Top 5 WWE Moments Inside Madison Square Garden

Carl Gac

WWE presents their live event from Madison Square Garden in New York this weekend, they’ve performed inside the world-famous arena for decades now but what are the top 5 WWE moments inside MSG ?

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New York is the place that many fans would call home for WWE (and previously WWF). Madison Square Garden is the arena that they would consider to be their home base in one of the greatest cities in the world.

On Saturday night we’ll see the return of Brock Lesnar to MSG to face the Big Show. It will mark Lesnar’s first match since WWE SummerSlam and will also continue this 13-year rivalry between the two men.

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Before we get to the match tonight, we have to take a look at some of the best moments in WWE that have happened at this world-famous arena.

From superstar debuts, crowd popping returns, to some of the most brutal matches and one of the most famous events in wrestling, it has all happened inside this fabled great building.

But what is our top 5 WWE moments inside Madison Square Garden? Click below to find out.

Next: No. 5

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5. Kane is Unmasked

At Badd Blood in 1997, a brand new monster debuted in WWE, it was one of the most famous debuts in the history of the company and the man behind that mask was always a mysterious character. That’s until he lost a title vs mask match against Triple H inside Madison Square Garden on June 23rd 2003.

The Undertakers half-brother was one of the mainstays of the Attitude Era, since his debut fans had always wondered what he looked like under that mask, on that night we found out and it wasn’t what a lot of people were expecting.

With the thought that Kane had been disfigured by a fire during his childhood it was revealed that he actually hadn’t and it was all just in his mind. The trauma of the fire had apparently sent him slightly crazy and he couldn’t show the world his face.

After all those years it was somewhat of a shock to see the decision made to unmask probably the greatest masked wrestler in WWE history. It made perfect sense at the time for it to happen and since then we’ve seen Kane become one of the true legends of the WWF/WWE.

Next: No. 4

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4. Rocky Maivia’s Debut

In 1996 the WWF was at the peak of what is one of the worst periods in the history of the company. The peak of the Attitude Era was a few years away, there was a lot of awful stuff happening on WWF television and the man who would become the Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment wasn’t even on the horizon.

A third generation superstar and a big star on the football field, Rocky Maivia made his WWF in ring debut Survivor Series 1996. He teamed with Marc Mero, Jake “The Snake” Roberts and The Stalker (Barry Windham). Becoming the sole survivor in the match it was plain to see that Vince McMahon had big plans for him right from the off, but nobody could ever imagine how big a star and how important this man would become in the legacy of professional wrestling.

When you take a step back and look at where The Rock stands in the world of entertainment right now you’d never believe it looking at him in 1996. Without doubt The Rock is one of the two most important men, alongside Stone Cold Steve Austin, of the Attitude Era and the history of the WWF/WWE. His popularity, ring prowess and main stream appeal still make him one of the biggest stars the company can call upon.

Next: No. 3

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3. Cactus Jack vs. Triple H

We’ve seen two outstanding matches between the alter ego of Mick Foley and the man who looks set to inherit the throne of WWE Triple H.

The first was the episode of Raw from September 22nd 1997, when Triple H thought he’d finally got the better of Foley. Mick had appeared as both Mankind and Dude Love in WWF but when he was set to face Triple H in a street fight only one man could face him, Cactus Jack!

That wining debut for the third face of Foley included a now infamous pile driver through a table and one of the greatest characters in the history of wrestling finally surfacing in the company.

The pair squared off again in similar circumstances three years later. At Royal Rumble 2000 they fought in a street fight for the WWF title, this was Foley’s specialty and one of the best matches of its type the company has seen. It included shots with the ring bell, suplexes on pallets, a barbed wire wrapped two by four, an appearance by the Rock and a pile of thumbtacks. All that was to no avail for Cactus though as Triple H got the win.

Triple H and Cactus Jack were two men who always managed to pull off that five-star match every time they faced each other.

Next: No. 2

2. John Cena’s Return

Royal Rumble 2008. Triple H is the man who looks to be on his way to winning the Rumble match, standing tall in a ring full of Superstars. It looks as if nobody can stop him from becoming the man who’ll head to WrestleMania. The countdown clock begins for number 30 to enter the ring. Oh my God it’s John Cena!

Cena had been out injured with a torn pectoral muscle and was expected to be out for a few more months yet, so nobody in their wildest dreams expected him to appear in the Royal Rumble. Seeing the crowd reaction, coupled with the beaming smile on Cena’s face as he stood in the aisle told you all you needed to know, this was one of the best surprises the company had pulled off for a long time.

Cena and Triple H ended up being the final two in the match and Cena would get the win after only eight and a half minutes in the ring. The perfect way to bring him back and throw him straight into the title picture. He’d go on to main event WrestleMania in a triple threat match with WWE Champion Randy Orton and Triple H.

At the time I wasn’t a great supporter of Cena, but that return was one of those moments that makes the hairs stand up on the back of your neck. It was a massive surprise to see him back this soon and a welcome one if you go by the reaction of the fans in attendance.

Next: No. 1

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1. WrestleMania

Madison Square Garden is the arena where some of the most important moments in WWE history have taken place, but none so important as WrestleMania. The first WrestleMania, as well as WrestleMania X and XX, took place from this famous old building. If it hadn’t been for the success of the original Mania we may not have wrestling as we know it now.

At WrestleMania we saw the massive main event of Hulk Hogan and Mr T vs Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff. As well as Andre the Giant against Big John Studd and appearances by several stars of sport and entertainment including Cyndi Lauper, Muhammed Ali and Liberace. The star of the show was undoubtedly pushed as Hogan but without the presence of Piper as the main antagonist the event would have meant little.

WrestleMania X is most famous for the ladder match between Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon for the Intercontinental Title, that is one match that is still very highly regarded with fans and wrestlers alike. Also on that card was the infamous match between brothers Brett and Owen Hart and Brett Hart winning the WWF title from Yokozuna in the main event.

WrestleMania XX returned to New York and was main evented by a Triple threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship between Triple H, Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels. The match was won by Benoit, making Triple H tap out to the cross face. The event was ended with the sight of Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, who had beaten Kurt Angle earlier in the night to retain his WWE Championship, standing in the ring holding their titles as confetti rained down on them. XX was the debut of John Cena at WrestleMania, he beat Big Show for the United States title.

If it hadn’t been for the vision of Vince McMahon in the mid 1980’s, the vision to create the spectacle of WrestleMania, we may now be living in a world where professional wrestling could be very different.

Madison Square Garden has played its part in making some of the greatest moments in wrestling history, tonight may just see some more made!

Next: WWE MSG Live Review

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Carl Gac

Carl has been a massive wrestling fan since the mid 90's. A fan of WWE and TNA but mainly a lover of the indies and British Wrestling. Be sure to follow Carl on twitter to see his views on all things going on in the wrestling world.