WWE WrestleMania XXVI Review

WWE WrestleMania XXVI Review:

This is my review of WWE WrestleMania XXVI which took place on Sunday, March 28, 2010 at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

Starts off with a Air Force jets flying over the stadium.

Fantasia sings "America the Beautiful." I didn't like this rendition at all. The fact it startled my dogs when I was watching this should tell you something lol.

Great hype video to start the show with all of the stars of the show on it.

Excellent fireworks display to start the show. I was there live and it was great to see live. The fact they opened up the roof to let the smoke out helped too.

WWE Unified World Tag Team Championships, The Miz and Big Show (c) vs. R. Truth and John Morrison -

Starts off with R. Truth botching his own entrance song. Not a good start. They show the announce teams at the show. Starts off with Miz against Morrison. Morrison dominates and tags out to Truth who top rope legdrops Miz. Spinning Heel Kick by Truth. Fallaway Slam by Show. Show kicked off the middle rope by Morrison. Miz and Morrison going at it. Flapjack by Morrison. Show pulls Miz out and Morrison misses Starship Pain. Show catches Truth who jumps at him from over the top rope and down to the floor only to ram his back into the ringpost. Blind tag by Show and he punches out Morrison to win. Quick match. At the live show the best part was the Fallaway Slam by Show. He literally tossed Truth all the way across the ring.

Winners: Miz and Big Show

Highlights of WrestleMania week in Phoenix with highlights of Axxess, the Charity Golf Tournament, and Art Show. Funniest part was Santino crashing the golf cart, lol.

Triple Threat Match, Randy Orton vs. Ted DiBiase, Jr. vs. Cody Rhodes -

Story is it's more of a Handicap Match than a Triple Threat Match because DiBiase and Rhodes are still allied. Starts with Rhodes and DiBiase circling Orton. Orton out to the floor and sneaks back in to knock down DiBiase. He then clotheslines Rhodes out to the floor. Standing Dropkick by Orton to Rhodes and then one by DiBiase to Orton. DiBiase and Rhodes now double teaming Orton. Crowd into Orton. Rhodes and DiBiase in total control. Orton fights back but DiBiase clotheslines him down. Rhodes goes for a Moonsault but DiBiase covers Orton and Rhodes breaks it up before tossing DiBiase to the floor. Alabama Slam by Rhodes and DiBiase breaks it up. They start fighting and punching each other both in the ring and on the floor. Orton backdrops DiBiase to the floor and starts beating up Rhodes. Powerslams by Orton to both men. Inverted backbreaker by Orton to Rhodes. Crossbody to the floor by Rhodes to DiBiase. Double rope hung DDT by Orton. Running Punt to the head by Orton to Rhodes. Orton counters Dream Street and then RKO's DiBiase for the win. Crowd live was into Orton but mostly dead for this match. Like the videotron that comes down from the ring canopy cover and shows the logos of the wrestlers. I was the only person in my section cheering for Rhodes, lol.

Winner: Randy Orton

Josh Matthews backstage with Vickie Guerrero, LayCool, Maryse, and Alicia Fox. Vickie starts talking and boos. EXCUSE ME~! LOL Says it's her first Mania match and she will create a moment that will live forever. Jillian Hall shows up and starts singing her a song. Everyone leaves and then Santino shows up. He says Mania brought to you by Slim Jim. He bites it and Jillian Hall turns into Mae Young. He bites it again and it's Mean Gene in drag! LOL He bites into it again and it's Melina. She says anything is possible. Santino says thank you Slim Jims.

