{"id":21254,"date":"2017-04-06T09:58:06","date_gmt":"2017-04-05T23:58:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/?p=21254"},"modified":"2017-04-17T10:50:30","modified_gmt":"2017-04-17T00:50:30","slug":"wrestlemania-33-review-and-results","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/?p=21254","title":{"rendered":"Wrestlemania 33 Review and Results"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"tagwwe\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"wm33\"<\/a><\/p>\n

T<\/span>he Hardy Boys returned, Goldberg was defeated cleanly for the first time in his career, John Cena proposed and The Undertaker retired at an eventful and exciting\u00a0Wrestlemania<\/em> show where most of the top billed stars were popular performers from the turn of the century.<\/p>\n

Here’s a run down of the results.<\/p>\n

\"wm33armbar\"<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Andre the Giant Jobber Battle Royal<\/strong>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

This match had the strangest final three competitors with Mojo Rawley, Jinder Mahal and Titus O’Neill standing tall after the much more fancied Braun Strowman, Big Show and Sami Zayn had been eliminated. \u00a0Mojo would eventually win after some interference from an American sports celebrity called The Gronk distracted Jinder Mahal.<\/p>\n

This strange and out-of-left-field booking\u00a0was reminiscent of Zack Ryder winning last year’s Intercontinental Championships ladder match. \u00a0Perhaps this will be part of a new\u00a0Wrestlemania<\/em> tradition to show that ‘anything can happen’? \u00a0Like Ryder last year, I don’t actually expect the company to do anything with Mojo after this.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Braun Strowman
\nWho Did Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Mojo Rawley<\/p>\n

\"wmcruisers\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Neville vs Austin Aries<\/strong><\/p>\n

They wrestled a lengthy twenty minute match in arguably the match of the night and no one cared \ud83d\ude41<\/p>\n

What is about the WWE and their inability to effectively book a cruiserweight division?<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Austin Aries
\nWho Did Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Neville<\/p>\n

\"stylesshane\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Shane McMahon vs AJ Styles<\/strong><\/p>\n

Fans responded pretty positively to this match whose highlights included Shane doing a shooting star press, a Van Terminator and a dive through a table.<\/p>\n

I thought the match was okay but the booking annoyed me to no end as Shane was basically shown to be AJ’s equal when it came to mat wrestling and toughness. \u00a0Shane is also able to get himself over by using half a dozen high spots that few other wrestlers would have the freedom to incorporate into their own matches. \u00a0This was by no means a bad match but it still felt like a wasted use of AJ Styles after the year he had.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>AJ Styles
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>AJ Styles<\/p>\n

\"uschamp\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Chris Jericho vs Kevin Owens<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was a perfectly serviceable match that didn’t really reach the heights that either wrestler is capable of. \u00a0It was definitely a match that could’ve used a bit more time. \u00a0The ending (Owens pinned Jericho after powerbombing him on the ring apron) seemed to come out of nowhere.<\/p>\n

I’d say that Chris Jericho is actually something of a\u00a0Wrestlemania<\/em> underperformer. \u00a0He’s one of the most talented wrestlers of his generation but his best\u00a0Wrestlemania<\/em> match was against Shawn Michaels at\u00a0Wrestlemania XIX<\/em> and he hasn’t had anything else come close to that quality ever since.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Kevin Owens
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Kevin Owens<\/p>\n

\"rawwomen\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Raw Womens Title Match<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was a short but fantastic match that desperately needed another 5-10 minutes. \u00a0There was a fun opening segment where Sasha, Bayley and Charlotte had to work together to overcome Nia Jax. \u00a0After that, the three remaining women put on a fun showcase where Charlotte in particular outshone her opponents with some extraordinary feats of athleticism. \u00a0Bayley would go on to retain the title in a moment that would’ve meant so much more if she had gone into the match without the belt.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Bayley
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Bayley<\/p>\n

\"mixtag\"<\/a><\/p>\n

John Cena and Nikki Bella vs The Miz and Maryse<\/strong><\/p>\n

Literally what everyone expected to happen, happened. \u00a0Cena and Nikki won a short match and then Cena proposed post match.<\/p>\n

Be careful opening the wedding gift from Jake the Snake, guys.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>John Cena and Nikki Bella
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>John Cena and Nikki Bella<\/p>\n

\"rawtag\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Raw Tag Team Match<\/strong><\/p>\n

The biggest pop of the night came from the Raw ladder match when hosts New Day announced the addition of the Hardy Boyz into the match. \u00a0They came out to a deafening pop and won the tag titles in an entertaining match that featured a signature death-defying leap from Jeff Hardy.<\/p>\n

I’m starting to think that Enzo and Big Cass will never have their moment with the titles. \u00a0They’re a pretty one note act that are only going to get staler from here and now they’ve been totally eclipsed by the Hardyz.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Enzo and Big Cass
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>The Hardy Boyz<\/p>\n

