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WWE WrestleMania 31 in-depth report

Welcome to the Levi’s Stadium in sunny Santa Clara, California, for WrestleMania 31!

TYSON KIDD AND CESARO VS LOS MATADORES VS THE NEW DAY VS THE USOS (Fatal 4 Way for the WWE Tag Team titles)

The first match on the pre-show was the WWE Tag Team title fatal 4 way between The Usos, Los Matadores, The New Day, and Tyson Kidd and Cesaro. Cesaro threw Jimmy Uso at the barricade to take him out. He had a shoulder injury and couldn’t really wrestle so that was the easy way to take him out, leaving his brother Jey alone. There was a cool spot where Cesaro suplexed Big E from the apron and then everybody suplexing each other. Natalya got on the action by putting the bull in the Sharpshooter and Naomi flew in with Jey over the top rope and then hit the Rear View on Natalya. They did a double double-suplex spot and Cesaro eventually pinned Big E after Jey hit the splash, tagging himself in prior to Jey hitting the splash.

ANDRE THE GIANT MEMORIAL BATTLE ROYAL

Lot of Superstars in the ring at once, including those who did the fatal 4 way match, pulling double duty. Axelmania got attacked by everyone and after tearing his shirt, he was picked up and eliminated by…everybody! Crowd booed! Big Show eliminated Hideo Itami and fans did not appreciate it at all. Ryback dumped Ascension both at the same time. Big E clotheslined Big Show over the top but Show hung on ala Shawn Michaels and then eliminated the rest of The New Day. Cesaro eliminated Kane the way he threw Big Show out last year and then Show eliminated Cesaro. Final three were Big Show, Miz, and Mizdow. Miz gave Mizdow orders but Mizdow refused and fans exploded. Miz poked Mizdow and then Mizdow threw Miz over the top rope eliminating him. Big Show laughed at Mizdow and Mizdow unloaded on Show but Show knocked him out with a shoulder block. Show ran at Mizdow, he ducked, but Show hung on again. Big Show finally eliminates Mizdow to win the battle royal.

PAY-PER-VIEW OPEN

Aloe Blacc signs America The Beautiful acapella, a tradition that has been missing from the past couple WrestleManias.

LL Cool J then kicks off WrestleMania with a fantastic narration and opening video.

WADE BARRETT VS DOLPH ZIGGLER VS LUKE HARPER VS DANIEL BRYAN VS R-TRUTH VS DEAN AMBROSE VS STARDUST (Intercontinental title ladder match)

Pat Patterson was in the ring before the PPV kicked off and hung the Intercontinental title. Daniel Bryan was out first to a big pop. Lots of ladders at ringside which means a lot of crazy things will happen.

Match started with pedal to the metal with everyone flying over the top rope and Ambrose dropping an elbow from the top of the ladder outside. Bryan got the first hard hit with Harper throwing the ladder at him. Stardust was the first to knock everyone off the ladder with a dropkick, sending the rest flying down. Lots of “Cody” chants after that. Stardust got his own shiny ladder but Bad News Barrett broke it and beat everyone with it.

Harper wrapped a ladder around his neck and went in airplane mode before Truth crashed the party. Stardust went up on the big ladder but was suplexed from the top by Bad News. Bryan, Ziggler, climbed the ladder but Ambrose pushed them off. Harper drove Ambrose through a ladder with a power bomb, snapping it in half on the outside. Ziggler climbed up the ladder alone but Barrett hit him with the Bull Hammer while pulling him away.

Bryan hit the knee on Wade Barrett, climbed the ladder alone but Ziggler flew up the ladder, with both reaching for the title. The two fought at the top of the ladder exchanging headbutts and then Bryan grabbed the Intercontinental title for the win after knocking Ziggler down.

RANDY ORTON VS SETH ROLLINS

Seth Rollins and J&J Security come out first with Orton looking like he just came straight out of the shower. Orton has his twelfth WrestleMania in a row today and has new gear to celebrate this new milestone.

Orton went for the RKO very early but Rollins escaped. Noble and Mercury didn’t take long to interfere and Orton took out J&J with a double DDT from the apron to the floor. Rollins did a picture-perfect moonsault to the outside of the ring, hitting Orton but still managing to eat the front of the announce table himself.

Orton hit an RKO “out of nowhere” and Rollins kicked out at 2 and 3/4. He then went for the punt  but J&J interfered again and RKO’d both. Rollins then hit the Curb Stomp but Orton kicked out. Orton then hit the mother of all RKO’s when Rollins went for the Curb Stomp but Orton stood up and lifted him in mid-air and hit the RKO for the 1-2-3. Impressive.

TRIPLE H VS STING

A bunch of men in Sting face paint are on stage playing drums. Sting came out with a red robe and dark smoke and perfect face paint. Shots of San Francisco then play, interrupted by the Terminator. The play button on stage turns into Terminator eye. Bunch of Terminators are on stage and Triple H rises from the stage in Terminator gear and he along with the other Terminators rise up….way up high. Schwarzenegger then appears on video. “WrestleMania, judgment day is here. It’s time to play the game!” And with that, HHH’s theme hits the speakers to a big pop from the crowd.

