded the world that “The Thrill” was not “Money.” After watching the exhibition via satellite, he then told Big Show “I broke your nose and at WrestleMania, I’m going to break your jaw.” Big Show had heard enough. To put an exclamation point on his winning statement, he lifted his hapless opponent overhead and tossed him over the ropes and onto the hard concrete below. On the following night's edition of Raw (WrestleMania re-wind night), the Big Show-Floyd Mayweather weigh-in took place where The World’s Largest Athlete outweighed The Greatest Fighter in the World by a daunting 300 pounds. While Show reveled in the disparity, Mayweather made it clear that he would not be intimidated. That’s when Big Show scooped up Mayweather and hurled him into a crowd of fellow Superstars. On the March 17th edition of Raw, Big Show stopped by 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...
’s talk show segment The Highlight Reel for a chat when things quickly turned ugly. Show challenged Jericho to a title match after equating him with his WrestleMania foe, Floyd “Money” Mayweather. During their match, Show made a statement by overpowering Jericho. Jericho then got disqualified when he smacked Show across the face with his title belt. However, Big Show sent Mayweather a message loud and clear by knocking out Y2J with one punch.
On the February 25 episode of Raw, 2008 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee Ric Flair challenged Shawn Michaels to a match at WrestleMania. Michaels accepted after some reluctance, knowing that due to a previous announcement from WWE chairman Mr. 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...
the next match Flair lost would result in his forced retirement. Flair said that "it would be an honor for [him] to retire at the hands of Shawn Michaels." During a press conference before his induction into 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...
, Flair mentioned that he was asked about having his match as the main event for the Pay per view show. However, Flair refused and insisted that "the world champions go on last." On the March 17th edition of Raw, Mr. McMahon, who had issued a win-or-retire ultimatum to Flair back in November (the week after the Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2007)
Survivor Series was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on November 18, 2007 at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida...
event), competed against Flair. With his latest victory, the 16-time World Champion leapt seven hurdles tossed in his path, including Randy Orton, Umaga, Triple H, William Regal, Montel Vontavious Porter, and Mr. Kennedy, and kept his career alive. During the battle, Mr. McMahon used a battery of weapons to bloody the “Nature Boy”: a garbage can, kendo stick, and a metal folding chair. Just when it appeared Mr. McMahon would emerge victorious, Michaels distracted the referee before the three-count. Flair prevailed in the end, after nailing Mr. McMahon in the blarney stones and crashing down on him and putting him through a table.
On February 18, WWE announced via its website that the fourth annual Money in the Bank ladder match
Money in the Bank ladder match
The Money in the Bank ladder match is a professional wrestling ladder match held by WWE. The match can feature anywhere from six to ten participants from any WWE brand, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring...
would take place at WrestleMania XXIV, a match where the objective is to retrieve a briefcase suspended in the air using a ladder. The match involved wrestlers from all three WWE brands. The winner would earn a contract to challenge for any of the three WWE World Championships (the WWE Championship of Raw, the World Heavyweight Championship of SmackDown, or the ECW Championship of ECW) at any time and any place over a one-year period. Qualifying matches occurred to determine the participants in the match at WrestleMania, starting on that night's edition of Raw with Jeff Hardy
Jeff Hardy
Jeffrey Nero "Jeff" Hardy is an American professional wrestler, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is a former two–time TNA World Heavyweight Champion...
and Mr. Kennedy defeating Snitsky
Gene Snitsky
Eugene Alan "Gene" Snisky is a professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Snitsky, who is best known for his time spent with World Wrestling Entertainment. He had played college football at the University of Missouri and was on the pre-season roster in 1995 for the Birmingham Barracudas...
and Val Venis
Sean Morley
Sean Allen Morley is a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name Val Venis, during his time with World Wrestling Federation, later known as World Wrestling Entertainment...
respectively to qualify. 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...
became the third participant when he defeated Jimmy Wang Yang
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...
on the following episode of SmackDown. During the next two editions of Raw, 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...
defeated Jeff Hardy, and Carlito defeated Cody Rhodes to qualify. At a non-televised SmackDown/ECW house show
House show
A house show is a professional wrestling show run by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive during televised events, as well as test reactions to matches, wrestlers, and...
held on March 8, Montel Vontavious Porter qualified when he defeated 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...