\"triplehrollins\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Triple H vs Seth Rollins<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was a perfectly okay match but unfortunately the crowd suffered a bit of fatigue after the Raw tag team ladder match so they were pretty quiet for long portions of this match. \u00a0At least Triple H did the right thing and did the J-O-B.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Triple H
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Seth Rollins<\/p>\n

\"goldberglesnar\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Raw Universal Championship Match<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

These guys worked a five minute match which is twice as long as they normally go! \u00a0Lesnar won after flinging Goldberg around with ten german suplexes, handing him his first ever clean defeat.<\/p>\n

It was more or less the best possible match these guys are capable of having. \u00a0Now Lesnar is expected to nap until Summerslam where he hands the belt over to Roman. \u00a0Let’s hear it for part time wrestlers!<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Brock Lesnar
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Brock Lesnar<\/p>\n

\"ortonwyatt\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Smackdown Championship Match<\/strong><\/p>\n

Randy Orton won a short, rather unremarkable match that wasn’t really the epic climax that this months long feud deserved.<\/p>\n

It’s kind of strange to think that Orton has now won 13 heavyweight titles in his career. \u00a0He’s more than\u00a0doubled the number of reigns of wrestling legends such as Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels and Hulk Hogan but he really has a paltry number of memorable matches and feuds to justify this lucrative career that he’s had. \u00a0He connects well enough with the fans but that seems to rarely translate into classic matches and that was the case again here.<\/p>\n

The weird thing is that while John Cena looks like he could finally be winding down his career what with Hollywood knocking on his door and fatigue from so many years on the road, Orton still seems like he has many, many years left in the tank. \u00a0It seems likely that when its all said and done, he may well end up as the wrestler with the greatest number of world title reigns in history.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Randy Orton
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Randy Orton<\/p>\n

\"smackdownwomen\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Smackdown Womens Championship Match<\/strong><\/p>\n

Naomi got her Wrestlemania<\/em> moment and the match wasn’t cancelled as we all feared it would be during the broadcast. \u00a0Yay!<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Alexa Bliss
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Naomi<\/p>\n

\"takerreigns\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Roman Reigns vs Undertaker<\/strong><\/p>\n

There was a time when fans would indulge in fantasy booking, trying to decide how Undertaker’s career should end. \u00a0Should he retire undefeated at\u00a0Wrestlemania<\/em>? \u00a0Should his final opponent be John Cena? \u00a0Or maybe Kane? \u00a0Who is deserving of the ultimate rub that comes from defeating such a legend of the industry.<\/p>\n

In the end, Undertaker went out putting over two wrestlers at\u00a0Wrestlemania<\/em> – Brock Lesnar (WM30) and Roman Reigns (WM33).<\/p>\n

The match with Roman Reigns was a sad spectacle, with a visibly aged Undertaker\u00a0working a sloppy and error riddled contest. \u00a0It was a far cry from the classic matches he had with the likes of Shawn Michaels and CM Punk.<\/p>\n

Undertaker retired getting the reception he richly deserved for such a long and storied career. \u00a0What they do with Roman Reigns for being the one to retire Undertaker remains to be seen. \u00a0If they actually lean into the nuclear heat that he’s getting from fans and let him have a run as a heel, then they’ve got something on their hands. \u00a0If they have Roman go out night after night pretending that he’s soaking in cheers….well, it seems like a crazy waste of Undertaker’s torch-passing moment.<\/p>\n

Who I Said Would Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Roman Reigns
\nWho Did\u00a0Win: \u00a0<\/strong>Roman Reigns<\/p>\n

\"takerretire\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Overall Thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wrestlemania 33\u00a0<\/em>reminded me of a mid-Ninteties WCW pay-per-view with its terrific undercard and lousy\u00a0main event scene which is clogged with aging stars hogging the limelight. \u00a0I’m sad to see Undertaker go but his retirement will definitely free up one of the marquee 20 minute spots at the top of the card which will hopefully be put to use pushing younger stars in the future. \u00a0Likewise, I hope that once Roman reclaims the title from Brock Lesnar we can move forward with a new generation of stars feuding over the title instead of the same handful of aging talent that have no business being there. \u00a0If\u00a0Wrestlemania 34<\/em> can be headlined with matches that don’t involve Triple H, Brock Lesnar, Goldberg, Undertaker, Sting or any other holdovers from wrestling in the late Nineties\/early 2000s, I’ll be happy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Undertaker retires at an eventful and better than expected Wrestlemania show<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":21256,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[495,1010],"class_list":["post-21254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-wrestlemania","tag-wwe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21254"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21254\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21258,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21254\/revisions\/21258"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/21256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}