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After five days of nothing but wrestling in Orlando, Fla., which featured all three major U.S. wrestling companies trying to put their best foot forward, it's time to take a look at some of the winners and losers from WrestleMania weekend.
WINNERS
Ric Flair: The Nature Boy went out exactly how he should have. His induction into the Hall of Fame was one of the best inductions I've seen. Yes, I know the WWE Hall of Fame is a farce, but inductions like Flair's make it seem like it truly is a genuine honor to be inducted into the WWE HOF. I'm sure there are many fans that can't wait to get WrestleMania 24 when it arrives on the shelves next month for the unedited version of Flair's acceptance speech.
On Sunday, I got chills after Flair was asked backstage about his plans for his match against HBK by Mike Adamle. His reply was, "To be the man, wooo!" It was apparent right there that for this weekend the real Flair was back and not the neutered version of the Nature Boy that WWE creative has presented us with for nearly the duration of his recent seven year tenure with the company.
The HBK-Flair match will go down as one of the matches I'll never forget. It was a five star match that took wrestling fans away from the banal side of wrestling and showcased that wrestlers truly can be artists in the ring. The emotion, showmanship, and storytelling that both men displayed here gave me chills during the match. I shed a tear with Flair as he took his final three count. I will never forget this edition of WrestleMania because of this match, which showed that despite all of the politics and backstabbing that goes on in wrestling, sometimes things end up going the way they should.
It didn't end for Flair on Sunday, as WWE still had to put on its post-WrestleMania edition of Raw. For all the complaining this columnist did about the way WWE creative booked Flair's retirement angle, I forgot everything leading up to this weekend after Raw this past Monday, which was built around a Flair giving his farewell speech. I've never seen WWE do something with so much class as what I witnessed last night with the video packages and highlights of some of Flair's major matches against the likes of Harley Race and Ricky Steamboat was top-shelf. Heck, I even thought Dusty Rhodes was sincere when he called Flair a national treasure.
Flair's speech was vintage Flair, as he came to the ring and carried himself like the Nature Boy I remember for his farewell speech. His promo was incredible. The reunion of the Four Horseman brought back so many memories to me from years ago. Flairs tears brought tears to my eyes as his colleagues came out to pay tribute to him. It brought me back to going to the video store as a child to get a tape with Flair's latest match. It was truly a transcendent moment - a moment I felt WWE would never give us, but also a moment I don't expect to see equaled ever again in my lifetime by any wrestling promotion.
I wonder if Brian Gewirtz finally "get" what everyone is talking about when they talk about how great Ric Flair was.
HBK: I knew Shawn Michaels would deliver against Ric Flair this weekend. The final build for their match on the go-home edition of Raw prior to WrestleMania was excellent. HBK gave interviews to several media outlets during the week leading up to WrestleMania and stated he was nervous about his match with Flair, but I've never doubted his ability against any opponent after watching what he did with Hogan at SummerSlam a few years back.
Michaels pulled out all the stops during his match against Flair, including two dangerous maneuvers off the top rope. The one thing that stands out to me about HBK is his ability to sell. His facial expressions are among if not the best I've ever seen from a wrestler. He can sell pain, anguish, sadness, pity, and everything else on the spectrum of emotions I can think of. He topped it all when he look at Flair before finishing him off when he told him he loved him and he was sorry before hitting him with sweet chin music. Once again, HBK proved he is among the best ever in the history of wrestling.
Undertaker and Edge: I'll put Taker and Edge together since they both deserve credit for delivering a match worthy of the main event slot at WM. Edge had his best match in a WWE ring since returning from injury against the Undertaker. I thought his "lost innocence" promo before the match set the stage for his performance in the main event. Edge and Undertaker had a lot to live up to in the last spot, but Edge more than held up his end of the bargain. I thought he did a good job of bringing his character out in the match front and center right from the start, as he attacked the Undertaker who was trying to intimidate him with a throat slashing gesture.
Taker and Edge had a lot of work to do, so they slowed things up and allowed the crowd to get into the story of the match before taking the fans on a ride that culminated with Taker beating Edge with his gogoplata submission. Most people were sure that Edge was going to lose, but he did a good job getting the crowd into his nearfalls near the end of the match. Say what you want about Taker's submission finisher, but it worked with this crowd.
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