. On the March 11 edition of ECW, CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
became the seventh person when he defeated Big Daddy V
Nelson Frazier, Jr.
Nelson Frazier, Jr. is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring names Mabel, Viscera, Big Daddy V, and King V. He is best known for his work with World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment...
. John Morrison was the final person to qualify when he beat The Miz
Mike Mizanin
Michael "Mike" Gregory Mizanin is an American professional wrestler and reality television personality better known by his nickname and ring name The Miz. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand...
on the March 14 edition of SmackDown. Jeff Hardy was later removed from the match after a legitimate suspension by WWE for a drug violation of the company's Wellness Policy. WWE decided not to add another superstar in his place, making that year's Money in the Bank ladder match the first year to have seven participants.
Production
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...
mentioned Orlando being one of three front-runners to host the event, the other two being Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. McMahon explained that Orlando was chosen as geographically, a WrestleMania was never held in the southeast
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
before.
As the second WrestleMania to be held entirely outdoors, Vince McMahon also announced that the show would have taken place regardless of the weather conditions. In the March 2008 issue of WWE Magazine
WWE Magazine
WWE Magazine is the official professional wrestling magazine of WWE. This incarnation of the magazine contains lifestyle sections, a monthly calendar, entertainment, work out tips, and other information.-History:...
, WWE set designer
Scenic design
Scenic design is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers have traditionally come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but nowadays, generally speaking, they are trained professionals, often with M.F.A...
Jason Robinson revealed that a steel rig with a tarpaulin
Tarpaulin
A tarpaulin, colloquially tarp, is a large sheet of strong, flexible, water-resistant or waterproof material, often cloth such as canvas or polyester coated with urethane, or made of plastics such as polyethylene. In some places such as Australia, and in military slang, a tarp may be known as a...
roof would be built above the ring itself to prevent rain from falling on the ring. In that same issue, an initial design of the ring setup was revealed showing a larger rig surrounding the tarpaulin rig, with lighting
Lighting
Lighting or illumination is the deliberate application of light to achieve some practical or aesthetic effect. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources such as lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing daylight...
and two giant screens attached. The final design had the lighting and video screens on the tarpaulin rig, as well as the sound system. During an interview, WWE production manager Brian Petree mentioned that video reinforcement should prevent anyone's view from being obstructed by the steel structure. Up to seven generators
Electrical generator
In electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...
were used to power up the show.
The set design
Stagecraft
Stagecraft is a generic term referring to the technical aspects of theatrical, film, and video production. It includes, but is not limited to, constructing and rigging scenery, hanging and focusing of lighting, design and procurement of costumes, makeup, procurement of props, stage management, and...
for the entrance stage was at the north end of the stadium and consisted of another steel structure with various video screens hanging from it. The steel beams for the structure were custom built in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and shipped over to Orlando. According to WWE Magazine, the amount of pyrotechnics
Pyrotechnics
Pyrotechnics is the science of using materials capable of undergoing self-contained and self-sustained exothermic chemical reactions for the production of heat, light, gas, smoke and/or sound...
used would be ten times that of the amount used on Raw. Without the restriction of a roof, the pyrotechnics for the show shot as high as 2000 feet (609.6 m) as compared to WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan...
's height of 150 feet (45.7 m). The fireworks were set off from boats on one of the lakes nearby the stadium. WWE has been said to have spent an estimated $300,000 on the fireworks alone.
Development on the set design began in the middle of 2007. The building of the actual set began in the middle of March 2008. 100 people worked 16 hours a day to construct the set for the event. The construction finished on March 29. WrestleMania XXIV was the first WrestleMania event to be filmed in high-definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
. It was also the first WWE show and sports related title to be released on the Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
format by WWE Home Video. WrestleMania also led to an increase in sales for musical artists related to the event, including the Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
' album Stadium Arcadium
Stadium Arcadium
Stadium Arcadium is the ninth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. The album was released on May 9, 2006, on Warner Bros. Records. The album produced five singles: "Dani California", "Tell Me Baby", "Snow ", "Desecration Smile", and "Hump de Bump"...
, John Legend
John Legend
John Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...
's album Live from Philadelphia, Rev Theory
Rev Theory
Rev Theory is an American hard rock band formed in 2002 in North Andover, Massachusetts. The band has released three studio albums: Truth Is Currency , Light It Up , and Justice . The song "Voices" is currently being used for World Wrestling Entertainment star Randy Orton...