This match, all of a sudden, can only be won via pinfall or submission. Fans chant “This is awesome” before the two even lock up. Old school start to the match and Sting even throws a dropkick with fans chanting “You still got it!” Action spilled outside and Sting tried a Stinger Splash but HHH moved away and he hit the barricade, and afterward he ate the steps. That turned the match around with HHH getting most of the upper hand.

As Sting had Triple H in the Scorpion Deathlock, DX intefered. That’s X-Pac, Billy Gunn, and Road Dogg. Sting then went on the top rope and flew on all of them outside the ring. Triple H hit the Pedigree on Sting but Sting kicked out.

All of a sudden, nWo music kicked in, and Hogan, Hall, and Nash came out as nWo and DX went to war. Sting hit the Scorpion Death Drop but HHH kicked out and then locked the Scorpion Death Lock again.  HHH went for the sledgehammer but Hogan took it away and then X-Pac attacked Hogan, Nash took out Pac, and Road Dogg backdropped Hall. HBK all of a sudden comes out and super kicks Sting. Triple H covers Sting but Sting kicks out. HHH gets his sledgehammer again and Hall hands a baseball bat to Sting and breaks his sledgehammer in half with a swing. Triple H eventually hits Sting with a sledgehammer and covers for the pin.

After the match, DX and the nWo stared each other in the ring as they stood opposite sides. HHH then extended his hand to Sting and the two shook hands.

CONCERT!

Skylar Gray, Kidd Ink, and Travis Barker play for the WWE Universe giving a few minutes of breather time. And a piss break. And beer time. Which apparently is very expensive at the Levi’s Stadium.

AJ LEE AND PAIGE VS THE BELLA TWINS

#GiveDivasAChance is next with AJ and Paige out first and then the Bella not-so-much Twins anymore following. Paige has blue highlights in her hair now.

Match starts with Nikki and Paige and Nikki delivers an Alabama Slam, hit perfectly. Brie hits a missile dropkick and works on Paige some more. Nikki hit the torture rack finisher but Paige, making her WM debut, kicks out. AJ was outside the ring hurt and every time she was trying to get back in she kept getting knocked down. AJ eventually made it up and tagged in, exploding on Nikki.

Outside the ring, Paige disposed of Brie and AJ hit the Black Widow on Nikki, who tapped out. Paige and AJ then hugged in the ring in celebration. Match was relatively quick, so the Divas didn’t get much of a chance at WrestleMania.

HALL OF FAME SEGMENT

A recap of last night’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony was played.

The Fink is out to present the class of 2015, Rikishi, Larry Zbysko, Alundra Blayze, Connor “The Crusher” Michalek, The Bushwhackers, Tatsumi Fujinami, Macho Man Randy Savage, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Kevin Nash, who got his own entrance with the nWo theme song as the headliner this year.

RUSEV VS JOHN CENA (U.S. title match)

The USSR anthem is played with artillery on display, Russian soldiers, and Lana walking down the ramp holding the U.S. title. Rusev then comes out in a freakin tank. Footage of America is played with appearances from Reagan, Bush, and Obama, with a soundtrack used years ago which is totally awesome. A big pop from the crowd as the video ends and some boos when Cena’s theme hits. The Santa Clara crowd sings “John Cena Sucks” along with theme.

Cena tries a pin in the first 3 seconds of the match but Rusev no sells. Lana is standing pretty outside looking beautiful. Rusev quickly turns the match around and goes on the offensive. but that did not last long as Cena “goes vintage” as Cole said. Cena hit the five knuckle shuffle and tried the AA but Rusev escaped. Fans started a “Let’s go Lana” chant with both Superstars being booed.

Cena hit the STF and Lana threw her shoe in the ring. What? Rusev went to the top rope and hit a Chris Benoit headbutt. Cena hits a back way stunner from the second rope, one new move in his arsenal. Rusev locks the Accolade camel clutch but Cena broke it by standing up and ramming him in the turnbuckle. Cena puts Rusev in the STF but he got out, then Lana stood up on the apron for distraction. Rusev ran the ropes and Cena moved, and Rusev bulldozed Lana. One AA later and Rusev’s undefeated streak is dead. New U.S. champion.

After the match, Rusev goes nuts on Lana and walks out alone as Lana is helped to the back. The champ is here.

THE ROCK RETURNS…WITH RONDA ROUSEY!

Stephanie McMahon and Triple H are out in the ring to announce a new indoor attendance record at the Levi’s Stadium of 76,976. Steph pats herself on the back for making WWE what it is today. HHH said the truth hurts, he said not only did he beat Sting tonight he feels he beat everyone who bet against him. He beat 76,976 people, and owns millions others. The Authority always wins, he said.

“If yaa smeeeellllll” and The Rock comes out! Fresh off hosting SNL, the People’s champ is here! Lots of Rocky chants obviously and fans start a “This is awesome” chant. Rock said you don’t own them (the fans) and not even The Rock. The Rock was born in East Bay and he’s an East Bay boy. Cheap pop. He said he has two choices, go back and dress like Terminator again or they can create a WrestleMania moment, right here, right now.

