411’s Countdown to WrestleMania 23: The WrestleMania XV Roundtable Review

Introduction~!
When WrestleMania XIV was over two Era’s began, The Attitude Era and the Stone Cold Era. Stone Cold dominated the year, lost his title, gained it back but would lose it again. He battled in the Rumble, but of all men, Vince McMahon would win the match. Vince was content not to take the title shot, but keep it from Austin. But too bad for Vince as Shawn Michaels, WWF authority figure would make Vince defend that title shot at the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre PPV. They would battle in a steel cage, and even with Paul Wight debuting, Austin would win the match and title shot against The Rock at WrestleMania. Let’s meet the staff and break down the show!

Our analysts today are…
The mystery man that tosses Steve Austin beers, Stuart Carapola!

The mystery man that cleans up after Steve Austin’s hangovers, Mike Bauer!

The man I hired to keep my beer bucket full and cold, Randy Isbelle!

And my final appearance in this wild adventure, Larry Csonka!

WrestleMania XV~!: size=36>

WWF Hardcore Title: Bob Holly defeated Al Snow and Billy Gunn © @ 9:21 via pin to become the New Hardcore Champion

Stuart Carapola: I never quite understood why this match was made. Billy Gunn had been in the IC Title picture for some months, while his partner Road Dogg was a former Hardcore Champion and was still in the Hardcore Title picture. Road Dogg was originally scheduled to be in this match and Billy Gunn was going to wrestle for the IC Title, but they switched places about a week before this show when Road Dogg won the IC Title and Gunn won the Hardcore Title. So in the end, we got this match. This was really more a plunder match than anything, but a good one, and all three men took some stiff shots. Gunn hit the Fameasser on Al Snow, but Holly stole the cover to win the match and regain the Hardcore Title, making Gunn’s week-long stint in the Harcore division completely pointless.

Mike Bauer: Billy Gunn as Hardcore Champion? Believe it, despite the fact that was in contention for the IC Title for so long. But his week long had an abrupt end as Holly stole the pin fall after Billy Gunn dropped Al Snow. The real interesting thing here as that his partner had been after the Hardcore Title and won the IC Title instead. Well, we all know how that turned out for this team. Despite being a plunder match as they call it, it was decent.

Randy Isbelle: This was your basic spot fest, old-school style. The three guys just seemed to walk to their spots and readied themselves for their punishment. Not your usual opener, but this is the attitude era, so I guess it is a perfect fit.

Larry Csonka Al Snow, check. Bob Holly, check. Billy Gunn…WTF? Yeah, in one of the most confusing moves, WWF Threw us a curve ball when they had the NAO win singles titles. The Road Dogg, who had made a name in the hardcore division won the IC Title that Billy Gunn wanted, and Gunn ended up with the hardcore title Dogg was wanting. So they headed into WrestleMania with Gunn the odd Hardcore champion, out of his element. In the end it was a fine match to open the show. People they knew, plunder and steady action as well as a title change. Pretty solid way to kick things off. Match Rating: **

WWF Tag Team Titles: Jeff Jarrett and Owen Hart © defeated D Lo Brown and Test @ 5:55 via pin

Stuart Carapola: D-Lo & Test sound like a weird combination to you? Well, the reason they teamed for this title shot was because somebody must have realized that they didn’t have a Tag Team Title Match set up for WrestleMania yet, so at the last minute, they threw together a battle royal on Heat before WrestleMania, and the final two men in the ring would challenge for the Tag Team Title on WrestleMania. The last two men were D-Lo and Test, and so we got this match. This was also notable because this was Owen Hart’s last WrestleMania appearance before his death about two months after this. The match was nothing, D-Lo and Test spent the whole match arguing and Hart & Jarrett retained. The whole thing was pretty pointless, really.

Mike Bauer: Jeff Jarrett and Owen Hart sound like an odd team? How about D-Lo Brown and Test? I guess this is what happens when it’s the late 1990’s, titles meant something, and oh my god, the Tag team Titles didn’t have a match!!! So on Heat, we get the clutserfuck known as battle royals, where the last two men got a titles shot on the main show. And there was no better team than this?? Again, very odd, but a decent match for what it’s worth.