Money in the Bank Ladder Match -

Participants are Kofi Kingston, MVP, Evan Bourne, Jack Swagger, Shelton Benjamin, Matt Hardy, Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre, Kane, and Christian. Crowd into Kofi, MVP, Swagger, Hardy, Kane, and Christian. At this show naturally I wanted Bourne, Ziggler, Swagger, and Christian to win. Christian and Hardy got the biggeest reactions. Starts off with everyone brawling in the ring. McIntyre goes for the briefcase first. Hardy, MVP, and Bourne triple team him. Everyone scrambling to get up the ladder but stopping each other. KEN CHOKESLAMS BOURNE OVER THE TOP ROPE AND ONTO BEJAMIN AND MVP ON THE FLOOR! Kofi throws a ladder into another ladder to stop Hardy and Swagger. Christian Monkey Flips Kofi into a ladder propped against Hardy and Swagger in the corner. Zig Zag off the ladder by Ziggler to Christian. Kofi rams a ladder into Kane. Kane powerbombs Kofi onto a ladder. Pay Dirt by Benamin to MVP. Swagger using the ladder as a weapon. Bourne kicks a ladder into Swagger. Swagger stuck under the ladder with Hardy and Christian ramming ladders into his chest. Christian, Hardy, and Bourne go for it. Swagger pushes the ladder from underneath Hardy. AIR BOURNE OFF THE LADDER BY BOURNE TO CHRISTIAN! AMAZING! HARDY HIP TOSSES BOURNE OFF THE LADDER! Swagger pushes Hardy off one ladder and onto another ladder backfirst. Shelton and MVP fall to the floor after a Powerbomb is countered into a Hurricanrana by Benjamin. Kane clotheslines them both with a ladder on the floor. Ziggler clotheslined on the top rope after Kane pushes the ladder over. Kane chokeslams Ziggler on the ladder and then starts smashing him between it and breaks the ladder in half! Trouble in Paradise by Kofi to Kane. KOFI USING THE LADDER PIECES AS STILTS! McIntyre pushes him over and he gets Stun Gunned on the top rope. Hardy pushes the ladder over and crotches McIntyre on the top rope. Christian and Hardy push Kane off of a ladder. Reverse DDT by Christian off the ladder to Hardy. Swagger and Christian fighting over the briefcase. Swagger smashes it into Christian's head and unhooks the briefcase. At the live show it took Swagger about 30 seconds to unhook it, lol. The best highlights at the live show were Kofi using the ladder pieces as stilts and Bourne's Air Bourne move. Great match other than the fact everyone was laying on the floor WAY too much which made it not as exciting at the live show.

Winner: Jack Swagger

2010 Hall of Fame induction ceremony highlights. The inductees this year are Mad Dog Vachon, Wendi Richter, Stu Hart, Gorgeous George, Antonio Inoki, Bob Uecker, and Ted DiBiase.

The Hall of Fame inductees are brought out to be announced to the live audience at the Mania show. Biggest reactions for the Hart Family, Mad Dog Vachon, Inoki, Uecker, and DiBiase. Uecker and DiBiase got the biggest reactions.

Sheamus vs. Triple-H -

Good highlight pre-match video. Cool fireworks display when Trips comes into the ring. Starts off with Sheamus talking trash. Trips slaps him in the face. Trips in control early. Running knee drop by Trips. Sheamus goes to the floor. Trips rams his head into the barricade. Chopblock by Trips. Figure Four by Trips. Sheamus whips Trips into the ringsteps. Sheamus rams Trips headfirst into the barricade. Backbreaker by Sheamus. Sheamus in control. Knees to the head by Sheamus. Both men trading punches until an Axehandle to the head by Sheamus. Powerslam by Sheamus. Back Suplex counter by Trips. DDT by Trips. High Knee by Trips. Facebuster by Trips. Celtic Cross countered and then Pedigree countered. Brogue Kick by Sheamus. Celtic Cross countered into a Spinebuster by Trips. Brogue Kick on the apron by Sheamus. Pedigree by Trips for the win. Trips celebrates and the crowd loves it. This match came across MUCH better live than on TV. Also of note I was one of only two Sheamus fans in my entire section. Halfway through the match we tried to get a Sheamus chant started but it didn't work.

Winner: Triple-H

CM Punk (with Serena and Luke Gallows) vs. Rey Mysterio -

GREAT pre-match video highlighted by Punk interrupting Rey's daughter Aliyah's birthday part and then Punk singing Happy Birthday to Aliyah. Punk makes Aliyah cry and slaps Rey in the face after calling him a coward. This is GREAT! Punk is the greatest talker in the WWE right now. Punk has a mic and it's Sermon of Hate time. Says there's over 70 thousand weak minded individuals at the show that think Rey is a superhero and that popping pills and drinking will make their problems go away. Says he's not a monster but a Savior and can save Rey. Says he will lead everyone by example and says he chooses to be better than each and every one of them. Says Rey will join the Straight Edge Society and then they will join him. THIS WAS GREAT! Punk is on another planet compared to everyone in this match. Rey is in an Avatar inspired costume for this show. Starts with Punk getting the advantage after Gallows distracts Rey. Drop toehold into the middle turnbuckle by Rey. Tree of Woe and kicks by Punk. Punk misses a baseball slide and crotches himself on the ringpost. Bodyscissors takedown off the apron countered into Punk ramming Rey headfirst into the ringsteps. Punk in control. Springboard Seated Senton by Rey. Powerslam by Punk. Series of counters by both men. Vicious kick to the head by Punk. SPRINGBOARD DDT COUNTER BY REY! Punk catches Rey during the 619. GTS countered by Rey twice. Rey misses a Frog Splash. Corner High Knee by Punk. Arm Drag by rey by Serena blocks his 619 attempt. GTS counted by Rey who sends Punk into Gallows. 619 and Top Rope Springboard Splash by Rey win it. Good match. This was the best wrestling on the show thus far. Live crowd was really into this and was split between both men. I was cheering for Punk myself.

