40 Underrated WrestleMania Matches

Perhaps this WWE(then F) World Tag Team Championship match was not the greatest display of in-ring technical prowess but it gave the Toronto crowd and all us viewers a heartfelt memory, and was one of the most often overlooked feel good Mania moments of all time. As champions The Colossal Connection (Andre The Giant and Haku) fell to Demolition in a powerhouse clash, but after the match Bobby ‘The Brain’ Heenan berated Andre, resulting in Bobby overstepping his mark, and the Giant Frenchman cleaning “The Weasel’s” clock. After the last few years of being a heel, and in his last in-ring WrestleMania appearance (he would appear for the final time at WrestleMania VII), and despite entering the match as a baddie, it was gratifying to see Andre leave the ring on this night to rapturous applause. A warm moment for one of the biggest (quite literally) stars in wrestling history, towards the end of both his career and his life.

All the talk was about Donald Trump and Vince McMahon in this “Battle of the Billionaires” but the actual match between Bobby Lashley and the late great Umaga was a fast and furious clash of two titans. Well paced and timed, these two, alongside the ever reliable Stone Cold Steve Austin as the referee actually delivered a fun piece of sports entertainment spectacle here, with a good run in by Shane McMahon too. It was a fun little match befitting the hair vs hair looney stipulation of a story that surrounded it. Plus the whole thing ended with Trump eating a stunner and Vince being humiliated, nowadays you could not ask for greater catharsis!

As good ‘ol JR says, this one was bowling shoe ugly, but my word if this anarchic Chicago Street fight among these warring factions was not immensely good fun. Fire extinguisher clouds, announce table fracas, road signs and even a noose, this one was a war of attrition, with the likes of Ron ‘Farooq’ Simmons and The Legion of Doom kicking all manner of stuffing out of each other. Memorable chaos that deserves looking up, especially when in the mood for straight up all out brawling.

This one is very divided, so it is placed higher on this list, but where some proclaim this a gruelling unsung classic, others rank it among the most disappointing WrestleMania matches ever put on. True, this was Edge’s first WrestleMania match since unthinkably returning from retirement in 2020, and was hosted at WrestleMania 36 on Night Two, at the Performance Centre in front of no crowds due to COVID, so maybe those facts play a part. But these two facts make it an interesting encounter too, and quite a high stakes one, and while the near 40-minute length was punishing for some, this Last Man Standing match between best friends turned bitter enemies Edge and Randy Orton was a hell of a fight, which allowed both legendary stars to harness emotion from the situation and tell a great story. Imperfect maybe but the effort was admirable and the result bracingly effective. 

Despite being marred by the nigh on unlistenable commentary from the TV-ruining Heel Michael Cole character, this battle of superhero and supervillain deserves way more respect. In Captain America guise Rey Mysterio was the hero facing a masked and psychologically scarred Cody Rhodes, in this back and forth battle that was one of a very few bright spots (alongside Randy Orton/CM Punk, and the awesome Undertaker/Triple H match) on a show many - quite rightly - call the worst WrestleMania ever.

WrestleMania XXV is known for one match. The aforementioned - in this writer’s opinion - greatest match in in WrestleMania history, The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels. However, the show did have other bright spots, one of which was this rather heated brother vs. brother Extreme Rules Match. While the two would have an even better “I Quit” rematch at Backlash, this was an emotional showdown between the daredevil siblings, which came with an incredible closing ladder spot and chair-assisted twist of fate sequence that saw jealous brother Matt Hardy get the surprising win over the charismatic enigma Jeff Hardy.

Short but very very sweet and with the magic of Bobby Heenan and Mean Gene Okerlund on commentary, it is easy to have a pop at the gimmick battle royal from a workmate point of view, but at the greatest WrestleMania of all, WrestleMania X-Seven, this one was perfect for what it needed to be. Nostalgic, fun, and filled with some rather sizeable era-spanning stars like Sgt. Slaughter, Michael Hayes, Kamala, The Iron Shiek (the eventual winner) and even Jim Cornette! A sweet addition to this hugely varied and diverse card, that gave fans a breather between huge matches, but also that magical warm feeling of seeing some past faces back on the big stage for a tussle in Houston. I love this match, and I’d love to see the gimmick battle royal concept resurrected one day at a future Mania! 

As women still fought to get more than scantily clad BS on a card, matches like this WWE Women’s Championship Triple Threat acted as a sign of things that would eventually come (more on this later). These three tough as nails women, kept up an energetic pace for a back and forth clash over the title, as fan favourite Trish Stratus would get the win and snatch that title away from mentally unstable rival Victoria.

In his WrestleMania debut, the late great Owen Hart under the mask as The Blue Blazer character gave us a brief glimpse of the things to come. This match with Mr. Perfect may have been rather brief but was a technically accomplished and fast paced little gem, that was among the most lively encounters on a quite bloated card at WrestleMania V. These two delivered a match that could well have gone on a lot longer and was a signifier of some of the dazzling displays to that would become normal in later years. Two golden talents delivering greatness, even in a match that might have otherwise been considered a throwaway.

WrestleMania XII is known better for its Ironman Match main event between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels, or even the powerhouse battle of The Undertaker and Diesel (at the time the best match in the iconic Streak) but this Six-man tag opener was a great start to the show. With a cool story, that would see Yokozuna get Jim Cornette all to himself in the ring, should his team win against Camp Cornette, and this match had a lot going for it overall. But what it did superbly was showcase the legendary Vader, who looked like an absolute monster here. Also, this would mark the final WrestleMania appearance from Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts.

The Streak grew and grew so much as it went on, that many matches are overlooked in it, and this casket match between Undertaker and Mark Henry is one of those later examples. However, unlike Giant Gonzalez/Taker (WrestleMania IX) or King Kong Bundy/Taker (WrestleMania XI), this big man battle was a lot more effective, using the stipulation well and - on a card filled with gimmick matches - stood out thanks to the hard work put in. Taker debuted his daredevil over the top rope dive (though he had done variations of it in the past) and that tombstone to Henry was mightily impressive. True, we could have had Kurt Angle vs. Undertaker on this night instead, but this was not the washout many would have you believe and was a fun casket match.

These two best friends turned better enemies have clashed so many times over the events and years that you could write a whole listicle ranking their matches. And on the rough Night Two of WrestleMania 37 (a night that nearly made me quit watching WWE), these two had a fun match-up, which as an added bit of historical value marked the WrestleMania debut of one Logan Paul, who nobody could have ever predicted would become the performer and star he has today.

This Million Dollar Championship match had so much heat and potential that it couldn’t possibly be anything other than at least good. Sadly, WWE scuppered things a bit with a lame countout result that saw Ted DiBiase retain, but the pre-match promo on greed by Jake was an all timer and this match worked well in telling a story of wicked wealth run wild that is taken to task by an anti-hero of the people. Yes, it could have been much more but Ted and Jake still delivered some goods here and the post-match turn of fate with Jake stuffing the bills in the Million Dollar Man’s mouth, and handing cash to the fans was a righteously wholesome end. Shame the feud itself never got that ultimate payoff but this match is very underrated.

Smart money was probably on Eddie Guerrero vs. Chyna here but we still got that playing out amidst a six-person intergender tag team match, that was among the more outright fun matches on the wild and weird card that was WrestleMania 2000. Chyna looked fantastic tangling with the talented Radicalz crew (Eddie, Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko), while the incredibly over Too Cool (Grandmaster Sexay and Scotty 2 Hotty) brought the fun in droves. This one was a great match, that the crowd were really into! 

CM Punk’s birthday song is immediately iconic. Sadly this battle only got a very thin time limit to work with, so these two would have far better matches later in their feud, as Punk’s underrated Straight Edge Society faction played a part in the whole thing. That said, this was a great place to start and a highlight to the WrestleMania XXVI undercard. 

An opener to any show is a tough ask but to this show it was a monumental one! Yet, the Intercontinental Championship match between Commissioner William Regal and Chris Jericho was a great table setter for the night. Fast, welt-inducing (Regal’s chest! yikes!) and with a nice little authority vs. rebel story, this was a fun contest, with a great balance, and that kicked the night off hot, with Jericho keeping his title from the clutches of the dastardly and dangerous Commissioner Regal!

This is a highly divisive match and stipulation because really, watching two wrestlers struggle to wrestle due to being forced to wear bags over their head isn’t going to result in Ric Flair vs. Ricky ‘The Dragon’ Steamboat is it?! Yet, when you plonk the master of ring psychology Jake Roberts in there, this Blindfold match becomes less a gimmick, than a slow-burning game of revenge. Another great pre-match promo helps, as does a hot feud that justifies this stipulation, but the match itself was a great act of crowd interaction, as Jake used the fans to locate and vanquish “The Model” Rick Martel with his dreaded DDT. Well structured and delivered, this one really, unexpectedly, worked well!

Two future Hall Of famers were put in a tough spot here to deliver the kind of match they could (and would eventually, see their great Chain match in 2001), as the story of Chyna, DX and betrayal that ran through the night (swerve bro!) was given the priority here. Yet, despite the naff DQ finish, Kane and Triple H did their best to deliver something in the ring, and did. Both meshed well and Kane’s outside dive reminds us of how athletic this big man has always been. The pre-match attack and 0-2 fail by Pete Rose was fun too…let it go Pete!

WrestleMania II is often ranked up there as one of the worst Mania’s. A lot of misfires, squashes and the three-city event gimmick did not really work out, but there are some good things to enjoy outside of the British Bulldogs vs. The Dream Team Tag Title match, which is this show’s best moment. One of them is this often overlooked Intercontinental Championship match between ‘Macho Man' Randy Savage and George ‘The Animal’ Steele, which told a strong story of Savage mistreating Miss Elizabeth and Steele not standing for it. The match is often remembered only as a footnote in the feud to come between Savage and Steamboat, but on its own merits is a chaotic bit of fun, that sees Savage get, well, savaged but still emerge victorious against all odds. Fun fact: If you play the Susan Saint James drinking game, where you take a drink every time she says “uh-oh” on commentary, you will be hammered VERY FAST! 

WrestleMania XXIV is a show looked upon very favourably and starts out furiously with brawling badasses Finlay and JBL having one hell of a stellar Belfast Brawl, despite the feud it spirals from being a bit…meh! These two beat the living tar out of each other with steel steps, trash cans, kendo sticks and their own very battle-tested fists. Two legendary hard hitters, this stipulation could not be any better matched to two competitors than this. This show has many great matches and this really enjoyable opener deserves to be ranked right on up there in the many celebrations of this show.

This Falls Count Anywhere match between The Miz and Shane McMahon was by far the best in their ‘alrighty then’ rivalry. The closing superplex spot was great but even before that the match was a lot of goofy fun, with the Miz’s dad’s run-in being the kind of irresistibly daft spectacle that either works or doesn’t. Luckily it really did, much like this highly enjoyable bout as a whole, that made good use of the stipulation particularly.

For my money, WrestleMania X8 is the most underrated WrestleMania of all time and you will see a few matches from it on this list, but first off lets start with Scott Hall vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin. This match benefitted no end from the red hot Toronto crowd and the exceptional commentary from JR and Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler. It could have been a better match than it was but Hall and Austin delivered a fun slugfest, with the NWO angle taking centre stage, and Austin surviving the odds against Hall and a constantly interfering Kevin Nash. Not sure there has ever been more stunner-per-minute match ratio than there was here either, and that final stunner for the win is a doozy! As Hall leaps into the air like he has been shot from a slingshot. Such fun! 

This Elimination Handicap match between Chris Jericho and Hall Of Famers Jimmy ‘Superfly’ Snuka, Rowdy Roddy Piper and Ricky Steamboat (all accompanied by Ric Flair) started life as a celebrity match, with Jericho vs. Mickey Rourke being rumoured (as a result of The Wrestler’s release). That “kind of” didn’t happen so as Ric Flair was “retired” we worked our way to this. Now, this match was a tale of three thirds. Snuka should not have been in the ring at all, Piper was game if scrappy, but the revelation of the veterans was Steamboat. Had WWE have probably realised, they would have made this one on one (as they did the next month at Backlash to tremendous effect), because Steamboat left the Houston crowd’s jaws on the floor, rolling back the years in one hell of a return fight that gave Y2J all he could handle before Jericho ultimately got the win. Though he also got decked afterwards by Mickey Rourke too! This one was far better than any one conceived it being.

The origins of hardcore came poking out in this match between Terry and Hoss Funk and Tito Santana & The Junkyard Dog. A really enjoyable tag team match soon turned more and more out of control, with the end result being a sneaky win by the Funks. As the match came to be rather anarchic for the era, and the outside ring area became a fighting ground. This really pre-dated some of the hardcore style stuff to come on WWE, not to mention from the late great Terry Funk. But more than that was a rather brilliant tag team encounter with much intensity!

Long before they got attention at WrestleMania 22, stole the show at WrestleMania 32, main evented WrestleMania 35 or were even allowed time to work, female trailblazers had to toil and work their arses off to get noticed as more than eye candy or fluff. Women like Jazz, Trish Stratus and Lita looked to break out of the lingerie matches and evening gown stuff and deliver an in-ring showcase. It took time sadly but many examples exist if you care to look, and this triple threat Women’s Championship match was one of them. Despite having the unenviable task of following The Rock vs. Hogan, this was a hard-hitting three-way, with the ladies putting in a great effort to try and keep the show rolling past that marquee match. So many women in previous eras would have fit our current era like a glove, but their work is still here to see and enjoy. And this was a great match to go back and rediscover, and it really deserves that rediscovery.