Randy Isbelle: Well I guess they ignored the tag team division back then too. A tag team with two technical wrestlers will work if they actually have competition, and a good story. When you only throw two guys together, however, the match has no feel and is a showstopper in the wrong sense. The only story here really is that D-Lo lost his partner, but still wanted to win the titles….that’s about it. The point of having PMS come out to hell with Ivory made no sense, since that’s all they did. Some how when they yelled at Ivory, it distracted Test instead of D’Lo, who Ivory was actually managing….the whole match just seemed put together and I’m sure it was.

Larry Csonka I have to admit, I really dug the tag team of JJ and Hart, or as I liked to call them Canadian Country. Two guys that never fully got their singles due for one reason or another getting some rub as a tag team, good stuff. If I recall, Test and D Lo won a battle royal on HEAT (RUSSO-FN-RIFFIC~!) to get the random title shot. Considering the thrown together nature of the match, it was rather good. I was also a huge fan of D Lo, so with those three guys in the match it was pretty much promised we’d have a good match. Canadian Country retained the titles and we were 2 for 2 in solid matches. Match Rating: **¼

Brawl for it All: Butter Bean destroyed Bart Gunn

Stuart Carapola: A bit of back story, first. Bart Gunn had won the ill-conceived Brawl For All tournament almost a year before this, and then disappeared for most of the rest of 1998. He finally came back and, playing off the Brawl For All, Gunn ended up getting signed to fight Tough man Champion Butterbean in a shoot match. In case you’ve been living under a rock, Butterbean kicked the shit out of Bart. He knocked him down about 15 seconds into the fight, and then about two seconds after Bart got back to his feet, Butterbean clocked him in the jaw and knocked him out cold. The whole thing lasted less than thirty seconds and totally ruined Bart’s credibility in the United States. In the continuing theme of the evening, this was pretty pointless unless their goal was to ruin Bart’s career.

Mike Bauer: Ah, the Brawl for All, the time where WWF wrestlers became boxers and tried to knock their opponents out cold. Bart Gunn was the best of the WWF, knocking out the likes of “Dr. Death” Steve Williams, leading to a challenge against Butterbean at WrestleMania in a shoot match. That’s right, this match was not scripted and it showed as Bart Gunn looked more out of place than Tim Hardaway at a gay pride convention. (This should give you a hint as to when this was written.) Butterbean killed him in under a minute and it was the end of the other Gunn brother.

Randy Isbelle: I liked the idea, just like at WrestleMania 21 with Big Show and Akebono, the WWE was using legends in other sports to have a fun little show and sell some tickets. Unfortunately, Butter Bean was just way to much for Bart Gunn and gave us one of the best moments in WrestleMania history, as it looked like his head was going to spin off as he got knocked out.

Larry Csonka: And then we jumped off the pier. Ok seriously, who in the hell thought this was a good idea? Butterbean, while not exactly a “finely tuned athlete” is a real boxer. Bart Gunn got lucky fighting a bunch of guys who were not trained “shoot fighters.” They had to know that Gunn would be destroyed, and his career as well. They took like 10-minutes to get the ring all set up for like, half a minute. He knocked Bart the FUCK out. Also, Butterbean is NO Mike Tyson folks, he didn’t mean shit to the buy-rate. Vinnie Pazzianza is no Mike Tyson either. Truly a bad idea here and a waste of money, but at least in the end Vince made a shit-load of money, so he will probably wipe his ass with my opinion. Match Rating: (N-R)

Winner Referees the Main Event: Mankind defeated The Big Show @ 6:50 via DQ

Stuart Carapola: The winner of this match was going to referee the main event. Mostly your average, run of the mill brawl but, as usual, Mick Foley had to take the crazy bump of the night at Wrestlemania. This year, Big Show took a couple of chairs and put them in front of each other in the middle of the ring and chokeslammed Mankind on them. It was a really cool bump, but a really stupid move on Big Show’s part because he got himself disqualified, making Mankind the referee for the WWF Title Match. Vince McMahon came out and was irate at Big Show, who was expected to win the match and guarantee that The Rock walk out of Wrestlemania with the title. Much like the Heenan-Andre incident at Wrestlemania 6, Vince made the mistake of slapping Big Show, and the result was the same: Big Show knocked the crap out of Vince. Unlike Andre, Big Show ended up getting arrested and, since Mankind was being taken away for medical attention, we had no referee for the main event. Vince’s solution? HE was going to be the special referee.