Winner: Rey Mysterio

No Holds Barred, Bret Hart vs. Vince McMahon -

EXCELLENT pre-match video running down the whole history between these two most notably the Montreal Screwjob and the storyline leading into this match. Great reaction to Bret coming out to the ring. Vince has a mic and says Bret deserves a Mania screwing. Says he payed off some people to help him and bought some lumberjacks. Says one of them is going to be the guest referee. Says Bret screwed Bret and Vince screwed Bret. Says now Vince and your entire family screwed Bret. The entire Hart family coms out. Says this is his creation before doing the Vince Walk to the ring. Bruce Hart is the ref. Bret has the mic in-ring. Says he can't believe it and asks if they all agreed to it? Says not much he can do about it and says they all probably were paid up front. Says one thing he learned from the Montreal Screwjob was there's nothing he likes better than a good doublecross. Said they all agreed ahead of time and said it's going to be remembered as the night Bret screwed Vince. Bret punching down Vince. Bret choking Vince with his shoe. Hart Dynasty beating up Vince on the floor. Vince trying to crawl away but they catch him. HART ATTACK OFF THE TOP ROPE AND DOWN TO THE FLOOR BY TYSON KIDD AND D.H. SMITH TO VINCE! WOW! Bret punching and elbow dropping Vince. Vince tries to escape under the ring but they catch him. Vince grabs a crowbar and holds them back. Bret disarms him in the ring. Bret using the crowbar on Vince. Bret goes for the Sharpshooter but stops to beat up on Vince. He then does it again and starts stomping on Vince. Bret is handed a steel chair. He sits down and looks down at Vince. Bret then uses the chair as a weapon against Vince. Finally Bret puts the Sharpshooter on Vince and Vince taps out. This was overly long garbage. Totally killed the momentum of the entire show. Live show hated this match after the first Sharpshooter attempt.

Winner: Bret Hart

Hype video for WretleMania XXVII in Atlanta, Georgia in 2011.

Justin Roberts annonces that the attendance of this show is 72,219. I was one of them.

World Heavyweight Championship, Chris Jericho (c) vs. Edge -

Great hype video about Edge and Jericho being tag team champions back in July of 2009, Edge coming back from injury, and Jericho winning the World Title. They hyped up the Spear as a super move that no one can defeat in this video. Really cool steam entrance from the tron screen above the ring that comes down when Edge comes out. Starts off with chain wrestling. Shoulderblock by Edge. Flapjack by Edge. Jericho dodges the Spear and goes out to the floor. Edge rams Jericho into the ring apron. Kick to the head as Edge comes into the ring by Jericho. Baseball Slide by Jericho. Slingshot bottom rope Clothesline by Jericho. Back Suplex by Jericho. Jericho in control. Jericho goes shoulderfirst into the ringpost after Edge dodges him. Spinning wheel kick by Edge. Front Suplex onto the top rope by Jericho. Edges knocks Jericho off the apron and he goes facefirst into the announce table. Crowd dead still because of the last match. Running clothesline off the apron by Edge to Jericho. Michinoku Driver off the top rope by Edge. Walls of Jericho countered by Edge. Sunset Flip off the middle rope by Edge. Series of counters until Jericho kicks Edge in the face. Codebreaker countered by Edge. Spear countered by Jericho into the Walls of Jericho. Crowd FINALLY into it. Lionsault by Jericho misses but he lands on his feet only for Edge to catch him into a Reverse Michonoku Driver. Enzuguiri by Jericho. DDT by Edge. Top rope forearm shot by Jericho. Jericho signals for the Spear. Big Boot counter to the Spear by Edge. Edge signals for the Spear. EDGE GOES FOR THE SPEAR BUT JERICHO COUNTERS WITH THE CODEBREAKER! Edge kicks out when he's covered. Jericho starts going after Edge's injured ankle. Walls of Jericho by Jericho. He turns it into a Single Leg Crab pulling back on Edge's ankle. Edge clotheslines Jericho over the top rope and both men fall out to the floor. Jericho grabs the World Title belt but Edge rams him into the apron headfirst. top rope clothesline on the apron by Jericho. Edge bounces back into the ref, ref goes down, and then Jericho uses the title to hit Edge in the head with it. Codebreaker by Jericho to win the match. Great match. Post-match Jericho goes to ram Edge's ankle into the ringpost but Edge fights back. He tears ip the announce tables. Jericho crawls onto one of the announce tables after Edge rams his head into it. EDGE SPEARS JERICHO BY RUNNING FROM ONE ANNOUNCE TABLE ONTO THE OTHER AND THEY FALL THROUGH THE BARRICADE INTO THE TIMEKEEPER'S TABLE AREA! AWESOME! Edge limps to the back as EMT's check on Jericho. This was the best match on the show so far. Live crowd loved this. I was cheering for Jericho amidst a whole horde of Edge fans. Crowd was dead for most of this due to the previous match which literally bored the live crowd into submission. The Spear after the match was the highlight of this.

