5 times the heel stood tall in the WrestleMania main event

#4 WrestleMania X-Seven

A Wrestlemania classic with a controversial ending

The story heading into the championship clash between "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and defending WWF Champion The Rock at Wrestlemania X-Seven was that Austin was crazed by his desire to regain the championship; during a sit-down interview between the two men and Jim Ross, Austin made plain that becoming champ was the only thing that mattered in his life. He would do literally anything within his power, and make a deal with the devil himself, to put that gold around his waist.

That symbolic boast became literal in the match that resulted; after over twenty minutes of blistering action and numerous finishers from both men (and each men using his opponent's signature maneuvers as well), Austin still could not put away his electrifying opponent. Enter longtime Austin rival Vince McMahon, who allied himself with Austin and provided Austin with a chair that the Rattlesnake would use to batter Rock into oblivion.

An extended and anticlimactic series of chair shots later, Austin finally got his three-count over his rival, and the gold that came with it; Austin and McMahon shared a handshake and toasted each other with some Steveweisers to cement Stone Cold's heel turn as Jim Ross reacted like he was watching Mankind fly off the Hell in a Cell all over again.

The fact that this isn't followed by a boot and a stunner is more of a heartbreak than the heel turn itself

Notably, Austin has called this the biggest regret in his career, saying he should have seen the money he'd be throwing away and called an audible by stunning McMahon and remaining a babyface; his desire to turn heel, though, meant a second consecutive spring spectacular would have a downer ending (in this case, a downer ending credited with many fans' decision to walk away from the product).