WrestleMania 31 Pre Show Thread March 29 2015 *Potential Spoilers*

ricero

D-FENS wrote: »

I actually think making this a casket match or buried alive match would have added to it. Bray is a good wrestler but he's no D.Bryan, coupled with Undertaker presumably slowing down a step, a distraction of that sort could have helped.
It also wouldn't hurt Bray if he was buried alive or put in a casket and came back crazier/stronger because of it, a bit like Undertaker used to.
But if he does win, I reckon a family reunion will play a part, neither Harper and Rowan have been on fire in their singles pushes, despite Harper being in the ladder match.

Would love to see Bo Dallas join up with his brother

Caovyn Lineah

ricero wrote: »

Would love to see Bo Dallas join up with his brother

I would love that. How far off is he from returning?

D-FENS

ricero wrote: »

Would love to see Bo Dallas join up with his brother

Or..

Tugboats

Degag wrote: »

Think people are forgetting it yes. People think it's not going to be a good match based on last year but completely forget he was concussed for much of it.

Regardless of the concussion the match with Brock was never going to be great compared to his classics with HHH, HBK and Punk. Now he's older and Wyatt isn't great so this will be a very poor match compared to what everyone remembers Taker for. It has nothing to do with concussions

Palo Alto

Wyatt's fairly excellent. It'll be a great match.

Loughc

D-FENS wrote: »

Can the preshow be viewed for free on WWE.com?

I think it might be moved to the network on wwe.com try YouTube and facebook for free viewing of the preshow.

mrkiscool2

Tugboats wrote: »

Regardless of the concussion the match with Brock was never going to be great compared to his classics with HHH, HBK and Punk. Now he's older and Wyatt isn't great so this will be a very poor match compared to what everyone remembers Taker for. It has nothing to do with concussions

His match with Punk was very meh. It should have been a lot better than it was. Wyatt is a lot better than you give him credit for. Not saying it's going to be Match of the Night or anything, but it will surprise a lot of people. Taker is also looking in great shape compared to last year

Tugboats

mrkiscool2 wrote: »

His match with Punk was very meh. It should have been a lot better than it was. Wyatt is a lot better than you give him credit for. Not saying it's going to be Match of the Night or anything, but it will surprise a lot of people. Taker is also looking in great shape compared to last year

You're judging Undertakers physical condition by seeing a few Instagram pictures? Austin was saying on his recent podcast that you can't judge him by pictures or his recent training.

mrkiscool2

Tugboats wrote: »

You're judging Undertakers physical condition by seeing a few Instagram pictures? Austin was saying on his recent podcast that you can't judge him by pictures or his recent training.

Note I said compared to last year. And yes, you can most definitely compare some things. If someone looks in good shape they normally are. Doesn't mean he will be able to go in the ring like he used to sure but you can definitely say that he looks good and that he is ready.

Look, don't deflect the point onto a little trivial matter just because you don't like one of the superstars in the match. Wyatt has been like Marmite lately-you either love him or hate him. I love him but I'm putting that aside and saying that their match will be decent. It won't be a match we will talk about for years to come but it also won't be terrible.

Palo Alto

It's also all viewed through the prism that you wish; I'm looking forward to it and it'd have to be shocking for me not to buy into it.

Tugboats

mrkiscool2 wrote: »

Note I said compared to last year. And yes, you can most definitely compare some things. If someone looks in good shape they normally are. Doesn't mean he will be able to go in the ring like he used to sure but you can definitely say that he looks good and that he is ready.

Look, don't deflect the point onto a little trivial matter just because you don't like one of the superstars in the match. Wyatt has been like Marmite lately-you either love him or hate him. I love him but I'm putting that aside and saying that their match will be decent. It won't be a match we will talk about for years to come but it also won't be terrible.

I didn't say I don't like Bray Wyatt. I said he's not a great wrestler

Moneymaker

People heavily over rate his match with Punk imo.

Matches with Orton, Edge and Batista in particular were far superior.

Tugboats

Moneymaker wrote: »

People heavily over rate his match with Punk imo.

Matches with Orton, Edge and Batista in particular were far superior.

The psychology in the Punk match was excellent. I watched the Orton match again today and don't really like it. That's the beauty of wrestling everyone has different opinions

Thepoet85

Anyone know what time the HOF is on tonight?