Winner: Chris Jericho

Footage shown of the Mania bonus match, a 26-man battle royal. Highlights were Khali being dumped out by a bunch of guys, Shad eliminated by Regal, Regal eliminated by Finlay, Zack Ryder eliminating Finlay and Mike Knox, and then Ryder being eliminated by Yoshi Tatsu to win the match.

Ten Diva Tag Team Match, Layla, Michelle McCool, Alicia Fox, Maryse, and Vickie Guerrero vs. Eve Torres, Beth Phoenix, Kelly Kelly, Mickie James, and Gail Kim -

LOVE Vickie's Excuse Me costume, lol. King is already making comments about Kelly's outfit. All five face divas go after the heels but they all go to the floor. Vickie bumps Kim, poses, and then turns around into Beth. Faces beating up on Vickie. Vickie gets out of it and screams in Kelly's face lol. Leg Drop by Kelly broken up by McCool. They all take turns doing their finishers on each other. This leaves Beth and Vickie. Vickie is screaming like she's in a horror movie. She screams again and sees it's McCool and not Beth LOL. Great spot. Vickie climbs to the top rope with LayCool's help and hits the Frog Splash on Kelly for the win. Short but pointless. Vickie's screaming spots were great. Crowd was into Vickie getting beat up.

Winners: Vickie Guerrero, Layla, Michelle McCool, Alicia Fox, and Maryse

WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Batista (c) vs. John Cena -

Another great pre-match hype video. This one starts with Cena winning the Elimination Chamber and then losing the World Title to Batista moments later. Batista talking about their rise at the same time starting at Mania 21 and says that the torch was passed to Cena and not him. Cena says Batista's only in it for money and he isn't. Says he's in it for the people. Batista says all Cena does is bark and he broke Cena's neck. Great visuals of Batista dominating Cena. Says Cena can't beat him. This was really good. Like Batista's heel spotlight entrance. A military rifle company comes out and does rifle trick moves. Cena comes out, salutes, and runs to the ring. Starts off with both men trading the advantage. Corner punching barrage by Cena. Forearm shot to the back of the head by Batista. Running kick to the head by Batista. Apron elbow and kick to the head by Batista. Suplex by Cena. Bulldog by Cena. Attitude Adjustment countered into a DDT by Batista. Batista in control. Cena powers out of Batista's submission hold. They trade punches. Neckbreaker by Batista. Counter Back Drop by Cena. Cena with a shoulderblock takedown. Five Knuckle Shuffle by Cena countered into a Spinebuster. Crowd seems to be more for Batista. STF by Cena but Batista reaches the ropes. Spear by Batista. Top rope test of strength. Batista knocked off the top rope and to the mat. Top rope Five Knuckle Shuffle by Cena. Attitude Adjustment blocked and then countered with a Batista Bomb by Batista. Batista can't believe it. Series of counters by both men ending with an Attitude Adjustment by Cena that only gets a two count. Cena can't believe it. Top Rope Leg Drop countered into a Batista Bomb. Batista goes for a Batista Bomb but Cena counters into the STF. Batista taps out and Cena wins the World Title. LOL at Cena celebrating with the fans wearing "We Hate Cena" T-shirts in the front row. This match was fun to watch at the live show because it was split about who the crowd wanted to win. I was for Batista myself. Match was way better than I was expecting.

Winner: New Champion John Cena

Video about Shawn Michaels' My Journey DVD. I have this DVD. It's really good.