's single "Light It Up
Light It Up (Rev Theory song)
"Light It Up" is a 2008 promotional single and the second commercial single by the Hard rock band Rev Theory, from their second album of the same name. It was officially released for digital download on March 25 via the U.S. iTunes Music Store and for radio airplay in the fall of 2008...
", and Fuel
Fuel (band)
Fuel is an American rock band formed by guitarist/songwriter Carl Bell and bassist Jeff Abercrombie in 1989. Originally known as Small the Joy, they changed the group's name to Fuel sometime in 1994...
's single "Leave the Memories Alone" (which was used in tribute to 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....
).
Pre-show
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| Commentator | Jonathan Coachman Jonathan Coachman Jonathan William Coachman , also known as "The Coach", is a former professional wrestling color commentator and authority figure. He is also a former college basketball player, and football play-by-play announcer... |
| 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.... |
|
| 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... |
|
| Joey Styles Joey Styles Joseph Carmine Bonsignore better known by his ring name Joey Styles, is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator and former professional in the field of advertising sales... |
|
| 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... |
|
| 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 | Mike Adamle Mike Adamle Michael David "Mike" Adamle is a sports personality and former National Football League player. He is best known as the co-host of American Gladiators series for seven years.... |
| Todd Grisham Todd Grisham Todd Grisham is an American presenter/announcer who is best known for his time in the WWE as a backstage interviewer, play-by-play commentator and occasional ring announcer... |
|
| Hostess | Kim Kardashian Kim Kardashian Kimberly Noel "Kim" Kardashian is an American socialite, television personality, model, actress and businesswoman. She is known for the E! reality series that she shares with her family—Keeping Up with the Kardashians, and its spin-offs including Kourtney and Kim Take New York... |
| 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 :... |
| Armando Estrada | |
| 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... |
|
| 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:... |
|
| Theodore Long Theodore Long Theodore R. "Teddy" Long is an American professional wrestling manager and former referee who currently works for WWE on its SmackDown brand as its General Manager.-National Wrestling Alliance / World Championship Wrestling:... |
|
| William Regal | |
| Justin Roberts Justin Roberts Justin Jason Roberts is an American professional wrestling ring announcer, currently working for WWE appearing on its Raw brand.-Career:... |
|
| Referees | Scott Armstrong |
| Mike Posey | |
| John Cone John Cone John Cone is an American professional wrestling referee currently working for WWE.-Career:Cone started refereeing independent wrestling matches in August 1995. He worked for Harley Race World League Wrestling from 1999 to 2006 and got his big break when a WWE official attended a match he refereed.... |
|
| 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... |
|
| Marty Elias | |
| Mickie Henson | |
| 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:... |
|
| Chad Patton | |
| Charles Robinson |
Before the show aired live on 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...
, 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....
won a 24-man 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...
Battle Royal
Battle royal (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a battle royal is a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner...
, an elimination style match where the last person remaining was the winner, to win an ECW Championship match against 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...
later that night. During one point, Brian Kendrick, Kofi Kingston and Shannon Moore were eliminated. Chuck Palumbo then threw Jamie Noble over the ropes but Noble ran over top of them, and because his feet didn't hit the floor he was not eliminated. Straight after that, Palumbo kicked him off the apron. The event officially began with John Legend
John Legend
John Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...
singing a rendition of "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....
."
Preliminary matches
The first match that aired live on pay-per-view was a Belfast BrawlHardcore wrestling
Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling that eschews traditional concepts of match rules in favor of matches that take place in unusual environments, using foreign objects that are not normally permitted...
between Finlay
Dave Finlay
David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
and 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...
(JBL), a match where there were no disqualifications or countouts and the match outcomes could have occurred anywhere. Finlay was accompanied to the ring by 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...
son, Hornswoggle, who was returning from a scripted injury suffered at the hands of JBL. During the match, JBL hit Finlay with a trash can lid when the latter was about to perform a suicide dive on him through the ropes on the outside. Later on, Finlay tossed JBL through a table
Table (furniture)
A table is a form of furniture with a flat and satisfactory horizontal upper surface used to support objects of interest, for storage, show, and/or manipulation...
that he had set up earlier on the turnbuckle. Hornswoggle also got involved during the match by hitting JBL with a kendo stick
Shinai
is a weapon used for practice and competition in kendo representing a Japanese sword. Shinai are also used in other martial arts, but may be styled differently from kendo shinai, and represented with different characters....
