IWE WrestleMania
From Iwe
| WrestleMania | ||
| The official WrestleMania logo. | ||
| Nickname(s) | "The Grandest Stage of Them All" "The Showcase of the Immortals" "The Grand Daddy of them all" "The Show of Shows" | |
| Information | ||
| Created by | Vince Matteson | |
| Promotion(s) | IWE | |
| Brand(s) | Raw (2003–2011; 2017–present) SmackDown (2003–2011; 2017–present) XCW (2007–2009) | |
| First event | WrestleMania I | |
| Event gimmick | IWE's flagship event | |
WrestleMania (also known informally as Mania) is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and IWE Network event, produced annually between mid-March to early April by IWE, an American professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. IWE first produced the event in 1985 and has since produced 32 editions, with the thirty-third to be held in Orlando, Florida on April 2, 2017. WrestleMania, IWE's flagship event, is the most successful and longest-running professional wrestling event in history. It contributes to the worldwide commercial success of IWE through media, merchandise, and shows. WrestleMania was conceptualized by IWE owner Vince Matteson and long time IWE ring announcer and Hall of Famer Howard Finkel is credited with devising the name "WrestleMania" in 1984.
WrestleMania's widespread success helped transform professional wrestling. The event has facilitated the rise to stardom of several top IWE wrestlers. Celebrities such as Aretha Franklin, Cyndi Lauper, Muhammad Ali, Mr. T, Alice Cooper, Lawrence Taylor, Pamela Anderson, Mike Tyson, Donald Trump, Floyd Mayweather, Pete Rose, Burt Reynolds, Mickey Rourke, Snoop Dogg, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Kid Rock, Fred Durst, Ozzy Osbourne, Ronda Rousey, and Shaquille O'Neal have participated or made special appearances within the events.
The first WrestleMania was held in Madison Square Garden in New York City; the 10th and 20th editions were also held there. WrestleMania III in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac, Michigan was the highest-attended indoor sports event in the world, with 93,173 fans in attendance. The record stood until February 14, 2010, when the 2010 NBA All-Star Game broke the indoor sporting event record with an attendance of 108,713 at Cowboys Stadium. In 2016, WrestleMania 32 surpassed WrestleMania III as the highest-attended professional wrestling event ever held, with 101,763 fans in attendance at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. All editions of the event have been hosted in North American cities, with 30 in the United States and two in Canada.
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Organization
While WrestleMania events have taken place mostly in sports arenas in large cities, a number of them have occurred in large stadiums. The most-attended events include—WrestleMania III (93,173) in Pontiac, WrestleMania VI (67,678) in Toronto, WrestleMania VIII (62,167) in Indianapolis, WrestleMania X-Seven (67,925) in Houston, WrestleMania X8 (68,237) also in Toronto, WrestleMania XIX (54,097) in Seattle, WrestleMania 23 (80,103) in Detroit, WrestleMania XXIV (74,635) in Orlando, WrestleMania XXV (72,744) also in Houston, WrestleMania XXVI (72,219) in Glendale and WrestleMania XXVII (71,617) in Atlanta.
WrestleMania centers on the main event matches for the IWE Championship, and since WrestleMania XIX, the World Heavyweight Championship. The XCW World Championship was only defended once - at WrestleMania XXIV. Other IWE championships are also contested for, while gimmick matches and personal feud matches also take place on the match card.
Since 1993, the winner of the annual Royal Rumble match has been able to receive a guaranteed IWE Championship match at the same year's WrestleMania. With the introduction of the World Heavyweight Championship in 2002, the winner is also given the option to choose between the world title or the IWE championship. The creation of the XCW brand in June 2006 gave the Rumble winner a third option - to choose to challenge for the XCW World Championship. This option was made available from 2007 until the brand was retired in 2010.
WrestleMania 21 saw the introduction of the Money in the Bank ladder match. This match features six to ten participants and took place at five WrestleMania's between 2005 and 2010 before becoming the idea towards a new pay-per-view event, Money in the Bank which incorporated the use of two Money in the Bank ladder matches for both respective IWE brands, SmackDown and Raw. The participant who retrieves the briefcase suspended above the ring wins a contract, which guarantees a world title match at the time and place of the winner's choosing for up to one year, including the following year's WrestleMania.
Commentators
History
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
Future
Celebrity involvement
- Main article: List of celebrities involved with WrestleMania
WrestleMania Axxess
Dates and venues
See also
- List of IWE pay-per-view events
- List of IWE Network events
- Starrcade: the premier event produced by the defunct World Championship Wrestling.
- November to Remember: the premier event produced by the defunct Xtreme Championship Wrestling.
- Bound for Glory: the premier event produced by TNA Wrestling.
- Final Battle: the premier event produced by Ring of Honor.
- January 4 Dome Show: the premier event produced by New Japan Pro Wrestling.
- CMLL Anniversary Show: the premier event produced by CMLL.
- Triplemanía: the premier event produced by AAA.
- Ultima Lucha: the premier event produced by Lucha Underground.
References
Further reading
External links
Template:IWE WrestleMania Venues
