Hello one and all and welcome back to the five rare WrestleMania stats and facts series as we draw ever closer to the Ultimate Thrill Ride next Sunday - and you know what, we're actually starting to come round to the nickname. Over the years there have been some memorable moments at the showcase of the immortals; however, there are even more that the majority of fans don't even know about.
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Whether it's backstage tidbits or in-ring matches that never actually made sense, we're here to run through just a few of the many g facts and figures that sum up the unpredictability of Mania itself. Some of these you may know and some of these you may not, but either way as wrestling fans we all love to delve into the archives and see what we can find.
It's funny really because so many members of the WWE Universe see WrestleMania as a storyline roadblock of sorts - when in reality it's so much more than that. There's a reason why it's so hyped up all year round, and it's because Mania has transformed from being just one wrestling event into being a week-long extravaganza.
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So with that being said, sit back and relax as we take a look at five rare WrestleMania stats and facts: part two.
#5 Shane's anger
Look, every now and again we can all get caught up in the emotion of a live WWE event - no matter what our stature or position may be. Now with that in mind, let's all take a moment to comprehend the fact that Shane McMahon was booing in the crowd at WrestleMania 20 during the painfully dull match between Brock Lesnar and Goldberg.
Yup. That's a thing. The boss' son has never been one to bite his tongue when it comes to saying what he thinks, and in this particular instance, Shane felt the need to let Brock and Goldberg what he thought of how they were treating this grand occasion. Sure, some would argue that the fans didn't help matters, but that match was always going to be a snoozefest no matter what.
Now onto something that would wind up Teddy Long.
#4 No tag matches
WrestleMania 21 was a pretty important show when you look through the archives of WWE because it was the dawning of a new era. The likes of Edge, John Cena and Batista began their rise to the top of the company with big victories in Los Angeles, as veterans like HBK and Kurt Angle also put on an absolute clinic. So naturally, you'd expect for there to have been a tag team match wedged in there somewhere right?
Wrong. In fact, to this day it's the only edition of WrestleMania to have never included a tag team match of some kind. This includes six mans, eight mans, regular tags and pretty much anything else that you can think of. Either way, it's a pretty staggering statistic, and a sad one when you consider how much tag team wrestling has fallen over the last decade or so.
Next up is something a tad more technical.
#3 Submission finish
At WrestleMania, more so than with any other event, you tend to see the white meat babyface triumph over the dastardly heel by pinning him in the middle of the ring. However, back in 2004, Chris Benoit began a brand new tradition by becoming the first man to close out Mania with a submission victory. Yup - it took that long.
Benoit's win over Triple H & Shawn Michaels was important for many reasons, but this one is often forgotten about with the likes of Daniel Bryan and John Cena replicating the feat in the years that followed. The Rabid Wolverine was the right choice to be handed such an honour as his submission game was one of the big reasons why fans loved him so much.
Speaking of Shawn...
#2 Taker's threat
Back in the 90s, the Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels was known for being a bit difficult backstage. Whether it was forcing Vince into changing the outcome of a match or generally acting up due to his problems with substance abuse, HBK needed to walk away from the business, and everyone knew it. So the stage was set - WrestleMania 14, Michaels vs. Austin for the WWE Championship.
Also read: 5 Rare WrestleMania stats and facts: Part 1
It was a monumental match, to say the least, but unfortunately, there were still some concerns backstage that HBK wouldn't do the job due to how unpredictable he was at the time. Thankfully, The Undertaker was backstage and made sure that Shawn knew he'd be waiting for him if the match didn't go exactly to plan. Nice one, Deadman.
We conclude with the best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be.
#1 Hart's ambush
Everyone knows about the Montreal Screwjob, but it turns out that it wasn't the only time good old Vinnie Mac pulled the rug from underneath Bret Hart. In fact, it happened on so many different occasions that we're genuinely shocked the Hitman didn't see the eventual Screwjob coming. Seriously, it was just a matter of time.
The original incident in question happened a day before WrestleMania 9 when Bret still believed that he'd be walking out of the event with the title. Unfortunately, that wasn't to be the case, as Vince informed Bret that he'd be losing the belt to Yokozuna in the main event only for Hulk Hogan to come in and win the championship. Ouch.
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