, while later on JBL threw a trash can at him. Attacking Finlay's knee with a kendo stick, JBL delivered a Clothesline from Hell to Finlay to score a successful pinfall. This was an interpromotional match.
The next match of the evening was the fourth-annual Money in the Bank ladder match
Money in the Bank ladder match
The Money in the Bank ladder match is a professional wrestling ladder match held by WWE. The match can feature anywhere from six to ten participants from any WWE brand, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring...
, in which there were no disqualifications or countouts, and the only way to win the match was to climb a ladder in the ring and retrieve a contract briefcase hanging above. The match featured 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...
, Mr. Kennedy, and Carlito 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...
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...
; CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
, 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 John Morrison from the ECW brand; and Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) from the SmackDown brand. Early in the match, Morrison climbed a turnbuckle
Turnbuckle
A turnbuckle, stretching screw or bottlescrew is a device for adjusting the tension or length of ropes, cables, tie rods, and other tensioning systems. It normally consists of two threaded eyelets, one screwed into each end of a small metal frame, one with a left-hand thread and the other with a...
and performed a 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,...
onto other competitors outside the ring while holding a ladder against his chest. Later, while Kennedy and Morrison were battling on top of a ladder, Benjamin climbed another ladder placed adjacent to the first one and performed a sunset flip powerbomb on Kennedy, who in turn superplexed Morrison from the top of the ladder. Later, Carlito and Kennedy flipped Benjamin off a ladder in the ring, sending him crashing through another ladder set-up between the barricade
Barricade
Barricade, from the French barrique , is any object or structure that creates a barrier or obstacle to control, block passage or force the flow of traffic in the desired direction...
and the ring apron. When MVP was close to retrieving the contract briefcase, Matt Hardy
Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
(returning to action after suffering a legitimate injury), entered the ring from the crowd, climbed the ladder, and delivered a Twist of Fate to MVP off that ladder. As soon as Morrison started to climb a ladder, see-saw
See-Saw
See-Saw is a Japanese pop duo originally from Tokyo, Japan. Its members include Chiaki Ishikawa and Yuki Kajiura; former member left the group in April 1994 to pursue a writing career...
ing with another ladder, Jericho flipped the other one and Morrison landed on the ring-ropes groin
Groin
In human anatomy, the groin areas are the two creases at the junction of the torso with the legs, on either side of the pubic area. This is also known as the medial compartment of the thigh. A pulled groin muscle usually refers to a painful injury sustained by straining the hip adductor muscles...
-first. Jericho even performed a Codebreaker on Punk using a ladder. In the end, Jericho and Punk fought each other on a ladder, but Punk trapped Jericho's one leg in the ladder's steps and retrieved the briefcase to win the match. This was an interpromotional match.
The next match, which was billed as a "Battle for Brand Supremacy", was between SmackDown's Batista and Raw's Umaga
Eddie Fatu
Edward Smith "Eki" Fatu was a Samoan-American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Umaga...
. Early in the match, both Batista and Umaga exchanged blows and Batista knocked Umaga outside with a shoulder block. Umaga later kicked Batista in the face, which caused him to fall back-first outside the ring from the ring-apron. As a result, Umaga started targeting Batista's injured back. In the end, however, when Umaga tried to hit his Samoan Spike, Batista countered the attempt and gave him a spinebuster. Batista won the match by pinning Umaga after a Batista Bomb. This was an interpromotional match. The fourth match for the event featured 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...
defending his ECW Championship against 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....
. Kane surprised Chavo by emerging from underneath the ring instead of from the entrance stage during his ring entrance. Kane instantly pinned Chavo after a 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...
and won the ECW Championship in nine seconds. This was the only ECW match on the PPV.
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....
's "Career Threatening" match against 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...
was next, which stipulated that Flair would have to retire from 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...
if he had lost. At the start of the match, both superstars engaged in a series of counters, and then Flair shoved Michaels in a corner, making "Old Yeller
Old Yeller
Old Yeller is a 1956 children's novel by Fred Gipson, which received a Newbery Honor in 1957. It was illustrated by Carl Burger. The title is taken from the name of the big yellow dog who is the center of the book's story...