Streak vs. Career Match, Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels -

Excellent pre-match hype video, best one on the show. Highlights shown of their match at Mania 25 a year earlier. Great set-up with Taker refusing HBK's challenge. HBK costs him the World Title at Elimination Chamber and Taker accepts only if HBK loses his career is over. HBK agrees. Highlights from every Taker Mania match. Great highlights shown from throughout HBK's career. This is only the third non-World Championship WrestleMania main events with the others being Hogan/Mr. T vs. Roddy Piper/Paul Orndorff and Lawrence Taylor vs. Bam Bam Bigelow. This match is HBK very energetic during his entrance. Awesome flames and laser lights entrance where Taker comes up from under the stage. Starts off with a staredown. HBK does the Taker throat slash. HBK chops Taker repeatedly. Snake Eyes and Big Boot by Taker. Corner Avalanche by Taker. Old School by Taker. Chokeslam by Taker countered by HBK. Tombstone countereed into an armbar submission by HBK and HBK goes after Taker's knee. Chokeslam countered by HBK. Superkick feigned by HBK. HBK going back after Taker's injured knee. Taker clotheslines HBK over the top rope and out to the floor. Taker goes for a running plancha but HBK quickly in and chopblocks the injured knee. HBK goes for the Figure Four but Taker kicks him out to the floor. Taker rams HBK backfirst into the ringpost. Ring apron Legdrop by Taker. Figure Four Leglock by HBK. Taker turns it over and now HBK is in pain before he breaks the hold. Both men trading blows. Flying Forearm by HBK. HBK NIPS UP AND TAKER CHOKESLAMS HIM! Taker goes for the Tombstone but HBK gets out of it and grabs him into the Ankle Lock. Taker goes for the ropes but HBK pulls him back and wraps his legs around Taker's leg to keep him from moving. Taker kicks his way out of it. HBK takes Taker out to the floor. MIDDLE ROPE SOMMERSAULT PLANCHA BY HBK BACKFIRES AND TAKER CATCHES HIM BEFORE DELIVERING A TOMBSTONE ON THE FLOOR! AMAZING! EMT out and Taker pushes him away to go for a cover in the ring but only gets a two count. Last Ride attempt but Taker's leg buckles as HBK counters with a bulldog and they both fall over. Top rope elbow drop countered with two knees by Taker. Hell's Gate by Taker. HBK counters it into a pin but only gets a two count. SWEET CHIN MUSIC by HBK! He only gets a two. Sweet Chin Music countered by Taker and a Last Ride. HBK gets the shoulder up by two. Taker can't believe it. Taker tosses HBK out to the floor. Taker starts tearing apart the Spanish announce table. TAKER GOES FOR A LAST RIDE ON THE TABLE BUT HBK GETS ON THE APRON AND HITS SWEET CHIN MUSIC! Taker now down on the announce table. TOP ROPE MOONSAULT BY HBK TO TAKER ONTO TAKER'S LEGS AND THROUGH THE ANNOUNCE TABLE! Great spot. Taker has a large scratch on his arm. SWEET CHIN MUSIC! HBK covers but only gets a two count. He can't believe it. SWEET CHIN MUSIC COUNTERED INTO A CHOKESLAM! Tombstone by Taker. HBK gets the shoulder up. Crowd goes wild. Taker is frustrated now. Taker pulls the straps down and signals that it's over. HBK pulls himself up using Taker's legs and gives the Taker throat slash sign before slapping him in the face. Tombstone by Taker and he pins HBK to end his career. Awesome post-match fireworks display after Taker wins with fireworks both inside and outside of the stadium. 18-0 shown on the tron as Taker goes to leave but then he goes back in the ring. Taker helps HBK to his feet. They talk and then shake hands and hug. Taker leaves and HBK in the ring by himself getting a standing ovation from the fans. HBK crying and waving to the fans. Lawler: "This might be the ultimate WrestleMania moment." I agree. Crowd chanting "Thank you, Shawn." Standing ovation continues. Going on 3 minutes as HBK leaves and talks to and shakes hands with the fans on his way up the rampway. HBK then applauds the fans which brings another ovation. HBK poses one last time before clapping for the fans one last time and heading to the back. What a great emotional moment to end the show after one of the greatest Mania Main Events of all time. Best match I personally have ever seen live and one of the greatest matches in wrestling history. I will never forget the moment with HBK leaving and saying his last goodbyes. One of the best if not THE best Mania ending of all time.

Winner: Undertaker

Overall:

7 1/2 out of 10 stars. Biased because I went to the show and saw Shawn Michael's last match live. The thing that hurt this show the most was the sheer amount of short and average undercard matches as well as the overly long shitfest that was Hart/Vince. However the Rey/Punk, Sheamus/Trips, Edge/Jericho, Batista/Cena, and Michaels/Taker matches were all very good. The HBK/Taker match was Match of the Year and rightfully so. How are they going to top that this year? They probably wont. Also the storylines and hype leading into this show were the best for a Mania in ages which made the show even better.