The two stand nose to nose and HHH said they had a great rivalry, remembering he kicked his ass for most of it so he got nothing to prove to him. Rock said Triple H left his balls in Stamford and the jacket comes off. Without the McMahons, there would be no Rock, Steph said. She said Peter Maivia, Rocky Johnson, and Dwayne Johnson would be nobody without Vince, Vince Jr., and herself. Rock fired back saying she wouldn’t be in power if it wasn’t for Vince’s Johnson!

Steph slapped The Rock hard, and told him to get out of the ring. Fans chanting “Ronda Ronda” for Rousey. Rock started to walk back, then he turned around, stopped in front of Rousey. He then turns around and camera pans to Rousey and the crowd exploded. Rousey jumps the barricade and into the WWE ring as fans chanted “Holy shit! and “Ronda’s gonna kill you!” Rock tells Steph he’ll never hit a woman but his good friend would be happy to. Stephanie disses Rousey telling her this is her ring, and tells her to get out of the ring and enjoy WM as a little fan. Rousey told her to make her leave and any ring she’s into it’s her ring.

Rock then hit Triple H and Ronda took down HHH with a hip toss and HHH sold it like a boss. Steph tried to slap Ronda but she blocked it and nearly put her in the arm lock but she let her out. If ya smell what The Rock and Ronda Rousey are cooking. WrestleMania moment for the ages.

UNDERTAKER VS BRAY WYATT

Bray Wyatt comes out first for the match against the Undertaker, walking slowly. The Undertaker makes his daylight entrance, his first appearance since last year’s WrestleMania. Taker grew some of his hair back, sporting the American Bad Ass gimmick hair style now.

All this is mine now, screams Wyatt. Taker hits a big boot immediately after Wyatt ran towards him. He goes for old school, walking the ropes just like he did back in the 90s. He also did the leg drop across the chest on the apron. Wyatt gets the upper hand after avoiding another boot to the face. He works on Taker for quite a few and then went for the Sister Abigail but Taker chokeslammed him instead. Finger across the neck signal and Tombstone time.

Taker hit it but Bray Wyatt kicked out of the Tombstone at 2. The Undertaker went for the second Tombstone but Wyatt hits the Sister Abigail and covers but Taker kicked out at the end of the 2 count. Close one! Wyatt went upside down like he usually does and started crawling and Taker sat up for an awesome segment. The two exchanged punches and then Wyatt try to hit the finisher again, but Taker reversed it, hit the Tombstone and covered Wyatt for the pin. The streak might be dead, but the Undertaker is alive and well! 22-1. Undertaker looked great here.

BROCK LESNAR VS ROMAN REIGNS (WWE World Heavyweight Title match)

Roman Reigns music hit and the boos fill the Levi’s Stadium as expected. Reigns walks through the crowd surrounded by armed and real  police as fans all try to touch him.

Lesnar comes out jogging out of the back, with the title wrapped around his waist accompanied by Paul Heyman. The pyro guy, who has one job hitting the button in sync, missed his cue during Lesnar’s entrance.

Lilian Garcia introduces Roman Reigns, and then Paul Heyman introduces Lesnar with the crowd chanting along to the reigning, defending, undisputed WWE champ shtick.

Lesnar picks Reigns like a rag doll and suplexes him, then F5s him. Lesnar is cut. The champ is killing Reigns in the ring as fans chant “Let’s go Lesnar.” Fans, not liking Reigns, are chanting “This is awesome” at the sight of Lesnar owning Reigns. Reigns eventually gets some offensive moves and throws some stiff shots but Lesnar clotheslines Reigns’ head into another postcode. Lesnar hits the F5, the second one, but Reigns kicks out at 2.

Lesnar slaps his opponent and Reigns keeps laughing and then hits the third F5 and Reigns kicks out again! Lesnar is now bleeding profusely after getting his head rammed into the post. Both back in the ring and Reigns hits the Superman punch, and another one, and a third one. Reigns hits the spear, and another spear and Lesnar kicks out at 2.99999999. Reigns goes for the fourth Superman punch but Lesnar catches him for a fourth F5.

Seth Rollins comes in and cashes in his Money In The Bank contract and turns the match into a triple threat match. Curb stomp to Lesnar, then goes for second one, but Lesnar catches him and goes for the F5 but Reigns spears Lesnar with Rollins on his shoulder and then Rollins delivered the curb stomp to Reigns and covers for the 1, 2, 3.

NEW WWE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION!

Massive fireworks go off the Levi’s Stadium as Seth Rollins poses at the top of the ramp as the new WWE World Heavyweight champion.

Colin Vassallo
Colin Vassallohttps://www.wrestling-online.com
Colin Vassallo has been editor of Wrestling-Online since 1996. He is born and raised in Malta, follows professional wrestling and MMA, loves to travel, and is a big Apple fan!

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