WWF Wrestlemania 17 4/1/2001
Note: I originally reviewed this in 2 parts and wanted to put this into one post. My original reviews are here:
Part 1 - https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/03/wwf-wrestlemania-x-seven-review.html
Part 2 - https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/03/wrestlemania-x-seven-review.html
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Welcome to my review of Wrestlemania X-Seven. Wrestlemania X-Seven is in
opinion the best Wrestlemania of all-time and is by far my absolute
favorite. The show was a classic and WWF at its best and I've been
looking forward to reviewing this one for a while.
For a fun fact, I actually paid around $70 for this a few years ago
before WWE started heavily getting into selling DVD's. This was rather
rare and expensive back in the day and next to Wrestlemania 2000, was
one of the more expensive WWE DVD's.
We are in Houston, Texas. Jim Ross and Paul Heyman are on commentary.
Pre-Show:
Steve Blackman agreed to be Grand Master Sexay's partner on Sunday Night Heat.
Pre-show Match - Grand Master Sexay and Steve Blackman vs X-Factor (X-Pac and Justin Credible)
X-Factor won with double superkicks. The match wasn't bad. X-Pac looked great throwing some nice kicks and Sexay was into it. Even Blackman was kind of fun here.
Wrestlemania 17 Main show:
Intercontinental Title - Chris Jericho vs William Regal
Chris Jericho won with a lionsault. The finish was a little unexpected but the match was very good. They both beat the crap out of each other and brought their best stuff out. I loved Regal's leg counter of the Walls of Jericho into the Regal Stretch and Regal's release german was nasty. Great match here. Rating:***1/2
Shane McMahon arrived in the limousine with the WCW1 license plate.
The Acolytes were in the back playing cards and looking for Tazz. Bradshaw then encouraged them all to get up and get going as its Wrestlemania, after a long speech.
Tazz, Farooq and Bradshaw vs Right to Censor (Val Venis, The Goodfather and Steven Richards)
Steven Richards tried to talk before the match before getting interrupted.
Bradshaw won with a clothesline from hell on The Goodfather. Short and sweet match here. They kept it action packed and did a good job considering some of the talent levels of wrestlers in there. Bradshaw really nailed Venis with the top rope backdrop and whammed Goodfather with the clothesline for the win. Rating:**3/4
Steph asked Linda how good it felt to have one child turn out okay and asked Trish to crack some ice with her hands.
WWF Hardcore Title - Raven vs The Big Show vs Kane
Kane won with a legdrop off the cage. The match was really fun as they put out all the stops. They went through walls, doors, glass and even ran each other over with cars. This was wacky and crazy and I really enjoyed it. Everyone went all out here and this was pretty memorable. Rating:***
Kurt Angle was in the back and was watching footage of Chris Benoit tapping him out. He was trying to rationalize it and say that since it wasn't an official match, it wasn't an official tap out. Edge and Christian tried to cheer him up, but Kurt was focused on Benoit.
We saw Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka at WWF New York.
WWF European Title - Eddie Guerrero vs Test
Eddie Guerrerro won with a belt shot. Good match here but it was loaded with interference. Saturn got involved twice and Malenko got involved during the finish. Test looked good here and I really liked his powerbombs.
Mick Foley said he would call the match right down the line tonight even though Vince McMahon fired him from being the commissioner.
Kurt Angle vs Chris Benoit
Kurt Angle won with a roll-up and a pull of the tights. Very good match here but I think it could have been better. I didn't like the ref bump, but everything else was good. I would have loved to have seen more suplexes, but what they did was good. I liked them stealing each others finishers and I loved Kurt's moonsault. The technical wrestling to start was also very good. Rating:***1/2
Michael Cole was talking to Regal when Kamala jumped in his office.
Kurt Angle was asked if he now respected Chris Benoit. He said no and Benoit attacked him.
Women's Title - Ivory vs Chyna
Chyna won in a quick squash. Not much else to say about this here, but it was one of Chyna's last WWE matches. She was in really good shape for this.
Vince McMahon told Trish to double Linda's medication and to bring her down when Shane McMahon was totally immobile.
Cole wanted to ask about the shocking development of Shane McMahon signing with WCW and Vince told Cole that if he wanted shocking, he will get it.
Street Fight - Special Ref: Mick Foley - Vince McMahon vs Shane McMahon
Shane McMahon beat Vince McMahon with the coast to coast dropkick with a trashcan. Well, this was all theatrics and drama. Those parts were pretty good with father vs son, turns, violence and Linda recovering. You can't really ask for more than that. The actual match had about 3 moves, with all of them coming from Shane. Shane also sold for a long time inbetween them with him probably laying down after the table bump for an easy 5 minutes. They did a really good job with it though and made this one a big match on the big stage.
Matt Hardy was interviewed about TLC and said none of the teams will be the same after it tonight.
TLC II - WWF World Tag Team Championship - The Dudley Boyz vs Edge and Christian vs The Hardy Boyz
Edge and Christian won TLC II when Christian grabbed the belts while on Rhino's shoulders. Obviously, this was a heck of a match. This was the Mankind vs Undertaker Hell in a Cell of TLC matches and was TLC at its peak. This was a stunt show and completely insane. They were extremely creative and went beyond putting it all on the line for the big show. These 6 killed each other and I believe that to this day, they are still feeling remnants from it. There were three big highlights which included Jeff Hardy's swanton off the 16 foot ladder, Edge's spear to Jeff Hardy who was hanging in the air and Bubba and Matt going through 4 tables off of a ladder. It was excellent, exciting and it was well done storyline wise. This was an epic on the biggest stage possible and a truly unforgettable match. Rating:*****
Gimmick Battle Royale
The Iron Shiek got the win here due to being the only person who really couldn't take the bump. The match was quick and short as it should have been and after the match Sarge put the Cobra Clutch on Shiek.
The Undertaker vs Triple H
The Undertaker won with The Last Ride. This was a lot better in memory than in actuality. The match was mostly weapon shots and little else. The big spots here were also kind of goofy. Triple H got backdropped off a camera tower and it appeared to be a good bump. Then they showed it again and it was little more than a crash pad that HHH seemed to bounce nicely off of. The second was the sledgehammer shot near the end. HHH hit Taker in the back with it and somehow this caused Taker to bleed from his forehead. The pacing to the match was good though and it was set-up nicely, just the big spots really didn't deliver. Rating:***1/2
WWF Title - No DQ - The Rock vs Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin beat The Rock in 28:07 to win the WWF title. Excellent match. They brawled wonderfully and put everything in it. They used each others moves, they used moves they hadn't used in years and they even referenced Austin being Sharpshootered by Bret at Wrestlemania 13. They bled and even did submission work. This match had it all. It was a per
fect cap to the Attitude Era and I don't think the announcers knew how true their words were that the WWF would never be the same again after this. This is probably the best match in Wrestlemania history and was a super classic. This is must see. Rating:*****
Overall thoughts: This is one of the best shows of all-time. Every match was good and the show featured two 5-star matches. This is a must see show and the last show of the Attitude Era. This show had something for everyone and is a Wrestlemania that may never be matched.
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