" comments to him. In retaliation, Michaels slap
Slap
A slap or "smack" is a broad stroke made with the open hand or the back of the hand, as opposed to a punch that is made with a closed fist. Slaps are frequently made across the face, but can be also made across hands or any other body part, and can use either the palm of the hand or the back of the...
ped Flair in the face, which caused him to start bleeding from the mouth. Later, Michaels tried to go for his Sweet Chin Music, but stopped in the process and Flair capitalized by trapping him in his figure four leglock. Afterward, Michaels finally delivered the Sweet Chin Music to Flair, but the latter kicked out to the pinfall attempt. Michaels then trapped Flair in his modified figure four leglock, but Flair delivered a thumb to the eye to Michaels to break the submission. As Flair was delivering chops to Michaels' chest, Michaels hit a second Sweet Chin Music. After getting up on his feet with a worried face, Michaels said to Flair "I'm sorry, I love you," before nailing a final Sweet Chin Music and thus pinning Flair to end his 35-year long wrestling career. After the match, Michaels left quickly and Flair got a standing ovation from the crowd. An emotional Flair embraced his family at ringside and then, as he proceeded to go backstage, he thanked the crowd for their support.
The sixth match was the 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...
BunnyMania Lumberjack match, in which Maria
Maria Kanellis
Maria Louise Kanellis, , or simply Maria, is a singer-songwriter, actress, model, and professional wrestler, best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment. Kanellis's career began as a contestant on the reality show Outback Jack in 2004...
and Ashley
Ashley Massaro
Ashley Marie Massaro is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to World Independent Ladies Division Wrestling. She is best known for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment and her appearance on Survivor: China....
faced Beth Phoenix
Beth Phoenix
Elizabeth Kocianski is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE where she wrestles on the Raw brand under the ring name Beth Phoenix, where she is the reigning WWE Divas Champion....
and Melina
Melina Perez
Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina....
, who were accompanied to the ring by Santino Marella. Rapper
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
served as the official "Master of Ceremonies
Master of Ceremonies
A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....
" for the match. In the match, several WWE Diva
WWE Diva
Diva is a term used by World Wrestling Entertainment , an American professional wrestling promotion, to refer to its female talent. The term is applied to women who appear as wrestlers, managers or valets, backstage interviewers, or ring announcers....
s surrounded the ring and were able to interfere in the match without disqualifications. Due to some technical difficulties, the lights at Citrus Bowl temporarily went out during the match. Near the end, a pin attempt by Maria was prevented when Marella pulled Maria's leg. In response, Raw commentator 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...
approached and knocked Marella down with a punch. Phoenix hooked Maria's leg and vertically lifted and slammed her to the mat and pinned Maria to win the match. After the match, Snoop Dogg hit Marella with his forearm in the ring and kissed Maria, before leaving with her and Ashley.
Main event matches
The first of the 3 main events was, Randy OrtonRandy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
defending his 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...
against 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...
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, which is a standard match involving three wrestlers with no disqualifications. For his entrance, Cena had the Jones High School Marching Tigers
Jones High School (Florida)
Jones High School is located in the Parramore/Lorna Doone neighborhood in the urban heart of Orlando, Florida at 801 S. Rio Grande Avenue. It is a public school in the Orange County School District...
marching band
Marching band
Marching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...
perform an instrumental version of his theme song "The Time Is Now
You Can't See Me
You Can't See Me is the debut album of WWE wrestler John Cena and his cousin Tha Trademarc. Released on May 10, 2005, the album debuted at #15 on the Billboard 200 charts with over 43,000 copies sold in the first week released...
" live. During the match, when Triple H had held Orton in a sleeper hold, Cena picked up both Orton and Triple H for an FU, but Triple H dropped down and low blowed him. Orton then dominated the match for some time; one highlight of the match featured Orton performing a crossbody from the top rope on Cena, while the latter was held on Triple H's shoulders in a seating position. Orton also performed DDT from the second rope to both Cena and Triple H simultaneously. Orton then tried to perform an RKO on Cena, but he countered and threw Orton onto Triple H. Triple H then started targeting Orton's legs and using some submissions on him. The match came to an end when Cena had Triple H on his shoulders for the FU, but was countered into a Pedigree. As Triple H was in the pin, Orton come across and punted Triple H in the head and pinned Cena to win the match and retain the WWE Championship.