Moneymaker

Tugboats wrote: »

The psychology in the Punk match was excellent. I watched the Orton match again today and don't really like it. That's the beauty of wrestling everyone has different opinions

It definitely told a good story alright. But it's a stretch to say it's one of Takers best matches. That show was such an let down too people rate it more then they would have on a better show imo.

The Orton match you could argue hasn't aged that well. At the time however I believed Orton was beating Taker. Young guy, legend killer gimmick it made logical sense. When he hits the RKO I remember thinking that was it.

Also HBK/Angle had a top 10 all time Mania match right after it so it tends to be forgotten.

Tugboats

Thepoet85 wrote: »

Anyone know what time the HOF is on tonight?

Midnight and the speeches are capped at 12 minutes apparently

mrkiscool2

Tugboats wrote: »

I didn't say I don't like Bray Wyatt. I said he's not a great wrestler

He's also not a bad wrestler.

Tugboats

Moneymaker wrote: »

It definitely told a good story alright. But it's a stretch to say it's one of Takers best matches. That show was such an let down too people rate it more then they would have on a better show imo.

The Orton match you could argue hasn't aged that well. At the time however I believed Orton was beating Taker. Young guy, legend killer gimmick it made logical sense. When he hits the RKO I remember thinking that was it.

Also HBK/Angle had a top 10 all time Mania match right after it so it tends to be forgotten.

Back then I wasn't watching wrestling so it probably didn't help that I didn't know who Orton was. I only every watched Takers Mania matches not the full shows. I haven't seen that HBK/Angle match

Tugboats

mrkiscool2 wrote: »

He's also not a bad wrestler.

I don't think he's great and you don't think he's bad. It sounds like we both agree that he's average

Palo Alto

That's what you call a false dichotomy.

mrkiscool2

Tugboats wrote: »

I don't think he's great and you don't think he's bad. It sounds like we both agree that he's average

Aww really? Thanks for telling me my opinion, it's exactly what I wanted! :rolleyes:

Tugboats

mrkiscool2 wrote: »

Aww really? Thanks for telling me my opinion, it's exactly what I wanted! :rolleyes:

Well instead of just saying he's not bad why don't you tell me how good Wyatt is and where you rate him in the current roster?

Caovyn Lineah

Tugboats wrote: »

Well instead of just saying he's not bad why don't you tell me how good Wyatt is and where you rate him in the current roster?

He could be a main eventer in time, has everything needed including well above average wrestling ability.

mrkiscool2

Tugboats wrote: »

Well instead of just saying he's not bad why don't you tell me how good Wyatt is and where you rate him in the current roster?

I think he is a good wrestler technically. He isn't great. He's a big guy who can move pretty well around the ring and his offence greatly compliments his character. His biggest asset his mic skills and his in-ring psychology. It's the reason I am looking forward to him vs Taker, the in-ring psychology will be amazing!

Moneymaker

Tugboats wrote: »

Back then I wasn't watching wrestling so it probably didn't help that I didn't know who Orton was. I only every watched Takers Mania matches not the full shows. I haven't seen that HBK/Angle match

You should. Like now.

It's an all time classic and maybe Angles best ever match.

Tugboats

mrkiscool2 wrote: »

I think he is a good wrestler technically. He isn't great. He's a big guy who can move pretty well around the ring and his offence greatly compliments his character. His biggest asset his mic skills and his in-ring psychology. It's the reason I am looking forward to him vs Taker, the in-ring psychology will be amazing!

I think he's average in the ring. I know it's not his fault but his excellent mic skills are overused and that results in great promos seeming meh sometimes. I'm expecting a poor match but of course I'd be delighted to be proved wrong. I hope they plan for him to do the crab walk and undertaker sit up at the same time. Missed opportunity if they don't.

