Wrestlemania XIV: March 29, 1998 - The WWE put all of their chips down and bet a lot on themselves with this event. They were involved in the infamous "Monday Night Wars" with wrestling rival WCW Nitro. They were getting beat in the rating consistently and needed to change something up to get back to the top. Good thing for WWE that they had a pool of awesome talent, namely Stone Cold Steve Austin who was ready to step up to the plate. We'll get to him and the main event in a bit. The night opened with a tag-team battle royal to become #1 contenders. I love battle royals and this one didn't disappoint. My favorite tag-team of all time (besides the Young Bucks) The Legion of Doom won. The tag title match later that night would be The New Age Outlaws vs. Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie was a brutal Dumpster Match. We saw some hits that would knock a normal person unconscious. The Rock was intercontinental champion for two consecutive WM's and defended against Ken Shamrock in a solid match. The WWE introduced the Light-Heavyweight Championship to rival WCW's Cruiserweight division that was making a lot of buzz worldwide. The finals of a tournament was held at WM pitting Taka Michinoku vs. Aguila. The match was fast paced and really grabbed the attention of the audience that night. I wish they would bring this back, they have a lot of guys that could benefit with this division. The Undertaker faced his brother Kane in his biggest WM challenge yet. The story is way more important than the match in this one. The Undertaker thought he accidentally murdered his parents and his brother in a fire when he was a kid. Kane survived but was disfigured from the flames. Undertaker tried to reconcile and swore to never face his brother in the ring. They did square off and it was a battle of titans. Undertaker had to finish off Kane with 3 tombstones piledrivers. One of the darker stories told in the Attitude Era, but it made perfect sense for each character's progression. Finally, the main event. HBK and DX have been running rampant through the WWE. Stone Cold has been on a meteoric rise to the top of the wrestling world, never winning the WWE Championship. They bring in Mike Tyson, who's a huge wrestling fan, in to referee the match. Their investment in Tyson and the story paid dividends, proving that WWE is the best wrestling company out there. This match garnered so much media coverage, just by having Tyson's name. The match itself was decent. Shawn was in a lot of pain with his back, and would retire shortly after WM. The explosion after Austin wins the title is deafening. People witnessed the culmination of the Texas Rattlesnake finally winning the belt. The best part is that this just began the Austin era, and so many more main events to come.
Wrestlemania XV: March 28, 1999 - WM 16 definitely wasn't as good as 15, but it had a better main event. The Rock and Austin have incredible chemistry. That's why they've headline WM 3 different times. My favorite moment at this WM was Professional Boxer Butterbean faced Professional Wrestler Bart Gunn. Gunn gets knocked out in such a violent way, it's cringe worthy. No idea why they would have this, it makes their wrestlers look weak, but it was entertaining. Mankind beat the Big Show who recently jumped ship from WCW. Mankind would become the special guest referee in the main event, playing a pivotal role in the decision. Shane McMahon has got to be the most under rated wrestler of all time. People hated him because he came from money, and show boated. He didn't get the credit because he was a McMahon. The guy was awesome. Taking some extremely dangerous bumps, getting heat, and displaying a solid wrestling repertoire. he defeated X-Pac in a very solid match. Undertaker continued his streak against the Boss Man in a Hell in a Cell match. Awful match and even more awful ending featuring Boss Man being hung from the cage. On to the main event and what a doozy it was. The Rock just finished a hellacious feud with Mick Foley that legitimized him as a main event player with a mean streak. They traded the belt a few times, and now Stone Cold gets his chance against the Rock. The Rock was Vince McMahon's hand picked champion. He's got it all and then some. Austin was a pissed off redneck who wanted nothing more than be champion. This bout was no disqualification and they brawled up and down the ramp, around ringside and in the ring. I can't stress how awesome their chemistry is, everything this did made sense and came to a perfect culmination. Stone Cold walks out as champion and the biggest wrestler of all time.
I wish I had written these sooner, but March and April were a very busy time. Lots of stuff happening, which is always a good thing. I will finish Wrestlemania's 16-30. I need to watch some tape and refresh my memory on some of those mid 2000's cards. I won't make the mistake of giving a timeline, because I don't want to raise expectations. Alas, thanks for reading, and thanks for letting me talk about my favorite thing in the world, Professional Wrestling.
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