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 Floyd Mayweather, Jr.. Early in the match, Mayweather repeatedly escaped Big Show's grasp and delivered body shots to him. Mayweather and his accomplices tried to "walk out" of the match, but Big Show walked up the ramp and brought Mayweather back in the ring. As Big Show was about to chokeslam Mayweather, one of Mayweather's accomplices struck a steel chair
Folding chair
A folding chair is a light, portable chair that that folds flat, and can be stored in a stack, row, or on a cart.-Uses:Folding chairs are generally used for seating in areas where permanent seating is not possible or practical. This includes outdoor and indoor events such as funerals, college...
on Big Show's back, and the latter chokeslammed him in retaliation. Capitalizing from this distraction, Mayweather grabbed that chair and hit Big Show multiple times on the head with it. Finally, Mayweather removed his right glove and put on a pair of 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...
to hit Big Show in the face. As a result, Big Show was knocked out
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
as he could not answer the referee's ten count, and Mayweather was declared the winner.
The main event of the night saw Edge putting his 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...
on the line against The Undertaker. The early going of the match was slow-paced, in which both superstars countered each others maneuvers. During the match, Undertaker ran and lept over the top rope from the ring onto Edge on the outside. Then throughout the match, Edge was able to counter Undertaker's numerous signature moves, including the 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...
, Old School and the Last Ride, a variation of the powerbomb. Near the end, Edge hit Undertaker with a television camera while the referee was knocked down. When he proceeded to deliver a Tombstone Piledriver to Undertaker, the latter countered it into his own version and successfully delivered it to Edge for a two-count. Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
came to the ring for Edge's aid, but Undertaker took them out. Because of their distraction, Edge was able to hit a spear on Undertaker, but was unable to pin him. When Edge delivered another spear to Undertaker, the latter caught him in his Hell's Gate
Gogoplata
A gogoplata is a type of chokehold also called Kagato-Jime in Judo, that is used in grappling and was popularised by practitioners of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.-Execution:...
submission hold and forced Edge to tap out to become the new World Heavyweight Champion and improve his WrestleMania record to 16–0.
Aftermath
After the show, WWE was criticized for a malfunction in the pyrotechnics during The Undertaker's victory celebration. During the celebration, a hot cable for pyrotechnics was sent flying into audience members in the upper seating bowl of the stadium, leaving 45 injured with some hospitalized. The accident was apparently due to a cable which fireworks were traveling across snapping, thus resulting in the fireworks exploding into the top rows of the upper bowl of the stadium. WWE's corporate website released a statement afterward stating that they would investigate the incident, though the results of the investigation were never released.On the following episode of Raw, Ric Flair made his farewell speech, which led to 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...
introducing various people from Flair's past, such as the Four Horsemen
Four Horsemen (professional wrestling)
The Four Horsemen were a professional wrestling stable in the National Wrestling Alliance and later World Championship Wrestling that was disbanded in 1999. The original group featured Ric Flair, Arn and Ole Anderson, and Tully Blanchard...
, Ricky Steamboat
Ricky Steamboat
Richard Henry Blood , better known by his ring name Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, is a retired American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE working as a road agent. He was one of the few wrestlers who stayed a babyface throughout his career...
, and others, each coming out to give an emotional farewell. Afterward, the entire WWE roster came out to say thank you to Flair. Shawn Michaels, who was clearly upset about retiring Flair, was forgiven by Flair. Despite Flair's forgiveness, his former protégé Batista later started a feud with Michaels, citing Michaels' "selfishness" at WrestleMania for not laying down for Flair. The two had a match booked at Backlash
Backlash (2008)
Backlash was the tenth annual Backlash professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 27, 2008 at the 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore, Maryland...
, WWE's next scheduled pay-per-view event, and after a confrontation between Michaels and Chris Jericho, Jericho was later added into the match as a Special Guest Referee. Michaels won with a superkick.
The feud between Randy Orton, John Cena and Triple H continued after WrestleMania with the added involvement of 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...
leading to a Fatal Four-Way Elimination match between all four at Backlash, an elimination style match where the last person remaining is the winner. At the event, Triple H won his seventh WWE Championship by last pinning Orton. With Matt Hardy's return at WrestleMania, his feud with Montel Vontavious Porter over 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....
, that had started in July 2007, was revived with a match booked at Backlash, which Hardy won. The rivalries between The Undertaker and Edge and the one between Kane and Chavo Guerrero both continued with successful title defenses at Backlash. On the May 2 episode of SmackDown, General Manager Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand...
stripped The Undertaker of the World Heavyweight Championship because of his continued use of his illegal chokehold, claiming she did it to protect the other wrestlers.
Reception
Approximately 1,058,000 people ordered WrestleMania XXIV, grossing $23.8 million in revenue. This amount was less than the 1,188,000 buys that WrestleMania 23WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan...
achieved. Canadian Online Explorer
Canadian 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 gave the entire event 9 out of 10 stars. The rating was higher than WrestleMania 23 which received 8 out of 10 stars. The main event between The Undertaker and Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship was rated 9.5 out of 10 stars, the Career Threatening match between Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels received a perfect 10 out of 10 stars, Big Show vs. Floyd "Money" Mayweather Jr. was rated 7 out of 10 stars, and the Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship between Randy Orton, Triple H and John Cena was rated 6.5 out of 10 stars.
DVD/Blu-ray release
The event was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
and Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
by WWE Home Video in the U.S. on May 20, 2008, after it had completed broadcast on 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...
. It was the first WWE event to be released via the Blu-ray format. As well as the event, the DVD/BD release features bonus material in the form of the 2008 Hall of Fame ceremony in its entirety and the battle royal that took place before the event.
Results
| # | Results | Stipulations | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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.... won by last eliminating Mark Henry Mark Henry Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic... . The other participants were: Elijah Burke Elijah Burke Elijah Samuel Burke is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the name of "The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero; a gimmick in which he portrays a Harlem street preacher... , Lance 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.... , Deuce, Domino Cliff Compton Clifford "Cliff" Compton is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Domino. He is signed with Ohio Valley Wrestling , where he is a former two–time OVW Heavyweight Champion... , Tommy Dreamer Tommy Dreamer Thomas James "Tom" Laughlin is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is currently working for various promotions on the independent circuit. He is best known for his time spent with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment... , Jim Duggan Jim Duggan James Edward Duggan , better known by his ring name "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment in the 1980s, when it was known as World Wrestling Federation , and World Championship Wrestling... , Festus Drew Hankinson Andrew "Drew" Hankinson is an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he appeared under the ring names Festus and Luke Gallows... , The Great Khali, Hardcore Holly Bob Holly Robert "Bob" Howard better known by his ring name Bob "Hardcore" Holly, is a American professional wrestler. He is best known for his 15-year stint with World Wrestling Entertainment .... , Jesse Ray Gordy Terry Ray Gordy, Jr. is an American professional wrestler best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment appearing on its SmackDown brand under the ring names Jesse and Slam Master J... , Brian Kendrick Brian Kendrick Brian David Kendrick is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under his real name. Before joining TNA he spent several years wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled under his name, as Spanky, and finally as "The" Brian Kendrick... , Kofi Kingston Kofi Kingston Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah , is a Ghanaian American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kofi Kingston. He is currently signed to WWE and works on its Raw brand where he is one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Evan Bourne as Air Boom... , The Miz Mike Mizanin Michael "Mike" Gregory Mizanin is an American professional wrestler and reality television personality better known by his nickname and ring name The Miz. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand... , 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... , Trevor Murdoch, 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... , Chuck Palumbo Chuck Palumbo Charles "Chuck" Palumbo is an American professional wrestler, currently working for Nu-Wrestling Evolution . Palumbo is best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment... , Cody Rhodes, Snitsky Gene Snitsky Eugene Alan "Gene" Snisky is a professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Snitsky, who is best known for his time spent with World Wrestling Entertainment. He had played college football at the University of Missouri and was on the pre-season roster in 1995 for the Birmingham Barracudas... , Stevie Richards Stevie Richards Michael Manna is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Stevie Richards. Also known by his ring names, Steven Richards and Dr... , Val Venis Sean Morley Sean Allen Morley is a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name Val Venis, during his time with World Wrestling Federation, later known as World Wrestling Entertainment... and Jimmy Wang Yang 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... |
24-man 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... battle royal Battle royal (professional wrestling) In professional wrestling, a battle royal is a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner... , with the winner receiving an ECW Championship match later on in the night. |