Gerry Rio

Mania Trivia

• Stone Cold Steve Austin only competed at 7 WrestleManias, going 5-2. He was 3-0 in World Championship matches (and 3-0 in main events by proxy) and 2-2 in non-title matches.
• Stone Cold has refereed three WrestleMania matches: Lesnar vs. Goldberg at WMXX, Lashley vs. Youmanga at WM23, and (uggh) Lawler vs. Cole at WM27.
• Randy Orton has competed in 4 triple threat matches at WrestleMania, including matches for 3 different World Championships (WHC at WM22, WWE at WM24, WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WMXXX).
• The triple threat match between Legacy at WM26 is the only non-title triple threat match in WrestleMania history
• Like it says in the title, Kurt Angle lost 3 different championships in 3 triple threat matches. In all three instances, he wasn't pinned or made to submit (IC: Benoit pinned Jericho, European: Jericho pinned Benoit, WHC: Mysterio pinned Orton)
• Kurt Angle is 0-5 in championship matches at WrestleMania, 0-2-3 if you count instances where he wasn't involved in the deciding fall. He is 3-0 in non-title matches
• Benoit competed for a championship at every WrestleMania he took part in except WM17 (counting MitB as a championship equivalent)
• The Rock main evented 5 WrestleManias, with a record of 1-4. All 4 losses were in WWE Championship matches.
• The Rock is the only person to main event a WrestleMania in their hometown. Ultimate Warrior may share this record, depending on if Parts Unknown is located in Toronto. Jericho also main evented a Toronto WrestleMania, but he's from Winnipeg you idiot! Hulk Hogan came close, being billed from Venice Beach with WrestleMania VII in Los Angeles.
• Austin and Undertaker are the only people to have won multiple WrestleMania main events without losing a main event (both are 3-0). If Lesnar beats Reigns, he will join this group at 2-0.
• With the ARMBAR reportedly being moved to the pre-show, this will be the first time since WM13 that neither Kane nor Big Show have competed on the main card
• Subject to DNA testing, Andre the Giant and Big Show are the only father-son pairing to have both main evented WrestleMania. Cowboy Bob Orton was in Piper and Orndorff's corner for the main event of WrestleMania I, but didn't actually compete in the match
• Big Show has competed in matches for the WWE Championship, the WHC, the IC, the US, Hardcore and Tag Team Championships at WrestleMania. Yep. The Big Show
• More Hell in a Cell matches have taken place at WrestleMania (Taker vs. BossMan, Taker vs. Helmsley) than traditional cage matches (Hogan vs. Bundy)
• 2 boxing matches have taken place at WrestleMania. The less said about these, the better
• Mick Foley competed in as many matches under his real name as he did under his personas. He competed 3 times as Mick Foley, 1 time as Cactus Jack, 2 times as Mankind, never competed as Dude Love (thanks to /u/lb1997 for pointing out an error)
• In a similar stat, Mick Foley competed at as many WrestleManias after his retirement at No Way Out in 2000 as he did before retiring, again with 3 apiece
• Bigelow vs. Taylor at WMXI is the only main event where none of the competitors would main event another WrestleMania (Angle vs. Lesnar used to fall into this category as well before this year)
• Both Hulk Hogan's and Bret Hart's last WrestleMania matches came against Vince McMahon. So was Shane's, but that's not as crazy to think about
• Bret Hart has both the honor of arguably the best WrestleMania match (I Quit vs. Austin at WM13) and arguably the worst WrestleMania match (vs. McMahon at WM26)
• Shane McMahon is undefeated at WrestleMania, 2-0
• In Shawn Michael's second run, he went 3-5 at WrestleMania. His three wins came against Vince McMahon, Ric Flair and Chris Jericho. So, a 60 year old man, a 59 year old man, and Chris Jericho
• Speaking of Ric Flair, his only WrestleMania win came as part of Evolution against Rock 'n' Sock Connection in a handicap tag match at WrestleMania XX. He was 0-4 in all other matches, including 3 singles matches and a MitB
• Speaking of Evolution, Undertaker is the only man to have defeated all 4 members of Evolution at WrestleMania. Daniel Bryan is the closest to matching this feat, defeating all but Ric Flair, on the same night no less, at WrestleMania XXX. Cena is the next closest, defeating both Helmsley and Batista at WrestleMania
• Shawn Michaels is the only person to have faced both members of The Outsiders (Hall and Nash) at WrestleMania, losing both matches. If Michaels had faced Hogan at WrestleMania, he would be the only man to have faced all members of the original NWO at WrestleMania
• WrestleMania 18 is the only WWE PPV where Hogan wrestles in NWO colors
• Yokozuna competed in 4 WWE Championship matches over the span of 2 WrestleManias. Twice at WMIX and twice at WMX, going 2-2
