5 WWE WrestleMania matches that turned into disasters

WWE WrestleMania is the biggest pro wrestling show held annually by the Stamford-based promotion. Today, fans know WrestleMania as a huge stadium event that takes place over two nights but essentially dominates the host city for an entire week.

However, the event had a much humbler beginning. The first-ever WrestleMania took place 40 years ago in 1985 live from Madison Square Garden. While the event was a big one, it wasn't close to what it has become since then.

Over the next 40 years, tons of matches have taken place. This includes instant classics, but also, unfortunately, absolute stinkers. There have been some bouts that simply didn't deliver.

This article will take a look at five WrestleMania matches that turned into disasters. This includes bouts with rebelling fans, injuries taking place, or a match being laid out all wrong that left fans extremely disappointed and underwhelmed.

Below are five WWE WrestleMania matches that turned into disasters.

---

#5. Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns in 2018 was a mess

WWE WrestleMania 34 was held on April 8, 2018. The big event took place in front of over 60,000 fans live from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The show was headlined by Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns, which was a rematch of the main event of WWE WrestleMania 31. While that bout was arguably a classic, the WrestleMania 34 one was anything but that.

Roman Reigns was being rejected by fans at this point, and in general, World Wrestling Entertainment wasn't exactly delivering a great product under Vince McMahon. This led to the crowds chanting "boring," throwing around inflatable beach balls, and essentially showing no interest whatsoever in the match. It was a mess.

#4. WWE fans rallied against Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar in 2004

The next entry on this list goes all the way back to WrestleMania 20. WWE held the pay-per-view event on March 14, 2004. The show took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City with about 20,000 fans in attendance.

This is another bout featuring Brock Lesnar. A much younger Brock went one-on-one against Bill Goldberg. Unfortunately for both men, WWE fans became aware that both stars were leaving the company after this bout.

This led to the fans rebelling and turning on both men. Goldberg ultimately won, but fans weren't happy either way. The only thing the audience seemed to enjoy was Stone Cold Steve Austin, who was the special guest referee, hitting Stunners to close the segment.

#3. The Miz vs. Shane McMahon in 2023 went haywire

WrestleMania 39 was the final edition of The Showcase of The Immortals under the leadership of Vince McMahon, who had returned earlier in the year. The WWE show took place on April 1 and April 2, 2023, live from the SoFi Stadium in California.

Each night featured around 67,000 fans and there were several really good matches. One bout, however, was not good and it was actually a disaster. Shane McMahon returned and challenged The Miz to an impromptu match.

Almost immediately, however, Shane tore his quadriceps and couldn't continue. This then led to Snoop Dogg hitting a few weak moves and pinning The Miz. While an injury can't be helped, it was a mess.

#2. John Cena vs. The Miz simply wasn't good and there was an injury

The 27th edition of WWE WrestleMania aired live from the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia on April 3rd, 2011. 71,000 fans were reportedly in attendance for the pay-per-view that featured The Rock as the special host.

Just like Brock Lesnar, The Miz is making another appearance on this list. As with the prior entry featuring The A-Lister, an injury caused this mess. More specifically, The Miz was hurt in the main event of WrestleMania against John Cena.

The A-Lister became concussed in his match with The Face That Runs The Place. The bout was already plagued by fans really only being interested in seeing how The Rock's presence would affect things, so The Miz being injured only made it worse. The match just wasn't good and the injury made it worse.

#1. Triple H vs. Randy Orton in 2009 was booked all wrong

The final entry in this list is WWE WrestleMania 25. The show took place live from Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas on April 5, 2009. Around 72,000 fans were there live.

This show featured one of the best matches in WWE and wrestling history - Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker. Oddly, that wasn't the main event. Instead, Randy Orton vs. Triple H was. This placement immediately hurt the main event, but there was another major issue too.

The feud was extremely personal, yet they hit a finisher right at the start, which led to a sluggish pace that continued for almost 25 minutes. This didn't feel like a personal blood feud as it was built to be, which in turn left fans disappointed. It was poorly booked and poorly placed.