06:50 | |
| 1 | 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... defeated Finlay Dave Finlay David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent... (with Hornswoggle) |
Belfast Brawl Hardcore wrestling Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling that eschews traditional concepts of match rules in favor of matches that take place in unusual environments, using foreign objects that are not normally permitted... |
08:35 |
| 2 | CM Punk CM Punk Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion.... defeated 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... , 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... , Carlito, Montel Vontavious Porter, Mr. Kennedy, and John Morrison |
Money in the Bank ladder match Money in the Bank ladder match The Money in the Bank ladder match is a professional wrestling ladder match held by WWE. The match can feature anywhere from six to ten participants from any WWE brand, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring... |
13:55 |
| 3 | Batista (representing Smackdown) defeated Umaga Eddie Fatu Edward Smith "Eki" Fatu was a Samoan-American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Umaga... (representing Raw WWE RAW WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States... ) |
Battle for Brand Supremacy 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... |
07:06 |
| 4 | 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.... defeated 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) |
Singles match for the ECW Championship | 0:08 |
| 5 | 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... defeated 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.... |
Career Threatening Match | 20:23 |
| 6 | Beth Phoenix Beth Phoenix Elizabeth Kocianski is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE where she wrestles on the Raw brand under the ring name Beth Phoenix, where she is the reigning WWE Divas Champion.... and Melina Melina Perez Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina.... (with Santino Marella) defeated Maria Maria Kanellis Maria Louise Kanellis, , or simply Maria, is a singer-songwriter, actress, model, and professional wrestler, best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment. Kanellis's career began as a contestant on the reality show Outback Jack in 2004... and Ashley Ashley Massaro Ashley Marie Massaro is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to World Independent Ladies Division Wrestling. She is best known for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment and her appearance on Survivor: China.... . |
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... BunnyMania Lumberjill matchThe lumberjills were: Cherry Kara Drew Kara Elizabeth Drew is a former American professional wrestler and valet, better known by her ring name Cherry. She is best known for working in World Wrestling Entertainment as the manager of former Tag Team Champions, Deuce 'n Domino, and as a performer for its SmackDown brand.After becoming... , Eve Torres Eve Torres Eve Marie Torres is an American dancer, model, and professional wrestler. She is working for WWE on Raw brand. She is a two time WWE Divas Champion.Torres began her career as a model and dancer... , Maryse Maryse Ouellet Maryse Ouellet is a Professional Glamour Model and a former professional wrestler, better known simply as Maryse. She most recently worked for WWE... , Michelle McCool Michelle McCool Michelle Leigh McCool , is a retired American professional wrestler who is best known for her time in WWE.McCool originally worked as a middle school teacher in Palatka, Florida. She joined WWE in 2004 after participating in the 2004 WWE Diva Search. In her initial on-screen role, she acted... , Victoria Lisa Marie Varon Lisa Marie Varon , is an American professional wrestler, bodybuilder and fitness competitor of Puerto Rican and Turkish descent... , Mickie James Mickie James Mickie Laree James , better known simply as Mickie James, is an American professional wrestler and singer of mixed Native American-Caucasian descent, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is a former two-time TNA Women's Knockout Champion.James began her professional... , Jillian Hall Jillian Hall Jillian Faye Fletcher is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is also known for her tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jillian Hall or simply Jillian... , Katie Lea Burchill Katarina Waters Katarina Leigh Waters is a German-born English professional wrestler and valet, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Winter. She is best known for her time in World Wrestling Entertainment, performing on its Raw brand under the ring name Katie Lea... , Kelly Kelly, and Layla Layla El Layla El is an English dancer, model and professional wrestler of Moroccan and Spanish descent. She is employed by WWE as a WWE Diva and appears on the SmackDown brand as Layla... |
05:56 |
| 7 | 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... (c) defeated 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.... and 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... |
Triple Threat 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... |
14:09 |
| 8 | Floyd Mayweather 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.... by knockout |
No Disqualification match | 11:36 |
| 9 | The Undertaker defeated Edge (c) (with Vickie Guerrero Vickie Guerrero Vickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand... , Curt Hawkins Curt Hawkins Brian Joseph Myers is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Curt Hawkins. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand... and Zack Ryder Zack Ryder Matthew Joseph Cardona, Jr. better known by his ring name Zack Ryder, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE and works on the Raw brand as a wrestler and the SmackDown brand as an assistant to SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long.Cardona wrestled mostly with his tag... ) |
Singles 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... |
23:50 |