• Stone Cold is the only person to have challenged for a World Championship in consecutive WrestleMania main events. Michaels, Cena and Undertaker have also challenged for World Championships at consecutive WrestleManias (Michaels: WM11-12, Cena: WM24-27, Undertaker: WM23-24), but not in consecutive main events (thanks to /u/MotoPsycho for pointing out an error)
• Hart vs. Yokozuna and Rock vs. Cena are the only two matches to headline consecutive WrestleManias. Rock vs. Austin is the only match to headline non-consecutive WrestleManias. Rock vs. Cena: Once in a Lifetime is the only match in this group to not be contested for the WWE Championship
• Hulk Hogan and John Cena are the only two to have successfully defended a World Championship in consecutive WrestleMania main events. Helmsley is the only person to have lost a World Championship in two consecutive WrestleMania main events (Yokozuna might count, depending on if you consider Yokozuna vs. Hogan a main event or not)
• Hulk Hogan main evented 7 out of the first 9 WrestleManias (8 if you count Yokozuna vs. Hogan as a main event)
• Hulk Hogan is the only person to have defended the WWE Championship at two consecutive WrestleManias during the same reign. Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan are the only ones to have won the WWE Championship at WrestleMania and defended the title at the next WrestleMania during the same reign
• Before hosting WrestleMania XXX, Hulk Hogan's last appearance at a WrestleMania was at WM21 in a segment where he helped Eugene fight off Hassan and Daivari
• WrestleMania XIX, XX and 22 all had handicap matches. Just kind of weird to think about, considering how rare handicap matches are on PPVs and that these occurred at 3 out of 4 WrestleManias of all places
• The handicap match at WrestleMania XIX was the only Streak match to have not been 1 on 1. It was originally supposed to be a tag team match, with Undertaker teaming with Nathan Jones against Big Show and A-Train. Jones was taken out beforehand (read: not ready for such a big match cough Reigns cough) which resulted in the match becoming a handicap match.
• WrestleMania 21 was the only time both the WWE Championship and WHC changed hands. WrestleMania 27 was the only time both titles were successfully defended
• The Intercontinental Championship was successfully defended in its lone WrestleMania main event appearance
• WrestleMania 23 was the only time the tag team champions were in the main event, albeit as opponents
• Stone Cold and Vince McMahon are the only two Royal Rumble winners to not receive a championship match at WrestleMania the year they won (Austin in 97, Vince in 99)
• Neither Benoit nor Guerrero competed at WrestleMania 18 (Benoit was injured, Guerrero wasn't with the company). At WrestleMania 19, they competed against each other in a triple threat tag team title match (won by Team Angle). At WrestleMania XX, both were world champions
• Undertaker is the only person still competing at WrestleMania to have wrestled at a single-digit WrestleMania. The next closest are Hunter Hearst Helmsley and Goldust, both of whom competed at WrestleMania XII
• WrestleMania XX was 5 hours long and contained 12 matches. WrestleMania IV was 4 hours long and contained 16 matches. WrestleMania VII was 4 hours long and contained 14 matches. WrestleMania 18 was 4 hours long and contained 11 matches. WrestleMania XXX was 4 hours long and contained 7 matches and, from the sounds of it, WrestleMania PlayButton will also be 4 hours long and contain 7 main card matches...
• Sting's debut match in WWE will take place at WrestleMania. The last person to have their debut match at WrestleMania was FaaaaaaaaaaanDaaaaaaaaaaaaaanGoooooooooooooo
• Aside from tournaments, Daniel Bryan is the only wrestler to win two matches at the same WrestleMania
• Twice has the WrestleMania main event ended in a draw and had to be restarted (Hart vs. Michaels XII, Miz vs. Cena 27)
• The WWECW championship was defended only once at WrestleMania: an 11 second squash with Kane beating Chavo Guerrero at WrestleMania 24
• If Roman Reigns defeats Baaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrooooooock Leeeeeeeeesssssssssnnnnnnnnnnnaaaar at WrestleMania, it will be his first pinfall or submission (...okay, pinfall) victory at the event (Ambrose and Rollins scored the pins at 29 and XXX respectively)
• CM Punk never main evented WrestleMania. Jericho, Benoit, Edge, Mick Foley, Kurt Angle, Daniel Bryan, Bam Bam Bigelow, Big Show, Diesel, Ultimate Warrior, Ted Dibiase, Roddy Piper, Paul Orndorff, King Kong Bundy, Sgt. Slaughter, Roman Reigns and The Miz each main evented WrestleMania once