Mike Bauer: This match was made due to the fact that Paul Wight debuted at No Way Out and threw Stone Cold through the cage to give him a win over McMahon and his Wrestlemania Title shot. Mankind was the WWF Champ when this happened, but lost a ladder match the next night to The Rock, McMahon’s corporate champion, due to Paul Wight’s interference. Paul Wight was then named the referee for Stone Cold vs. The Rock at Wrestlemania, but Mankind wanted his main event spot. The match was nothing great and Mankind won by DQ. Paul Wight snapped when McMahon got in his face and slapped the taste out of his mouth. But with Mankind needing medical help, who would be the ref?? McMahon named, well, Vince McMahon.

Randy Isbelle: Talk about your ultimate backfires. Mankind wants to be part of the main event, so Vince comes up with the brilliant plan to put him up against corporate member, Big Show, with the shot at refereeing the main event. However, Big Show loses control and gets himself disqualified, giving Foley the spot. Big Show out of rage then destroys Foley and sends him to the hospital. Vince doesn’t realize this and is still irate at Big Show and gets hit for his trouble, causing the Big Show to get arrested. Just too much going on for the match to mean absolutely nothing.

Larry Csonka: As far as a match goes it isn’t anything special, but what it does do is help set the stage for later in the evening. DQ’s at WM are a huge pet peeve of mine, but this one is ok because it wasn’t a major feud, and played into the main event really well. Foley can take an ass whooping like no other, and sold it rather well. Match Rating: *½

WWF IC Title Match: The Road Dogg © defeated Goldust, Ken Shamrock and Val Venis @ 9:50 via pin

Stuart Carapola: The storyline leading into this match was that Ken Shamrock’s sister Ryan was a slut who slept with Val Venis, Billy Gunn, and Goldust in rapid succession. Shamrock was upset about this, and took out his frustrations by beating them all up. Gunn got taken out of this match when Road Dogg won the IC Title, rendering the whole thing…pointless. But anyway, this was elimination style and, much like the tag team elimination match from Wrestlemania 13, the elimination stip was also rendered pointless when Shamrock and Venis both got counted out, and then Road Dogg reversed a powerslam to a rollup to retain. In an interesting postscript to this story, Ken Shamrock ended up dating the woman who played his sister in real life. Surely that would make a great angle in and of itself in today’s WWE.

Mike Bauer: Again, Road Dogg was always after the Hardcore Title, but ended up winning the IC Title the week before Wrestlemania. Wow, thinking of Val Venis in a title match on a pay per view just feels weird. Unlike his partner though, he was able to retain his title in a fatal four way match. This would be the last victory for Degeneration X as we knew it then, so it’s almost like a milestone victory for the Road Dogg.

Randy Isbelle: This match really makes little sense to me. So, Val Venis had a thing with Ryan Shamrock, who is Ken Shamrock’s sister. She then leaves Val for Goldust? Making Blue Meanie upset, not to mention pissing off Val and Ken. So the logical thing to do is have them fight in a triple threat match…right? So how did Road Dogg get involved, and why did he have to put up his IC Title? Either way, the interaction between Ryan and the Blue Meanie was funny, and the match itself was ok. Just don’t see why they needed to add the IC Title into the mix.

Larry Csonka As I mentioned in the opening match, this was kind of odd seeing Dogg with the IC Title. He was always great on the mic, and had good face timing when he was catching the beat down. While he was never a ring general like his father or brothers, he was solid and when he was on he was on. I dug Shamrock’s WWF run, am a huge fan of Val and Goldust is vastly underrated in my opinion. They could have had a really good match in various singles forms or a three way, but in the wacky elimination format they used it ended up very disappointing. It wasn’t bad, solid would be the world actually. But as a WrestleMania title match, and as we have progressed down the card, I would be expecting more. Match Rating: **

Kane defeated HHH @ 11:33 via DQ

Stuart Carapola: Kane ended up as a member of the Corporation through some stupid storyline, something like Vince would have Kane thrown in a mental institution if he didn’t join the Corporation. After Kane joined, Chyna turned on Triple H and joined the Corporation herself. Chyna had been out of action for a couple of weeks before this because she got fire shot in her face (which I can’t imagine doing anything other than improving her visage), and this was the blow off to that whole situation. Not much to tell, the match was terrible and Chyna made her return, but turned face when she low lowed Kane and drew the DQ. Kane was sad, and was even sadder when Triple H ran him out of the ring. Triple H and Chyna reunited, and Chyna had come home…for now.

