Welcome to another edition of Sports Throwback Thursday! Today, I will walk about the unforgettable Wrestlemania 20, which took place in Madison Square Garden.
Wrestlemania 20 matches included Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg with Stone Cold Steve Austin as the Special Referee. Rock n Sock Connection vs. Evolution, Kane vs. The Undertaker Part 2, and the triple threat match for the World Heavyweight title featuring Triple H, Shawn Michaels, and Chris Benoit.
Lesnar vs. Goldberg was bittersweet and could’ve been better. We knew that this was Brock Lesnar’s final match because he would try out to play football for the Minnesota Vikings. However, we didn’t expect that this was going to be Goldberg’s last match as well. So it sucked because both wrestlers are fan favorites and know how to entertain the crowd. Goldberg won the match. After the match, Brock Lesnar stuck out his middle finger to the crowd and then to Austin; Austin hit him with the stunner and threw him out of the ring. Afterward, Goldberg joined Austin for a beer celebration. Austin also gave Goldberg a stunner. D.T.A. (Don’t Trust Anyone). Lesnar would return to WWE in 2012. Goldberg again returned to the company, but for a short stint.
Kane vs. Undertaker is always legendary; Brothers of Destruction clashing. This was their second match at Wrestlemania. The first one was back in Wrestlemania 14 (1998). Undertaker won that match; when Masked Kane was a monster. Undertaker won the rematch and gained revenge against Kane for costing him the Buried Alive match vs. Vince McMahon at Survivor Series 2003.
Rock n Sock Connection vs. Evolution. Before Randy Orton and Batista became stars in the company, they were part of Evolution. Let me also inform you that this was The Rock’s final match before making a return in 2011. As you can see, Wrestlemania 20 gave fans a reason to say more “goodbyes” than “see you later.” Evolution won the match, and The Rock went off to continue making Hollywood movies.
As for the main event, Chris Benoit made Triple H tapped out with his finish move, crippled cross face. Benoit became a world champion for the first time in his career. The unforgettable image came after when WWE champion Eddie Guerrero joined his best friend in the ring. They shared an incredible moment. Rest in Peace to both Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit.