WrestleMania XXIV Recap

[superboy]

WrestleMania XXIV Recap............

The broadcast commenced with the Belfast Brawl between John Bradshaw Layfield and Finlay, who introduced the returning Hornswoggle during his ring entrance. As expected, these two had a stiff, hard-hitting match that included the use of a garbage can, kendo stick, and other objects. JBL won with a Clothesline From Hell.

CM Punk emerged from the Money in the Bank Ladder Match with the briefcase in an outcome that surprised just about everybody. This bout contained a multitude of insane stunt spots - John Morrison moonsaulted to the arena floor onto his opponents while holding a ladder; later, Shelton Benjamin was sent forward over the top rope while atop a ladder and onto another that had been propped up between the apron and crowd barrier. MVP appeared to have the match won when Matt Hardy arrived and delivered a Twist of Fate to the U.S. Champion from the top of a ladder. Punk and Jericho were battling near the briefcase when the former ECW Champion caused Y2J to become entangled in the rungs. Punk then retrieved the briefcase.

Batista pinned Umaga following a Batista Bomb. Not a great match by any means and quite possibly the worst on the entire show.

Kane won the pre-WrestleMania battle royale shown on WWE.com to earn an ECW Title shot. The Big Red Machine used a chokeslam to pin Chavo Guerrero in nine seconds (time courtesy of Dave Meltzer‘s WM XXIV coverage) to take home the belt.

Shawn Michaels defeated Ric Flair to end The Nature Boy’s legendary career. The story during this match had Flair living up to his moniker as the “dirtiest player in the game” by using every underhanded tactic available to him. Michaels missed a moonsault and crashed into an announce booth which didn’t break in a nasty-looking spot. HBK hesitated with a superkick, which allowed Flair to apply the figure-four leglock. Michaels began “tuning up the band”, but stopped and instead looked at Flair while mouthing the words, “I’m sorry. I love you.” The Showstopper delivered a superkick and then covered his idol for the three-count. A great match with an awesome conclusion, although I was disappointed that Flair did not cut a post-match promo or at least drown in the crowd’s cheers for a little while. Instead, he briefly visited with family members at ringside and made his way to the back while acknowledging the fans.

Beth Phoenix and Melina used interference from Santino Marella to score a victory over Maria and Ashley Massaro. Afterward, Snoop Dogg clotheslined Marella and kissed Maria. The arena lost power during this match, but the problem was fixed in time for the next bout.

Randy Orton retained his WWE Title over Triple H and John Cena by pinning Cena after he was pedigreed. Very good, but not quite the match I had expected. The right man emerged with the strap here, as Orton has proven to be a great champion and remains one of the best heels in the business.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. knocked out The Big Show for a ten-count. Many people were happy with how this match played out, but I thought it was the worst bout on the show. The first half - possibly more - consisted of a Cat and Mouse game, as “Money” used his speed to avoid Show. Mayweather utilized his posse during the match, as the boxer’s lackeys interfered several times to rescue their boss. Mayweather used several chair shots before wrapping the necklace of one of his downed troops around his fist and delivering a knockout punch to get the win. I found the majority of this match boring due to all of the stall tactics, but in all honesty, that was probably the most logical script to follow. I suppose it was about as good as could be expected.

The Undertaker won the World Championship by defeating Edge. This was a great match. Edge kicked out of a chokeslam and Last Ride before the referee was inadvertently taken out by an Undertaker big boot. ‘Taker delivered a Tombstone piledriver, but only got a two-count due to the time elapsed while substitute official Charles Robinson sprinted to the ring. Edge speared The Dead Man twice, but Undertaker quickly applied the Gogoplata submission hold following the second one. Edge tapped out and a new World Champion was crowned.

A super card overall. WrestleMania delivered once again this year. Two high-caliber main events, an emotional Ric Flair-Shawn Michaels showdown, and some great in-ring work to fill out the rest of the undercard. Not to mention the surprise moment of the evening with CM Punk winning Money in the Bank. I was happy to see Punk take the briefcase, but I hope WWE has some major plans to re-establish him seeing as he has been doing jobs for much of the past few months.

[Mo]

It was a good ppv...
With a few shocks like 0rton keeping the belt.

[superboy]

Yeah, I thought FOR SURE that Triple H would win the belt.

[superboy]

There are reports that approximately forty fans were injured at the ending of WrestleMania on Sunday when ropes guiding pyro during show-concluding fireworks broke and fell into the crowd. Fortunately, nobody was seriously hurt, although some people were taken to the hospital and quickly released.
Several Orlando radio stations had apparently pushed for the city’s mayor to ban the use of fireworks during last night’s Raw show, but it is believed that such an outlaw was not even considered by the city.

The company responsible for the pyro at ‘Mania was Zenith Pyrotechnology, the same group WWE used for the Vince McMahon limousine explosion last year.

[superboy]

I just saw this article, it made me giggle........
Total Nonstop Action’s plan to fly a company-promoting banner over the Citrus Bowl during WrestleMania was foiled when WWE contacted the plane business TNA had hired and dissuaded them from going through with the job.
WWE also prevented a mobile video truck promoting TNA from remaining outside the Amway Arena during last night’s Raw by refunding the driver’s parking fee.