Mike Bauer: And then we come to this. First the background. The day after the rumble, The Rock took on HHH for the World Title in an I Quit match. But HHH was screwed when McMahon came out with Kane and made Chyna a hostage. HHH quit the match and the got low blowed by Chyna, with her defecting to the Corporation. Kane was to be kicked out, but Chyna defended him… until this match. Chyna then did the double-double cross and low blowed Kane, drawing the DQ win for Kane. Kane became the sad sack of a woman screwing him over and HHH ran him off. Backstage, all was good in D-X as the gang was back together again. For now…

Randy Isbelle: The confusing storylines continue in this match, as Kane has fallen for Chyna, and Chyna leaves DX because of it. This, of course, pisses off Triple H and the rest of DX and we get the match at Wrestlemania. The match itself was ok, but the turn ending was way to predictable and ruined the match as a whole. What is with all the weird storylines this year? And if you think all these are weird then just wait.

Larry Csonka This…was a match. It just wasn’t a very good one. HHH and Kane just brawled and had a very uninteresting match. The only event that came from it was the reuniting of HHH and the man beast. As I have said time and time again in discussing WrestleMania, I HATE DQ and or count out finishes. I hated it here, and not that it would have made it that much better, but I really wanted a finish to the match.
Match Rating: *

WWF Women’s Title: Sable defeated Tori @ 5:06 via pin

Stuart Carapola: It was originally supposed to be Luna challenging for the title here and not Tori, but Luna got herself fired, I forget what for, but the end result was that Tori got the title shot instead. This lovely storyline was built around Tori, as an insane fan who worshipped Sable, kept getting shot down by her idol, and they ended up facing one another instead. You might remember this angle being lovingly and completely ripped off last year with Mickie James and Trish, except Sable did the heel turn, not Tori. Nothing match where Tori got her run at Sable, but Sable turned it around and hit the Sable Bomb for the win. Pretty anticlimactic ending which made the whole angle…you got it, POINTLESS.

Mike Bauer: Yeah, this was forgettable. Since Luna got herself fired, we ended up with the egomaniac known as Sable facing Tori instead. Sable won easily as she defeated her crazy fan and made this story a waste of time. It was repeated last year and it actually worked, you know, since Mickie could wrestle and actually beat Trish at Wrestlemania.

Randy Isbelle: At this point, Sable has turned on her friends as her ego has gotten the best of her. Her opponent is Tori, who is Sable’s biggest fan, but one of the worst dressers ever. Her outfit in this match made me want to just skip this match altogether, and after I sat through it, the wrestling made me regret not doing just that.

Larry Csonka: The only thing almost as bad as the Brawl for it All match was this. Sable was all T&A with a few kicks and the “Sablebomb” to me, and I never got that into her as a wrestler. There was about no wrestling and we had to see NICOLE BASS. Enough said. Match Rating: (ASS)

WWF European Title: Shane McMahon © defeated X Pac @ 8:43 via pin

Stuart Carapola: Shane got a cheap win over X-Pac by cheating his ass off to win the European Title about a month before this, and everybody and their mother thought X-Pac was going to destroy Shane and get his title back here. LITTLE DID WE KNOW! X-Pac did smack Shane around for most of the match, but this whole schmozz broke out and Triple H and Chyna ended up running in, but in a shocking turn of events, Triple H gave X-Pac the Pedigree and put Shane on top for the win. Turns out that Chyna and Triple H had indeed reunited, but had done it as members of the Corporation and not DX. Shane retired the European Title the next night.

Mike Bauer: X-Pac was the European Champion and with all the problems between D-X and the Corporation, Shane McMahon took it upon himself to challenge for the European Title. Well, Shane actually won and this was the rematch, which was pretty good. It just goes to show that Shane McMahon can perform when needed. Now going into this, everyone expected X-Pac to rip Shane to shreds and he did for the most part. But then things got nutty and out came Triple H and Chyna and then it happened… the double-double-double cross of the century as HHH pedigreed X-Pac and put Shane on top for the victory. I still remember watching this match and feeling my jaw pretty much hitting the floor. If anyone ranked heel/face turns and double crosses, this one would have to be the best ever for how nobody, and I mean nobody, saw this coming.

Randy Isbelle: Remember how I said that the weird storylines kept getting worse? Well welcome to the worse. Let us recap shall we? Kane falls for Chyna and they both leave their respective groups, who at the time were feuding…kind of like a sick West Side Story. Chyna turns on Kane, leaving him all alone, and rejoins DX. DX shows their loyalty by a great interview, as they psych X-Pac up for his title match against the golden child, Shane McMahon. With me still? Good job, now for the fun part. At the end of this match, HHH and Chyna come out and turn on X-Pac and join the corporation. What? To make this crazier, after this match, X-Pac and Kane form a tag team.