The first WrestleMania meeting between Kane and The Undertaker at WrestleMania XIV was one of the most iconic matches for many reasons: a grand spectacle, a great payoff to a well told story, an incredible debut of the most durable character in wrestling history since Taker himself, and a great hossfight, it had it all. So this sequel would naturally struggle to compete, and yet, despite being the inferior match, this was pure wrestling theatre that accomplished precisely what it needed to. The monstrous brother Kane inadvertently resurrecting The American Badass as The Deadman for a new era. The gong, music, druids, lightening, hat, coat and even Paul Bearer were all back, and The Undertaker would enter a decade of his career that would see him cement himself as one of the very greatest to ever do it. And it all began at WrestleMania XX. Whenever The Brothers of Destruction met, we always watched. This is one of wrestling’s most time-tested feuds.

Night 1 of WrestleMania 37 was something of a shocker. Many were suggesting, on paper, it would pale by comparison to Night 2, and yet on the weekend itself, Night 2 crashed and burned, whereas Night 1 flourished. In fact since Mania split into a two-night affair in 2020, there has never been an out and out superior Night 2 (yet). And this was just one underestimated match on the card. For the first time since WrestleMania II (not counting Hell in a Cells), a steel cage match took place at the show of shows in the unforeseen battle between Shane McMahon and Braun Strowman. And this one was a hell of a lot of fun. A fine piece of sports entertainment, that assisted the story of a rich bully getting his, and came with the expected but no less death defying spot from Shane. Great fun that shocked many of us, but has still been unfairly kind of forgotten.

Planting the seeds of the messy (storytelling-wise) but (in the ring) stellar rivalry between Becky Lynch and Trish Stratus to follow, this legendary grouping of Trish, Lita and Becky to face Bayley, Iyo Sky and Dakota Kai resulted in a pretty darn good six-woman tag team match. The legends looked great, everyone got their chance to work and the pace was kept constant and energetic. The expected Trish heel turn never came (on this night) but the match was a satisfying clash of eras and generational talents that deserves a lot more praise on an all round great night of wrestling.

Worth it for all the memes alone, the battle between Batista and Triple H at WrestleMania 35 was something very few expected to realistically amount to much and in many estimations it doesn’t but that is an unfair assessment. Now, admittedly it goes on too long but then again so does WrestleMania 35 itself, a show that feels about seven days long. But looked at on its own merits, this No Holds Barred match between old rivals was a strong effort from two ruthless aggression era stalwarts, with some twisted moments within to remember. Far from perfect, it actually felt violent and heated, and with his career on the line Triple H finally got the better of The Animal. 

One of the best Hardcore Championship matches on Pay-Per-View and without doubt the best to ever happen at WrestleMania, this three-way clash between unfortunate but resilient champion Raven and monstrous challengers Kane and The Big Show was an absolute hoot and would be celebrated a lot more had it taken place on any other show. Pure arena-spanning anarchy replete with wall breaking, window smashing and stage diving antics. This hardcore match finally gave this fondly remembered title a WrestleMania moment and led to somewhat of a renewed interest in the belt for 2001. Another great moment on the greatest WrestleMania.

Despite entering - in another grandiose entrance - like the drunken parents showing their kid up at the school prom, Triple H (alongside Stephanie McMahon) meant business in this unsanctioned match with Seth Rollins, which had some great story work going in. Sadly on the night, this one gets largely forgotten next to the feel bad Taker/Roman Reigns main event, WWE Championship match’s horror show booking and a shockingly great Universal championship Goldberg/Brock Lesnar match. Which is really a shame as Rollins and The King Of Kings did a good job in this old school match which prioritised the story told over gleeful spotfests, though there was some memorable chaos here too (see Stephanie’s table bump). Maybe a touch long (but hey The Game always puts in a long shift at Mania I think we’ve all learnt by now), this was nonetheless a student vs. teacher battle, that saw the injured young star become a hero and slay the wicked king in satisfying fashion with a pedigree too. Shame the crowd were so quiet for it but then again The Hardy’s return earlier may have worn them out a tad.

WrestleMania XXVIII was a great event with some really great main events but its undercard was decidedly weak but the strongest match on that undercard by far was this battle between Randy Orton and Kane. Coming right after the infamous Sheamus and Daniel Bryan squash, a sect of the audience had started to turn angry but these two legends actually won them back (unlike the next few matches that followed) with an evenly matched fight that saw Kane score a deserved (after that extinguishing Cena feud) surprise win with a nice top rope choke slam over The Viper. Outside of the main event scene, this one was a good old fashioned battle, that gave the show its first strong foundation of the night. The brightest spark by far of the undercard.

