Nice Guys Finish Last:
5 Heel Victories at Wrestlemania
Written by Mark Adam Haggerty
One of the defining dissimilarities separating the National Wrestling Alliance from the World Wrestling Federation was the way in which each promotion booked their world title. The NWA pushed villainous heels such as Ric Flair for YEARS at a time, so as to tell the tale of multiple heroes chasing the championship. The WWF belt however, was generally possessed by key babyface competitors who sold out arenas by defending the strap against an array of antagonists. It's interesting to note that while the WWE continues to evolve, it's booking practices at the "Granddaddy of Them All" remains the same. Now more than three decades into this annual tradition and only FOUR heels have ever walked away from Wrestlemania with the world title.
Triple H – Wrestlemania 2000 & XIX
Triple H has certainly seen his share of both success and defeat at the "Showcase of the Immortals," and will go down in history as the only heel to leave Wrestlemania with the world championship—TWICE. Believe it or not, babyfaces reigned supreme throughout the first fifteen years of Wrestlemania; from Hulk Hogan and Bret Hart to Shawn Michaels and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, every �Mania from—from one through fifteen—ended on a happy note with the villain vanquished. All that changed when Wrestlemania dropped its numeric value and went by its "New Millennium Moniker"—Wrestlemania 2000 was headlined by a four-way elimination match featuring a "McMahon in every corner." Triple H was escorted to ringside by his then-Kayfabe wife Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, where he proceeded to defeat the Big Show, Mick Foley, and the Rock to retain his WWE Championship. Fast forward 3-years to Seattle's SafeCo Field and the "Game" is once again on the defensive, although this time in a one-on-one encounter with the "Five-Time WCW Champion" Booker T. After a hard-fought battle against the righteous Booker T, the racist Triple H prevailed—still in possession of the "Big Gold Belt."
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin – Wrestlemania X-Seven
Although the "Texas Rattlesnake" enjoyed a far more lucrative run as a babyface, his victory over the Rock at Wrestlemania X-Seven will go down as one of the most dastardly decisions in �Mania history. By the spring of 2001, WWE Creative felt that "Stone Cold" Steve Austin could use a shot of adrenaline and opted to turn him heel for the foreseeable future. But how could the company go about changing direction on
THE
most popular performer in WWE history? After delivering a debilitating number of steel chair shots to his nemesis—Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson—Steve did the unthinkable and embraced the sinister and sadistic Vince McMahon. Hindsight being 20/20—according to Steve himself—this was probably the wrong move to make in terms of the "Stone Cold" character. The match itself is among the most praised in �Mania history and the events that followed will forever be immortalized as an iconic "�Mania Moment."
Chris Jericho – Wrestlemania XXVI
When Chris Jericho returned to the WWE in 2007, he did so with no purpose or direction—just another silver vest and a really bad haircut. By the time summer 2008 rolled around, Y2J was well on his way toward reinventing himself as a methodical menace to the sanctity of World Wrestling Entertainment. He continued on his slow-talking crusade as a championship contender for the rest of the run, and defended his world heavyweight championship against the "Rated R Superstar" at Wrestlemania XXVI in Glendale, Arizona. Edge and Jericho were a formidable-yet-short-lived tag team tandem before Edge was forced out of action due to injury. When he returned to the WWE, he received a hero's welcome from the �Universe, much to the chagrin of the world champion. Chris Jericho defeated his challenger in true heel fashion by relying on a foreign object—the "Big Gold Belt"—to do his dirty work. He blind-sided Edge and hit him with a "Codebreaker" for good measure, earning the victory and retaining his belt in the process.
The Miz – Wrestlemania XXVII
The Miz is among the most polarizing figures in Sports Entertainment thanks to his lifelong association with MTV and reality television. But that's not to say that Mike Mizanin isn't a qualified world heavyweight champion that held his title for an astonishing 160 days. I was in Atlanta for Wrestlemania XXVII, and I really enjoyed the video package that introduced the WWE Universe to the Miz as a main event talent. The talk of the weekend was the inevitable Cena-victory over the Miz, granting the "Doctor of Thuganomics" his umpteenth world championship. The match was far better than anticipated, and the finale was something nobody could have predicted. The cold and calculating Miz defeated the venerable John Cena in the headlining attraction of the first-and-only Wrestlemania where zero title changes occurred. The show ended with the Miz on his back after receiving the "People's Elbow" from the Rock. This was the last time a heel left Wrestlemania as champion.
There you have it—only four VILLAINS have ever walked away from Wrestlemania with the championship draped over their shoulder. And if you'll notice, aside from "Stone Cold"—who could hardly be considered a heel—every other instance was a successful title defense. Will Brock Lesnar be the next "bad guy" to emerge victorious with his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, or will Roman Reigns continue what has been a near-30 year tradition of babyface dominance? Until next time, this has been Mark Adam Haggerty reminding you to keep checking out Cheap-Heat and to follow my podcast on Facebook by LIKING "The B+ Players."