Larry Csonka: Ok, raise your hand if you had Shane McMahon EVER having the 2nd best match on a WrestleMania card…

LIARS! I will start off with saying that the match was overbooked as hell, and that certainly helped Shane out but the facts are that this was a damn fun and good match. There are times when Sean Waltman can still go and lead someone through to a good match, and this was the case here. I am personally very critical of Sean Waltman, but that is because of my former fandom and love of his early work, especially with Jerry Lynn. This is one of the few bright spots on an otherwise forgettable card and deserves some love for being what it was, good and fun. Also we got to see the SWERVE of the DX reunion as HHH and beast ran out, and HHH gave Waltman LOS PEDIGREE, signaling the swerve heel turn of the H’s. Match Rating: ***

Hell in a Cell: The Undertaker defeated The Big Bossman @ 9:50 via pin

Stuart Carapola: This has been referred to by many as the worst Hell In A Cell match of all time. It’s hard to argue that point, as the Cell barely came into play the whole match, and the one interesting spot, which came when Boss Man handcuffed Undertaker to the cage, was blown when Undertaker fell down and snapped the handcuffs apart. It got even worse when Michael Cole said that they had to be careful or they might get a finger caught in the cage. The whole affair was mercifully ended when Undertaker Tombstoned and pinned Boss Man in under ten minutes. Oh wait, I meant the MATCH was ended, because the whole segment got even better when the Brood bungeed down to the top of the cage and lowered a noose into the ring. Undertaker strung the Boss Man up and then they raised the cage, hanging the Boss Man. The whole thing was really stupid, and of course the Big Boss Man, in true Looney Tune fashion, was back at 100% the next night on Raw. The Undertaker was just starting the “Satan worshipper” era of his career at this point, and this was the first year I remember anybody taking any real notice of the fact that the Undertaker was undefeated at Wrestlemania. It blossomed from there until it got to the point that a Wrestlemania victory over the Undertaker would be considered the Ultimate Rub. This wasn’t pointless…well actually, it was, but it was really, really stupid.

Mike Bauer: Worst Hell in a Cell Ever! That is all I can really say about this match. It ended the way it should, with the Boosman being Tombstoned on top of the cage, but then it got worst and The Bossman was hung from the top of the cage by the Brood. It wouldn’t be long before The Undertaker joined forces with the evil Billionaire and the Corporate Ministry would be born, having to take on a stable that lasted all of two weeks due to injuries, but had the best name ever… UP YOURS!

Randy Isbelle: When Wrestlemania XV rolled around, the Corporation was so large in mass, that they had enough people to feud with two other factions…and a rattlesnake. The only reason to remember this match was the embarrassing hanging at the end, where Bossman was hung by the back of his shirt. Just another notch in the Undertaker’s winning streak.

Larry Csonka: As I have stated before, I am a Taker fan and have enjoyed a lot of Taker matches. I have also been a Ray Traylor fan as well. That being said, this match was bad. While not the worst Taker match at a WrestleMania, it wasn’t good. Also, it didn’t seem like it was deserving of being a “Hell in a Cell” match to me. I think a regular cage match would have been fine, but then they couldn’t have hung Bossman. Not good on any level and really hurt the Cell in terms of it delivering good matches, most of the time anyway. Match Rating: ½*

WWF World Title: Steve Austin defeated the Rock © @ 16:53 via pin to become the NEW WWF WORLD CHAMPION

Stuart Carapola: After getting screwed out of the WWF Title months before this by his evil boss Vince McMahon, Austin had finally clawed and scratched his way to a title match here against McMahon’s chosen corporate champion, The Rock. Austin and Rock had met before this, but this was the high-profileest match they had had, and was easily the best at that point to boot. They’d go on to top themselves many times, but this was probably the best Wrestlemania main event from a work rate perspective up to that point. Vince tried to referee, but WWF Commissioner Shawn Michaels laid down the law, as he was the only one with the power to assign officials to matches. So Vince was out, Earl Hebner was in…until he got bumped. Two more referees would come in, but both of them got bumped as well, and finally Mankind made his return, attacking Vince McMahon and calling the match down the middle. Austin finally hit the stunner and pinned Rock to regain the title, much to the dismay of Vince McMahon, who Austin also stunnered for good measure.

