With Wrestlemania 24 little more than a week away, I decided to look back through some of my personal favorite 'Mania matches to build my own dream card. Here's the rules: No performer can be in more than one match; no title can be defended twice. And that's it. Also, of the eight matches, none can be from the same event. (Editor's note: I broke that last rule once to include a Money in the Bank match.)
Here we go:
Opening bout: Stone Cold vs. Bret Hart (Wrestlemania 13)
Commentary: I originally had the Owen Hart/Bret Hart match here. But, honestly, I never saw that match until I wrote this. And, hey, this is all about MY personal favorites. Bret Hart and Stone Cold are two of the great WWE, and Wrestlemania, performers. And this is the match that passed that torch to Stone Cold. Also, looking ahead at the rest of my "dream card," this match would set the tone quite well.
Second match: Edge vs. Mick Foley (Wrestlemania 22)
Commentary: Wikipedia's match description: Edge pinned Foley after a spear off the apron and through a flaming table on the outside. Enough said. Per my rules, this takes the great TLC matches between Edge and Christian/The Hardys/The Dudleys off my "dream card." But, you know what? Edge speared Mick Foley through a flaming table! This match cemented Edge as a great performer, and gave Foley one last shining moment, before he started tag-teaming with midget leprechauns.
Third match: Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage for the Intercontinental Title (Wrestlemania III)
Commentary: Back to basics here with a classic match. I rented this DVD last summer, and while I was less than impressed with most of the card, this match blew me away. If I had been watching it live, I'm sure I would've been even more blown away, as today's wrestling world has seen so much steal from this match.
Fourth match: Money in the Bank: RVD vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Ric Flair vs. Finlay vs. Matt Hardy vs. Bobby Lashley (Wrestlemania 22)
Commentary: Any Wrestlemania dream card would have a hole in it without a Money in the Bank match. While this isn't my favorite MitB (the first one was the best, I still think), it was still very entertaining and had some sick spots.
Fifth match: Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels (Wrestlemania 21)
Commentary: It's no secret that Kurt Angle is my favorite wrestler. When WM21 came around, I wasn't back to watching wrestling full-time yet, and went to see the PPV with some friends just because Kurt was wrestling, and I liked how the feud was set up. This is the match that got me excited about wrestling again, with near-falls, and with both wrestlers pulling out all stops to get the win. There are certainly other matches in HBK's tenure that could have ended up on a dream card, but this match, in particular, is my favorite.
Sixth match: Shane McMahon vs. Vince McMahon (Wrestlemania X-Seven)
Commentary: Call me crazy (please, do), but Shane McMahon is awesome, as is Vince. Seriously, the two guys are worth hundreds of millions of dollars and could sit behind the scenes for as long as they wanted to, but they go out of their way to entertain people. This is also the debut of the Coast-to-Coast, which is just plain awesome. Yes, this disqualifies the Stone Cold/Rock match from later in the night, but let's face it, they were just going through the motions, right? And Shane jumping through the table? Seriously, I love this match.
Seventh match: Undertaker vs. Batista for the World Heavyweight Championship (Wrestlemania 23)
Commentary: Streak vs. Title, volume 1. Yes, going into the match, it was almost a given that Taker was going to take the belt. But during the match? Batista had a good shot at winning. This was a great, intense brawl that featured a lot of near falls. What Wrestlemania would be complete without an appearance by the Dead Man?
Main Event: The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan (Wrestlemania X8)
Commentary: I wasn't watching wrestling at the time, but I've since seen the match. It's not technically on par with my favorite matches and match types, but it was the collision of the past and present. At the time, people probably still thought The Rock was the future. Yes, there are a ton of other Hogan moments at Wrestlemania, and The Rock had better matches with Stone Cold. But for the spectacle, and for what this match meant at the time, Rock/Hogan deserves to be on a dream card. Also, as arguably the two biggest stars in WWE history collided, how could this not be the main event?
Overall notes:
I realize that this card has its holes: Namely, the inclusion of only two title matches. The TLC match from Wrestlemania 2000 could have gone in, except I liked the Edge/Foley match for other reasons. Also, Hogan vs. Warrior is an omission that could have been corrected, but, for me, Hogan vs. The Rock meant much more. Also, HBK's matches with Razor Ramon, Bret Hart and John Cena could have rivaled for inclusion, as I liked each of those.
But, from an entertainment, pure wrestling and brawling standpoint, this card has it all. I also realize that I'm a bit heavy on the recent matches, but, hey, that's what I'm more familiar with. And I'm in control!
I'll be doing more Mania previews in the next week, including my all-important predictions!
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