Welcome to another edition of Sports Throwback Thursday! I know I didn’t write a Sports Throwback Thursday post last week, but I made sure that today I will give you something to read about. Today, I will talk about Wrestlemania 21. My favorite Wrestlemania during the Ruthless Aggression Era.
Wrestlemania 21 was special. You had an epic match between Kurt Angle and Shawn Michaels. They put on a show. Two great wrestlers bringing the best out of each other. This is one of the matches where you had to tip your hat to HBK. Although he lost the match by tapping out to the ankle lock, but he performed so well in that match. He got a standing ovation.
Edge won Money in the Bank match. I used to think Edge was crazy because of the facial expressions he used to make. I’m like “what is wrong with this dude?.” I feel that Wrestlemania 21 was the beginning of Edge hitting his peak moments in the business. The beginning of a future main event wrestler.
Randy Orton aka the “Legend Killer” vs “The Phenom” The Undertaker is one of my favorite rivalries in the Ruthless Aggression Era. This was an exciting match to watch. It was their first of several matches they went on to have in 2005. Undertaker defeated Randy Orton connecting with a Tombstone Piledriver to keep his Wrestlemania undefeated streak at that time. The streak was broken by Brock Lesnar.
John Cena and Batista won their first world titles at Wrestlemania 21. Cena defeated JBl, Batista defeated Triple H. They became the two of the biggest superstars since The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin. I was a big fan of Batista. 2005 was his best year. The company went on to make John Cena as the top guy in the business. I was hoping for Batista to be the top guy for years to come, but the man is having success in Hollywood. I respect John Cena’s work ethic and dedication to the company. I don’t like his gimmick, he’s been the same character for over ten years, but his hustle is something I respect.