Mike Bauer: So it came to this. Stone Cold vs. The Rock at Wrestlemania for this first time. Austin got screwed out of the title at the Survivor Series in the first of McMahon’s screw job night. Austin got his shot for this night by beating McMahon at No Way Out after McMahon won the Royal Rumble. Vince named himself the referee, but wait… Shawn Michaels was in charge and Earl Hebner was named the referee. After he got bumped and two more referees got bumped as well, Mankind came back from nowhere, knocked out McMahon and called a fair match, which led to Stone Cold winning the WWF Title for the second straight Wrestlemania. But it also helped to lead The Rock out of the Corporate eye, as he went back to being the People’s Champion the next month.

Randy Isbelle: What a great match, ruined by so much unneeded interference. The Rock and Steve Austin led the WWE to greatness, and their first match-up at the grandest stage of them all did not disappoint. The two did what they did best, and the crowd ate it up. But, when you add in all the extra garbage and take away from the match, it’s a shame. The main event just added to the craziness that was Wrestlemania XV, where wacky storylines out did the actual wrestling.

Larry Csonka: The biggest bright spot of this WrestleMania is the start of the Rock vs. Austin WrestleMania Trilogy. Better than WM 19 as an overall match, but not as good as WM 17; this was the perfect start to the series that they would have. I will give credit to 411’s JD Dunn here, as he puts it the best way:

“There is a difference between overbooking and epic booking. This is the one place on the card (and only place) that Russo managed to tie everything he’d been doing for the past few months together in a coherent way.”

Before the match begins, HBK as commissioner, removed Vince as the self appointed ref. They start the match with what I like to call, “Jarrett main event style” these days and brawl through the crowd and to the back. After a ton of brawling Rock hit a Rock Bottom out of nowhere that totally works as people thought Austin was pinned, which goes to show how over he and the move were then. Rock goes crazy and takes out Tim White and we get everyone’s favorite referee Earl Hebner. Austin gets a great near fall off of the Stunner, but only gets two by the time Earl got there. As you thought Austin was about to be screwed due to Vince taking out Earl and helping Rock beat down Austin, Mankind returned and gets rid of McMahon and takes his rightful place as the referee. Austin is then able to score the win and the title at WrestleMania for the second straight year. Really good main event, and a really good match in a sea of mostly shit. Match Rating: ****

The Conclusion:

Stuart Carapola: I thought this was a really good show at the time, but looking back on it years later, it was just a whole bunch of crap thrown together, and very little of it was any good or meant anything in the long run. Austin-Rock was really good as always, but the Hell In A Cell was totally stupid, and Butterbean-Bart Gunn was just downright embarrassing. Triple H’s heel turn led to him becoming the top star of the company, a spot he retains to this day, but not much else had any kind of long-term impact. Entertaining if you’ve got nothing to do on some afternoon, however.

Mike Bauer: This Pay Per View is hard to judge. The main event was great, but the Hell in a Cell was just as bad. This event did what it should in terms of making the next big stars, as HHH took a huge step to becoming one of the biggest stars of the WWF for the next few years, a spot he still can hold today when healthy. Meanwhile, it was the coming out party for Paul Wight, the end of the D-X era, and the proof that Stone Cold was the biggest star of the WWF at the time. The Pay Per View itself was just there and outside of every double cross, it just wasn’t that memorable.

Randy Isbelle: I am a big fan of match psychology, and Wrestlemania XV tried to overdue it. Every match had a crazy story going into it, where there just was no chance to be able to do the small subtle things that make most matches great. The WWE tried to hit us with crazy stories to get everybody in the family involved and in the end they hurt their overall product.

Larry Csonka: While all of the matches weren’t great, it’s the attempt at the pure showcase that I appreciated. This year we started with a Hardcore Title match and title change. Then we had the tag title match that made no sense on any planet but Planet Russo. Ok, that one isn’t helping my defense, I’ll agree. Then we had the 4-way for the IC Title, once again serviceable, but not great. The women’s title was defended, next. The European Title match would end up being the surprise of the night as Shane McMahon proved about everyone wrong. And then we went to the main event; Austin vs. Rock in the first of their WrestleMania trilogy. While a lot of it wasn’t great, it was the attempt at the “Showcase Event” with the titles that I appreciate. The only title not defended was the Light Heavyweight Title, as I believe that this was during the “Gillberg” Era. I can’t hold that one against them.