Arguably the strongest actual wrestling match on WrestleMania 38 Night 2, was this dream match-up, which was likely sunk to some extent by the immeasurable hype going in. But even with that considered, AJ Styles and Edge had a cracking match here, that progressed the Judgment Day story to come and which saw these two veterans bring the fight to the grandest stage. Not sure why it is so heavily dismissed, because both guys worked hard and gave us a match that is far better than it is given credit for.

Despite Vince McMadman claiming this was one of the worst WrestleMania matches in history at the time (really?!), Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho had a very strong United States Championship match here. True this feud deserved the Universal Championship spot on the show, and as the second match on the card, was put in a tough position but they still gave us something here. Could it have been greater? Sure. But Y2J and KO delivered a really entertaining match all the same, that had one of the best stories going into the show and deserves far more positivity than it receives.

This Hell in a Cell match is given a lot of undeserved flack. True its 30-minute length was too much, and the slower pace contributed to that but to say that Shane McMahon had not been in the ring for nigh on 7 years, and Undertaker was working on a more limited basis, this Hell in a Cell match was a lot of fun. A big match feel thanks to the story of Shane coming to fight for the future against an outdated antiquated authority, with Undertaker’s legacy being questioned in the process, this would have been made ten times better with The Streak still intact but even so (despite the unfortunate retcon the next night) this was a brilliant story, and on this night, these two veterans were the only men’s main event on the show that actually delivered (the snooze of a Roman/HHH main event title match, and an underwhelming Lesnar/Dean Ambrose act as evidence). Shane’s daredevil dive is most remembered, but the wrestling was strong, as were some of the spots and by the end of it, this felt genuinely like a war was waged. Far far better than it had any right being all things considered.

WrestleMania X8 continues to feature heavily, and this undercard bout between Kurt Angle and Kane was an absolute thrill, with Kane turning up to put on a display with the ever excellent Angle, who could be relied upon to tear it down with just about anybody. Back and forth, and with Kane selling the head trauma angle brilliantly, this match built so well, and saw the olympian taken to the very limit by the big red machine. Even the cheap cheat finish that saw Kurt snatch a tainted victory worked, as it made Kane look great in defeat. Both men turned a very small undercard rivalry into a match that came together really well. Well worth revisiting.

Ironically, years later, Undertaker himself would face a crisis of in-ring ability and confidence, only to be brought back by a younger star (stay tuned), but on this night it was Ric Flair who was shaken and in need of reminding just who he was by The Deadman. And what a reminder in a bloody and brutal No Holds Barred match that was one of the best and most physical matches on this show. Flair was beaten to a pulp by Taker, only to work his way back into the fight, as JR and King sold the story as beautifully on commentary, as these two icons did in the ring. We even got a glorious Arn Anderson cameo to savour, in a match of many moments and joys, which took Taker’s winning streak to 10-0 and saw the Nature Boy prove he still had it!

AJ Styles’ WrestleMania track record is truly fascinating, as his best matches are the ones people counted out (Shane at WM33, Undertaker at WM36 Night 1) and his worst ones are the ones everyone proclaimed would steal the show. But this bout with Chris Jericho, at his debut WrestleMania in the much-maligned WrestleMania 32, is actually a lot better than it is given credit for (much like his aforementioned match with Edge), as odd as the booking decision to have Y2J win was, this came together well off of the break-up of Y2AJ (remember that?). In fact, losing didn’t do AJ any harm in the long run at all, and this match was a fun jostle between two pros of the business. Probably the best match in their series, Y2J and AJ delivered a memorable contest here, that when revisited is actually a pretty neat and a well delivered styles clash (tee hee) of two great workers.

There is something to be said for opening WrestleMania and it is a mighty task that a rare few have turned into an art (Triple H/Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania XXX, Owen/Bret at WrestleMania X) and at the most underrated WrestleMania of all, Rob Van Dam and William Regal opened this show red hot, with a breakneck Intercontinental Championship match that was filled with fierce wince-inducing offence, and back and forth bruising chain wrestling and high impact move sets. These two told a great little story of the valiant and resourceful challenger, and the wily arrogant champion looking to cheat his way through. Not given too long, this match was one of the greatest ever examples of making every second count, and making everything you do mean something. An outstanding start to WrestleMania X8 between two legends.