Sorry if these have already been posted... I looked to see if they had been, but not all that closely.
I'm not gonna bother posting the entire TV Guide WrestleMania article here... I'll just post their snippets-- “Favorite Feuds” and “The Main Events”.
Favorite Feuds-- WrestleMania's five best bouts
Andre the Giant vs. Hulk Hogan WrestleMania III, March 29, 1987
The Lowdown: A record crowd of 93,173 witnessed Andre the Giant, undefeated for 15 years, versus Hulk Hogan, wrestling's golden boy.
The Payoff: Hogan body-slammed the 400-pound Giant, becoming the sport's biggest star and jump-starting wrestling's first big boom.
The Rock vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin WrestleMania X-7, April 1, 2001
The Lowdown: The two biggest stars of wrestling's modern era went toe-to-toe in the culmination of a two-year-long feud.
The Payoff: Good-guy Austin aligned with “evil” WWE owner Vince McMahon and decimated the Rock to win the title in front of a shocked crowd.
Hulk Hogan vs. The Ultimate Warrior WrestleMania VI, April 1, 1990
The Lowdown: The most divisive feud ever-- fan favorite Hulk Hogan defended his title against up-and-coming phenom the Ultimate Warrior.
The Payoff: Half the crowd went into cardiac arrest (the other half were in tears) when Hogan missed his patented leg drop and the Warrior won.
Bret Hart vs. Shawn MIchaels WrestleMania XII, March 31, 1996
The Lowdown: Two men who didn't like each other outside the ring locked up in a 60-minute Iron Man match for the title.
The Payoff: After an hour, neither man had scored a pinfall. Finally, Michaels, aka the Heartbreak Kid, pinned Hart in overtime to win the belt.
Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar WrestleMania XIX, March 30, 2003
The Lowdown: Olympic medalist Angle squared off against former NCAA wrestling champ Lesnar in a punshing bout.
The Payoff: The 295-pound Lesnar landed on his head after attempting a high-flying attack. But he recovered to pin Angle and capture the championship.
The Main Events-- We handicap the big fights of the night
SmackDown! Contenders
Kurt Angle
Strength: He has the big-match experience, including wrestling in last year's main event.
Weakness: He battles injuries as years of physical abuse have taken their toll.
Eddie Guerrero
Strength: He's on a roll after winning his first WWE world title last month.
Weakness: He's 1-2 all-time in matches at WrestleMania.
We Say: Olympic hero Angle regains the championship, bouncing back from his loss to Brock Lesnar a year ago with another stirring performance.
RAW Contenders
Triple H
Strength: He's one of WWE's most accomplished stars.
Weakness: As defending champ, the target is squarely on his chest.
Shawn Michaels
Strength: With his career winding down, he'd love one last title run.
Weakness: As the oldest of three, the Heartbreak Kid has the odds against him.
Chris Benoit
Strength: The most technically skilled wrestler of the three.
Weakness: He's facing men who have 12 combined WWE world titles.
We Say: Triple H keeps his title. “The Game” has too much experience and willpower and retains the crown in a lengthy battle.
I Say: I'm surprised that the TV Guide article shows as much knowledge about wrestling as it does. It's not easy to argue with the list of matches they came up with in their favorite-feuds category. I mean, sure, there are omissions. But none of those matches I would classify as being bad or anything.
Regarding the predictions. I very seriously doubt that TV Guide has this one right. They make convincing arguments for their predictions, but they're assuming that heels are going to win both title matches. I simply don't see that happening. I think a heel will win one match and a face will win the other; if Guerrero retains, Triple H retains; if Angle wins the WWE title, Benoit or Michaels will win the World Title.
Of course, all predictions will be proven right or wrong at WrestleMania XX.
(Edit: HTML tag snafu)
(edited by ekedolphin on 11.3.04 2352) “You wanna mock people, or you wanna let me talk to Toby?” “I wanna mock people.” --Leo McGarry and Josh Lyman, The West Wing
Two-Time, Two-Time Randomly Selected Wiener of the Day, 5/27/02 and 7/3/02
Certified RFMC Member-- Ask To See My Credentials!
They actually did a pretty good job. Like you. on the best feuds nothing really stands out as "How is that in there?"... I think they are wrong on this years predictions, like you said eke, one face will come out with the victory, my money is on Eddie.
Thanks for the heads up, I went to TV Guide's website and they also had the top 5 males and females from the Wrestlemania era.. This list (tvguide.com) seems a bit more debatable... Hope you don't mind me putting it in this thread but seeing how this about TV Guide article I hope it's okay we can make a big thread about both contents.
Top Five Men of the Wrestlemania Era
1. HULK HOGAN From teaming with Mr. T at the very first WrestleMania to his epic encounter with Vince McMahon at last year's edition, the Hulkster has always been the definition of big time.
2. THE UNDERTAKER The record speaks for itself. Twelve WrestleManias. No losses. And he aims to make it 13-0 when he takes on his demonic brother Kane at this year's 'Mania.
3. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN No wrestler has had more signature moments on wrestling's biggest stage. From an epic "I Quit" match against Bret Hart at WM XIII to wars with the Rock, he's done it all.