• Randy Savage, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton, Batista, Yokozuna and Sid main evented the same amount of WrestleManias with 2 apiece
• Speaking of Sid, he's the only person to have main evented WrestleMania under two different names (Sid Justice at 8, Sycho Sid at 13)
• Bam Bam Bigelow is the only original ECW Champion to have ever main evented WrestleMania. Big Show is the only WWECW Champion to have main evented WrestleMania. Both title reigns came after they main evented
• Mr. T and Lawrence Taylor have both main evented WrestleMania. CM Punk hasn't
• By pure coincidence, Mr. T and Lawrence Taylor are also the only two African Americans to have ever main evented WrestleMania
• Booker T is the only African American to compete for a World Championship at WrestleMania. There have been as many "Japanese" wrestlers to compete for World Championships at WrestleMania as actual African Americans
• (NOTE: Someone is undoubtedly going to ask about this, so here's a disclaimer: The two stats above do not include The Rock)
• Booker T has only 1 WrestleMania victory, in a tag team championship match with RVD at WMXX
• WrestleMania X and XXX have some interesting parallels. Both events feature what are considered the best opening matches in WrestleMania history in Hart vs. Hart at X and Bryan vs. Helmsley at XXX. Both opening matches feature a competitor who would go on to win the world title in the main event later that night. Both events didn't have a finalized main event until the show was underway, with Yokozuna beating Luger and Bryan beating Helmsley finalizing the respective main events
• WrestleMania XX and XXX also have some interesting parallels. Both events featured triple threat main event matches won with a crossface submission maneuver. Both non-winners were former stable-mates (D-X and Evolution respectively). There was a spot where the eventual winner was driven through the announce table by a double-team move. Both matches feature Helmsley playing an important role (defending World Heavyweight Champion at XX, interfering at XXX). Both winners had been in the company a little more than four years at that point (Benoit defected to WWE in January 2000, Bryan joined NXT in February 2010). Both main event winners competed in a tag team championship match on the previous WrestleMania. Both main event winners were in a multi-man ladder match on the following WrestleMania
• WrestleMania I is the only one to not feature a WWE Championship match, and was the only time a tag team match headlined the event
• Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus got bumped to a dark match at 27, was a squash match at 28, was rumored to be a match at 30 and was rumored to be a match at this year's WrestleMania, meaning there could've been 4 Bryan vs. Sheamus matches in a 5 WrestleMania span
• What do Bruno Sammartino and The Gobbledy Gooker have in common? Both have only had 1 WrestleMania match, a losing appearance in a battle royal
• Only Undertaker and Brock Lesnar have a decade between consecutive World Championship matches at WrestleMania (Taker: 13-23, Lesnar: 19-31)
• Lesnar has the longest stretch between main events in history (12 years), just beating out the previous record held by The Rock (11 years)
• Jericho, Cena, Mysterio, Miz and Orton have all gone from the opening match of WrestleMania one year to a World Championship match the following year.
• Paul Orndorff is the only person to go from main eventing WrestleMania to opening the event the following year. Bryan or Orton can join this stat depending on their match placement on the card
• No one has gone from main eventing WrestleMania to being left off the card the next year that was still in the company. If they weren't on the card, it was because of injury (ex. Helmsley) or retirement (ex. Michaels) or defecting (ex. Hart)
• So far, no MitB has ever been cashed in at WrestleMania. Dolph Ziggler came the closest, cashing in the night after WM29. Mr. Kennedy...KENNEDY and Daniel Bryan both degla declared their intentions to cash in at WrestleMania, but neither came to fruition (Kennedy got injured and lost his MitB to Edge, Bryan cashed in four months earlier on Big Show)
• Miz is the only person to have defended a World Championship at WrestleMania during a MitB cash-in reign
• Curtis Axel has never lost at WrestleMania #AXELMANIA!

Tugboats

What's everyone expecting from the atmosphere for tomorrow night? I'm guessing as its an open air venue it may not be the best?

KingJamsie

Tugboats wrote: »

What's everyone expecting from the atmosphere for tomorrow night? I'm guessing as its an open air venue it may not be the best?

What was WM29 crowd like?

Moneymaker

KingJamsie wrote: »

What was WM29 crowd like?

Dead. They got into Taker and Punk but that's it.