4. SHAWN MICHAELS The Heartbreak Kid has his share of classic 'Mania matches, too. A brutal ladder match with Razor Ramon at WM X and a battle against Austin at WM XIV are just two of many.
5. Triple H From humble beginnings (fodder for the Ultimate Warrior at WM XII), "The Game" has risen to the top, headlining WrestleMania 2000, X-8 and this year's event.
Top Five Women of the Wrestlemania Era
1. THE FABULOUS MOOLAH Because she's defined women's wrestling since her debut in 1949. She has only one title defense at 'Mania — at WM II — but you've got to hand it to a senior citizen still willing to step into the ring.
2. TRISH STRATUS The top star of today, she's a bombshell who wins fans with her in-ring work. Not an easy feat, considering the eye-candy populating the current WWE women's division.
3. WENDI RICHTER Teaming with Cyndi Lauper at WrestleMania I launched Richter to new levels of fame. She reigned as women's champion during the "Rock 'N Wrestling" heyday.
4. SABLE She posed for Playboy on three different occasions, but Sable was also a fierce competitor and a fan favorite. Her mixed-tag match at WrestleMania XIV was a perfect example of her intensity.
5. CHYNA The "Ninth Wonder of the World" was so intimidating that she wrestled men (and won the intercontinental championship). She, too, posed for Playboy, proving there was beauty to go with her brawn.
I say - The lack of Rock is somewhat surprising. I mean HHH over The Rock? whaaaaaat?... Reading Sable caption I have to wonder, or they talking about the same Sable? I'm not even doubting her being on the list but "fierce competitor"? LoL
(edited by Net Hack Slasher on 12.3.04 0231) smark/net attack wienerville advisory is lowered to BLUE alert - Guarded (Due to Eddie being WWE champ and facing Angle at WM, Benoit winning the Rumble in World title match in mania BUT Kliq members is still a threat - Vince you can save us from these threats) 2/17
Honors for Smartest thing ever written, 5th Horseman "When Victoria, Trish, Molly, and Lilian were in the ring.. I commented to my friends that all of the 4 ladies in the ring were hotter than the all 4 that are fighting over who is the hottest in the WWE"
The Rock hasn't exactly had a stellar WM career...
WM XIII: Has a shitty match VS The Sultan, match begins the "Rocky Sucks" backlash.
WM XIV: Gets his ass handed to him by Ken Shamrock, only wins via reverse decision.
WM XV: Loss #1 to Stone Cold
WM 2000: Gets swerved by Vince, becomes the last man eliminated in the ME.
WM X-Seven: Loss #2 to Stone Cold.
WM X-8: Beats Hogan, but crowd turns on him. (On a related note, WTF was up with the editing in of "Rocky" chants during the Top 10 matches special?)
WM XIX: Finally beats Austin.
So as you see, Rock's really only had one good night at WM, that being last year.
Oh, I haven't seen one copy of these TV guides. The ones in my local store all have something else on the cover. (And they are the guides for the 13th through 19th.)
(edited by King Of Crap on 12.3.04 1318) You think WWE now is bad? Some of us had to live through 1993-1996!
I agree with KoC that Rocky doesn't exactly have a stellar WrestleMania record. But I daresay that Rock's matches at WrestleMania have been more memorable (in a positive way) than Triple H's matches (which, in a couple of instances, are memorable in a negative way). After all, if you believe what WWE wants you to believe, then Triple H defeated Stephanie McMahon (accompanied by some blond Canadian guy) at WrestleMania X-8 to win the Undisputed Title.
I'd put Rock over Triple H in the top-five, but other than that I'd leave it alone. Again TV Guide does a surprisingly good job by my estimation.
I'd at the very least bump Moolah down a few slots, and probably put Elizabeth on that list (sure, she didn't wrestle, but she was involved in many a Great WrestleMania moment), but other than that, no real complaints about the women's list.
“You wanna mock people, or you wanna let me talk to Toby?” “I wanna mock people.” --Leo McGarry and Josh Lyman, The West Wing
Two-Time, Two-Time Randomly Selected Wiener of the Day, 5/27/02 and 7/3/02
Certified RFMC Member-- Ask To See My Credentials!
Bret Hart should be on the top wrestlers list too, probably over HHH. After all, his 'Mania 10 win paved the way for a new era. And his Mania 13 match with Austin is one of the best of all time, not to mention his appeareances going back to the second Wrestlemania. The other picks are ok.
Bret Hart should easily be in the Top 5 of All-Time WrestleMania performers from both a "kayfabe/mark" perspective and a smart perspective.
His matches with Austin, Owen, and Michaels are often labeled as the greatest in the history of the event. Many on the net think his match with Owen was the best. WWE labeled his Ironman Match with Michaels as the best. People within the industry voted his match with Austin as the best in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Bret's match at WM8 with Roddy Piper is a forgotten classic and was probably the best match I've ever seen Piper in. The psychology and story telling in that match was incredible.
His *12* consecutive WrestleMania matches alone should get him in the Top 5. Undertaker has the streak and all but hardly any of those matches were memorable and many of them god awful (Giant Gonzalez, Big Bossman). Triple H has had a couple good matches at Mania but nothing great.
My Top 5 would be:
1. Hulk Hogan 2. Bret Hart 3. Steve Austin 4. Randy Savage 5. The Rock